I admit...when I first listened to the album I was slightly disappointed. I thought the same thing about it being a bit repetitive. The songs seemed a bit incomplete. However, with each repeat listen, I liked it more and more. Now I absolutely am in love with it! It's definitely an album that needs to be experienced on headphones or a good sound system. Only then do you notice all the layers and subtleties, and realize just how incredible the production is. Michael Cretu (the man behind Enigma) has utilized so many cutting edge sounds and effects to create a stunning voyage through space and the night sky. There are fewer vocals than previous albums, which is quite a contrast to Voyageur, the most pop-influenced album. This one plays out more like a soundtrack for the mind and soul - more similar to earlier albums. You won't find many standout sing-along songs, but if you love that mysterious Enigma atmosphere, you should really dig this. I'm not crazy about "Goodbye Milky Way," but the rest is incredible. "Feel Me Heaven" and "Dreaming of Andromeda" are probably my favorites, but most of the tracks are very close behind. I highly recommend giving this album repeated listenings before you pass judgment. It truly is amazing.

Enigma, A.K.A. Michael Cretu, has finally given us a masterpiece nearly ten years in the making with "A Posteriori". Though I believe it is Enigma's last album, I am excited to say that everything ends the only way it could have started back in 1990: leaving the listener begging for more.

I was probably one of the few, or perhaps many, who was pissed off with 2003's "Voyageur". For starters, not only did it contradict the trademark ingredients of Enigma's style (ethereal movements punctuated by sexual undertones), but came off as an imitation. It had its moments, but when you find yourself juggling two singers in addition to your own, injecting lame lyrics into songs such as "Boum Boum", and letting the vocals dominate the musicianship altogether, you know you're going down hard. I was afraid that Cretu had forgotten what Enigma was all about, but after three long years, he's finally given devoted listeners an album worth meditating to, dancing to, and having sex to all over again.

What I like about "A Posteriori" is that it makes a logical progression from the mess that was "Voyageur" without disregarding everything and starting with a clean slate. There's only a hint of its predecessor in the opening track, which, Thank God, exhibits its roots with a plethora of Enigma staples such as ethnic tongues and the fading horn. After that, buckle up and get ready for an adventure. I never thought I would hear the same Enigma again, but Cretu masterfully creates something familiar and something new at the same time. The vocals are seriously overhauled this time around, so if you liked Andru Donalds and Ruth-Ann Boyle, you won't hear them on this go-around. For those who never liked Michael's singing, I assure you that it's not as bad as the last time. He chimes in here and there to prevent lagging, but he lets the instrumentation do most of the talking. Speaking of talking, did I forget to mention that Sandra drops in after a long absence to grace us with her wonderful voice yet again?? I swear she's been missing since "Enigma 3", but it's such a relief to hear her speak again, if not for just two songs.

In terms of mood, "A Posteriori" has it in spades. It's the first album since "Screen Behind the Mirror" to give me chills by its sheer scope alone. The second track, "Feel Me Heaven", conjures up images of flight and accelerating towards the unknown, and "Dancing With Mephisto" is by far one of the sexiest songs to emerge from Cretu's catalogue in over a decade. I was somewhat let down when I first heard "Hello and Welcome" a couple of months back, but fortunately this album contains a radically different version that moves with the flow instead of spoiling it. And I never thought I would say this, but Cretu puts out his best vocals, not to mention ambient strengths, on display with the closing track, "Goodbye Milky Way". These are just the highlights mind you; the remainder of the songs succeed in unison to plunge the listener into a grand arena of relaxation and primal urges. This album is definitely not to be missed.

When I mentioned that this could very well be Enigma's last album, I was only speculating, but given that the title means retrospection and past experiences, I wouldn't mind if this was Enigma's swansong, because it's a damn fine swansong. Although people don't read these reviews, I hope someone will be convinced by some means to give this one a spin in the future. Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi!

As an owner of all of Enigma's albums I have seen Michael Cretu's style change over the past 2 albums, so my purchase of "A Posteriori" I expected to see something new from him. I think part of Enigma is the "enigmatic" experience he continues to deliver. For me, this album did take a couple listens to feel the flow and direction Cretu took with this as well as playing it on our surround sound (took advice from other reviewers).

I am a fan of ambient and progressive trance music so I immediately connected with this album. The first 3 tracks are somewhat of a different style for Enigma and more upbeat, but very catchy. The flow from upbeat to "chill" is well masked as the tracks progress. The CD is much more instrumental, but the underlying melodies and layered sounds generated deliver a unique sound. Cretu adds some vocals to stick to the older style of Enigma, but I miss the women's vocals.

Overall, this is probably my 2nd or 3rd favorite Enigma album behind Le Roi Est Mort and a toss up between Voyageur. Give it a listen and it will grow on you! Although the "If it ain't broken, don't fix it" phrase has labeled this album as a disappointment, appreciate Cretu's latest work as a representation of the word Enigma: "a mysterious, puzzling and unexplainable event" and you won't be let down!

I say this is music. I only write reviews on products I feel strongly about, and this is such a product. I was previously entranced by Enigma's last album, "Voyageur", for its genius, and now a new obsession has emerged: "A Posteriori". Masterpiece. Absolutely. Through its spacey auditory communique, this exuberant album seems to transmit its splendor directly from the heavens with the majority of its tracks. From "Eppur Si Muove" (Galileo's legendary or mythical phrase "And yet it moves") to "The Alchemist", Enigma built this album for the infinite: an homage to our cosmic ambition. The last track, "Goodbye Milky Way", was rather superfluous, in my opinion, as it did not fit the rest of the album: it relied on its lyrics (not something Enigma should do, for it hinders the music).

The albums's highlights:

- "Dreaming Of Andromeda" -Up-beat and dreamy (as the name implies), the two adjectives are rarely seen in correlation with each other, but they could not be more appropriate.

- "Dancing With Mephisto" -Introed with a creepy cult-like chant it transforms into a electronic entity made for a dance around the bon-fire.

- "Message From IO" -Interstellar morse-code put into rythmic bliss.

- "Hello And Welcome" -The energy released throughout the track is amazing. It recalls that of some sci-fi hyper-space adventure.

- "20,000 Miles Over The Sea" -A more appropriate title: "Ladies and Gentlemen, We are now Floating in Space." This is my favourite on the album. By far the most dreaming and spacey, yet simple and elegant. The inital reason for purchasing the CD.

- "The Alchemist" -Rock & Roll... Enigma style... kind of. Difficult to describe, but extraordinary none-the-less. Certainly a different breed of song altogether. I love it.

All in all, Enigma never ceases to amaze. Deer caught in the headlights for this one. And it is grand. If you liked Enigma's previous album: "Voyageur" and are looking for a more upbeat tracks, look no furthur, "A Posteriori" is that voyage. Destination: that great galactic void. Prepare for take off.

So first off, I need to rant a little bit. I'm going back through Enigma's vast music catalogue and listening to the journey start to finish. As I'm doing so, I'm reading through the reviews of all the albums, and I'm left befuddled, pissed off, and just generally annoyed by the naysayers. Now, everyone has an absolute right to critique music, in fact, I firmly believe it should be done, but it seems no matter what Cretu does, and how brilliantly Enigma progresses its sound, some people just can't be pleased. In all the negative reviews, there are people bitching that Enigma's sound is being recycled over and over again, then in the same breath bitching that the sound is too different from the other albums. Seriously? Do you honestly think Michael Cretu would be continuing to produce Enigma records and SELLING Enigma records if there was no evolution in the sound? If you want MCMXC, a.D. over and over and over again, just go out and buy every record by every copycat new age project that rode and and continues to ride Enigma's coattails. Personally, I think while MCMXC,a.D. was sheer brilliance and utterly original when it was first released, now 20 years later, it's starting to sound dated and tired. It's the same way I feel about Delerium's "Karma". Cretu has said several times in interviews that one of the great things about doing Enigma is how he is able to explore so many different musical landscapes and not be tied to a single framework of sound. Why in the world would he want to stay stuck in one musical place over the span of twenty years? I have to assume he'd probably be bored out of his skull.

Cretu is and always will be a musical pioneer. Not everything he does is perfect, but it doesn't have to be. He set the standard for an entirely new genre of music, and so many electronic artists out there owe their success to him.

Now, on to "A Posteriori". This record is brilliant in so many ways. On this sixth Enigma offering, Cretu has found the perfect landscape, or skyscape rather, to showcase his new, cutting edge, compact studio he has dubbed "The Alchemist", and he does it brilliantly. The sound here is a complete departure from any other previous album under the Enigma moniker. The flutes, gregorian chants, world elements are all gone, and instead we are presented with a dark, slick, beautiful, purely electronic (with the exception of Cretu's beautiful classical guitar riff at the beginning of "Invisible Love") ambient and mostly instrumental set of songs that just beg to be listened to while stargazing. The beats here pulse and undulate instead of attack. The result is stunning. Cretu does lend his, erm...unique...vocals here, however, they are far more subtle and muted than on "Le Roi Est Mort...Vive Le Roi!" or "The Screen Behind the Mirror", and they seem to lend themselves to the music rather than detract from it.

Some highlights on this disc include the arrestingly beautiful opener "Eppur si Muove", which contains the closest thing to gregorian chants on this album. "Eppur" features a robotic latin chant that isn't quite Gregorian, but still dances around that territory.

"Dancing With Mephisto" is extremely dark, very very slick, sexual, pulsating, and almost creepy at times. One of my favorite tracks.

"Invisible Love" can only be described as throbbing. As I mentioned above, it opens with Cretu playing his classical guitar, which is a great contrast to the sheer electronica of the rest of the song, and the rest of the disc. His singing is featured in this song, but it really does work with the feel.

"Sitting on the Moon" is one of my favorites on this disc. It utilizes the same mid-tempo drum loops as "In the Shadow, In the Light" from Enigma's previous disc, "Voyageur". The song is sad, plaintive and beautiful. The loneliness that is conveyed in this song is tangible, and Cretu makes us believe it.

The closing track, and first single from this record, "Goodbye Milky Way", is the closest nod to the old Enigma sound that we get on this album. It does feature an ethnic, yet almost robotic chant that punctuates the song, but at the same time, it keeps with the same flavor as the rest of the songs. Many thought this was Michael Cretu's swan song to Enigma fans because of the lyrics from the chorus: "Mission is over/Mission is done/I'll miss you, children of the sun/Now it's time to go away/Goodbye, goodbye Milky Way." Thank God he was only referring to the ending of the "A Posteriori" journey.

All in all, this album is so special, and such a wonderful departure for Cretu and Enigma. The fact that it is different is what makes it so compulsively listenable. Well done, Cretu!