Tangerine Dream - "Stratosfear" (1976)

I can't say I have many German albums in the collection, and I can't say I know a lot of German artists or bands. Kraftwerk, Nina Hagen, Nena, Scorpions, Rammstein and a few bands from the Krautrock scene. And Tangerine Dream. Germany is a big country, but the number of famous artists doesn't correlate with the population size. I suppose a language barrier is to blame.

Like Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream uses mostly synthesizers of different kinds, but there the similarities end, musically in any case. Kraftwerk is colder, harder, more precise in their arrangements, almost robot like, while the creations of Tangerine Dreams radiate warmth, softness and humanity. Although Tangerine Dream sometimes creates dark and gloomy soundscapes, there is still a pleasant feeling surrounding it. Another difference is that Kraftwerk more made verse-verse-chorus songs, often with singing, at times with a pop ingredient as a number of mainstream hits show, while Tangerine Dream's creations more lean towards sound sculptures without the same clear structure, always instrumental. Tangerine Dream's music is simply much more druggier, and it's not surprising that it was a popular band among the hippies who visited Goa in the 70's. How many acid trips have had this album as a soundtrack, I wonder. At least for 35 minutes.

Stratosfear was the eighth album by the band. It was first mixed by Nick Mason from Pink Floyd, but this mix was abandoned because of arguments between Tangerine Dream and Virgin. It's a good album, a musical journey in the inner regions of consciousness. It was the last album where the classic setting Edgar Froese, Peter Baumann and Christopher Franke collaborated. The sound is typically electronic 70's, positively meant, often quite dark, some parts could be soundtrack to A Clockwork Orange. But as mentioned, there's always a warmth there, it's as if the music sweeps the listener into a dark, warm, mental blanket. What was new with Stratosfear was that some analog instruments sneaked in here and there, guitars are heard, some kind of flute, a grand piano. They often stay in the background, the synthesizer still dominates, but they contribute to the mood. The entire album actually ends with a few minutes of piano chords with a flute soaring above it.

Four songs of different lengths, they are quite varied, although it may be one synthesizer loop as a base that hypnotizes. But on top of this different things are going on, so it never feels boring. Probably not a record for everyone, but I like it.


Tracklist

Side A
1 Stratosfear 10:04
2 The Big Sleep In Search Of Hades 4:45

Side B
1 3AM At The Border Of The Marsh From Okefenokee 8:10
2 Invisible Limits 11:40

Tangerine Dream - "Rubycon" (1975)

Dope music, I used to call this kind of music when I was younger. The musiscians probably did drugs. The ones listening to the music did drugs. This was a compliment. The music was different, alternative and druggy. It attracted me. At the same time I had, as a teenager, a somewhat hard time with the Tangerine Dream albums. I listened a lot to early Pink Floyd and other psychedelic albums, but Tangerine Dream's instrumental records were a little too formless, shapeless and vague. I guess I missed a clear hook to cling on to. The albums of Tangerine Dream often stood a long time in the shelf witout getting any air time. Maybe I didn't do enough drugs?

Today I think differently about this record. It's a really great album.

Tangerine Dream is a German band that was formed in 1967, and Rubycon was their sixth studio album (if I've counted correctly). The previous album Phaedra had been a great success. Edgar Froese has been the steady member in the band and at the time of recording of Rubycon the band consisted also of Christopher Franke and Peter Baumann.
The band is still active today and has released over one hundred albums since its creation, and if you also count singles and compilations, the number is over two hundred.

Rubycon consists of two songs, one on each side of the album - Rubycon, Part One and Rubycon, Part Two. Simple and logical. The album has a total time of about 35 minutes which is enough. It had been a long time since I played this album, and when I a few weeks ago listened to it, I was surprised how good I thought it was. It has spun a number of times on the turntable since. Synthezeisers and the 70's can go in any direction, but in this case a really nice sound. There is a ceratin attraction to the early development of synth-based music that was largely lost in the 80's. Rubycon takes the listener on a journey that passes through peaceful landscapes, dark and neurotic chambers, harmonic fields and steady pulses. And even though the instruments have evolved tremendously since those days, Rubycon might sound even more beautiful than today's electronic music. Perhaps it is the relative simplicity of the sounds that attracts?

The music can be described as a mix of early Pink Floyd (think Echoes or Time), and Kraftwerk. More electronic than Pink Floyd but druggier than Kraftwerk. Make David Lynch the producer of some darker parts of the record and maybe you'll have a picture of what it is. The music creates a nice wholeness, and even though there are two long songs I don't get tired of the music. The road the music travels on always feels logical and the changes that occur are so integrated that there's no doubt that it's one and the same song. It's like a smooth dark river that flows, it turns here, it turns there, there are rapid parts, there are slow parts, but it is one and the same river.

It's a dark and calm album, although a steady pulse beats in parts of the songs. Rubycon is as much atmosphere as songs, and I think Tangerine Dream finds a good balance between these focuses. Sometimes albums /songs like these have parts that are mostly a chaos of sounds with no structure, I usually don't enjoy such parts. Luckily, Rubycon doesn't have these parts. I would say it's an enjoyable album all the way through even though some parts are less interesting than others.

For some reason, I get a summer vibe from this album, which also happens when I listen to Edgar Froeses solo albums. I don't know why. Maybe I have listened to this album during the summer as a younger man.

I recommend Rubycon. It is a half mystic, beautiful creation that works well a dark winter evening or a sunny summer day. It's a cool sound and the clear 70's stamp only enhances the experience.
And the 70s must have been a fun time when albums like these could spend time on the charts (14 weeks on spot #12).

Tracklist

Side A
1. Rubycon, Part One 17:18

Side B
1. Rubycon, Part Two 17:35