Customer Reviews

Tyranny of Beauty (Dlx)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This album was my first TD album, so it set the standard for the many other TD albums I would purchase since then. I have listened to their previous works and their works since, and I maintain my position that Tyranny of Beauty is a high water mark for this group.

This is a fusion of many different musical styles, and the variety of sounds and instruments creates a genre in itself. Every track is good, with the possible exception of the final track.

Take this album on a road trip and listen to it from beginning to end. I have played this album more than anything else in my collection, and it still amazes me. I give it my highest recommendation.

I'm not sure why this disc has recieved the less-than-enthusiastic reviews that it has. But as a long-time fan of German synthesizer-meisters Tangerine Dream, I find this 1995 release to be one of the band's most memorable and musically satisfying albums. Unlike some of those long-term T.D. "fans" who inexplicably dismiss anything post-Christopher Franke (or worse, knock the band's use of modern synth & persussion sounds), I feel that, with perhaps a few minor exceptions, T.D. has aged VERY well as a creative force. In my opinion, the group's newer music (under the guidance of founding-member Edgar Froese) has remained of a very high quality, and quite true to the artistic spirit of Tangerine Dream's legacy. Built around complex chord progressions, bright melodic lines, gripping, evocative rhythms, and some of the most detailed and dynamic arrangements in modern music, the compositions here on "Tyranny of Beauty" rate right alongside T.D.'s best work, old or new. The father/son keyboard team of Edgar & Jerome Froese show that they are still full of solid musical ideas, and they recieve ample help here from keyboard/woodwind artist Linda Spa, and a couple of guest guitarists. Speaking of the guitarists; the use of clean, bright acoustic lead guitars on a few tracks really adds something new and fresh to the music, demonstrating that Tangerine Dream still have some musical horizons to explore and experiment with...So much for the critisism that modern T.D. never try anything new! : ) To my ears, standout tracks include the album opener "Catwalk" (which marries thumping techno-rhythms & layered synth-textures with an alost "classical" flavor...very clever!), "Birdwatcher's Dream" (very rich in melody, with nice use of thick, harmonized guitars in the beginning, and stacatto picking in the middle), "Little Blond In the Park of Attractions" (simple but hypnotic, with a calming "new-agey" feel) "Living in a Fountain Pen" (more of "rock" feel, with a melody that sort of sneeks up on you), "Haze of Fame" (the longest track on the album, with a very progressive structure and a beautiful "atmospheric" section at that appear like bookends and the begginning end of the piece) and, last but not least, "Bride in Cold Tears" (one of my favorite T.D. tracks of all-time, a perfect blend of churning rhythms, subtle melodies, quick chord changes, and unique sound textures as only T.D. can do!) Each of these tracks makes for an intriguing sonic journey on its own terms, and also works well in the context of the overall album. Let me say that this is an album that stands up well to repeated listens, and to be fair, some listeners may need a few listens to fully appreciate it's charms. For instance; at first listen I felt that the albums title track ("Tyranny of Beauty") was a weak link in the line-up of songs. However, after a few more listens that track became one of my favorites, and I now can't imagine the album without it! This is a true credit to the artistry of Tangerine Dream - in this World of "catchy" 3 minute sound bytes and disposable pop stars, Edgar & Jerome Froese are not afraid to create music that challenges the listener to really LISTEN! All in all, if you enjoy the music of Tangerine Dream, particularly the 80's/90's period of T.D., then ignore the naysayers and give "Tyranny of Beauty" a listen for yourself...You may find much to enjoy, just as I did.

In the trio of "Guitar" CDs that I consider of Tangerine Dream, this one ranks behind Turn of the Tides, but ahead of Rockoon.

"Guest musician" guitarist Zlatko Perica left the band sometime between the release of Turn of the Tides and the sessions for this CD. His replacement is Gerald Gradwohl, a competent guitarist to say the least, but Zlatko's fire on the previous CDs was partly the reason that they were so good.

Tyranny of Beauty has some great guitar work by Grohwohl and Jerome Froese, I love listening to this CD, but for whatever reason the tunes just aren't as memorable as those on Turn of the Tides. That being said, it is a great CD and there is some great guitar work. Turn of the Tides and Tyranny of Beauty should be in the collection of any instrumental rock fan or guitar enthusiast. I think the saxophone is more prominent on this CD than the predecessor, but it doesn't detract from the listening experience in my humble opinion. Some standout tracks for me are Catwalk, Birdwatcher's Dream, Living In a Fountain Pen, and Haze of Fame.

Similar to its predecessor, the only thing that could make this CD better would be the use of an actual drum set then the drum machine/synth samples that they use for their drums.

Having owned the CD for a few years I have recently re-listened to it over and over. What a treat! It is as rich, textured, and substantial as anything TD has done. As opposed to some of their other CD's, which have not aged well, this one is filled with swirling soundscapes which are as powerful as anything they have done. To my amazement most of the electric lead guitar, which makes the album work, is by Gerald Gradwohl, whom I've never heard of! (Clearly I was 'asleep at the wheel' on this one.) If you like the sound of mysterious, serious and brooding TD, then you will like much of this wonderful disc.

This is a highly hypnotizing and energetic blend of dance and dark ambient New Age beats all on one great CD! "Catwalk", "Little Blond" and "Living in A Fountain Pen" are just sheer beauty! Buy this CD! That's all I can say for now!

This album provides something of a return to the excellent synthesiser programming and complex musical structures for which this group was once renowned-and which, sadly, tend to be lacking from many of their early 90's recordings. Not that all of this disc is uniformly good, mind, but overall it shows positive signs that the father and son partnership of Edgar and Jerome Froese are settling down into a more creative relationship than has sometimes evident prior to this. There remains, however, significant support from other musicians on this disc, with the regular contribution from Linda Spa (alto and soprano saxophones, plus cor anglais on one track), while Gerald Gradwool and Mark Hornby provide some heavyweight guitar playing from time to time.

The opening 'Catwalk' is typical of much of the music on the disc, with a catchy tune and some good, ambiguous synthesiser voicing (quite literally, as there is some really nice vox humana-type programming-or is it a real vocalist?) Its seven minutes or so duration is also typical of most of the other tracks on the disc. This increase of a couple of minutes over the average track-length on earlier albums seems to be a sign that the development of ideas within a track is becoming once again a feature of Tangerine Dream's music. Hurrah!

'Birdwatcher's Dream' is arguably the most enjoyable track on the disc. It is certainly the most varied, with a beat that slips and slides around and is not always delivered by the percussion -- something of a rarity in '90s TD releases! Indeed, there are times when the guitar has been given the job of carrying the beat and the drum voices are contributing more to melody -- another old Tangerine Dream trademark that it's nice to see returning. This track also has some pretty showy acoustic guitar playing. It's maybe not quite up to the standard to be found in parts of "Turn of the Tides" but it works well here.

'Stratosfear 95' is an updated version of this group's famous number from 1976. The personnel have changed since then, of course and needless to say, it isn't long before the famous analogue sequencer pulse of the original is ousted by a tougher modern, hard-driven digital percussion line. Most of the rest of the instrumentation is given a thorough work-over too and while still recognisable, this is definitely more of a studded leather-clad, tobacco-chewing beast than the original ever was -- 'Stratosfear' with attitude. That said, I don't think there's anything much about this newer version that will upset fans of the old one, unless, that is, they're the kind of fans who hate the path the group as taken since their golden Virgin Years. Any such will probably hate this whole disc, anyway, so this is probably a good track to try to sample before you buy, if you're in any doubt.

Or try the album's title track. This has a good mix of the styles exhibited throughout the disc. It has lots of jangling guitars; a strong pulse provided oft times more by rhythm guitar than by the percussion (which is mostly left just to ornament the beat) and everything topped off with a tasty mix of wind-type synthesiser voices and electric guitar-some great playing by Gerald Gradwool -- all of which is left very much to itself to develop as it will! This is very much a classic TD treatment but of the new TD sound.

The disc has its low spots too, though. A couple of tracks slip back into the ways of earlier (and more recent!) albums, with tiring guitar strumming, soaring sax lines and fairly tedious drumming all going nowhere much. It's OK, I suppose, if you like this kind of thing but this is not what long-standing fans hope for from Dream. Fortunately, the lapses are few and short-lived. 'Bride in Cold Tears', for instance, shows signs of going this way (*that* drumbeat is back early on) but is rescued, thankfully, by some variety in the percussion voicing and also the inclusion of some nice voice samples imaginatively used. Oh yes, and some very effective taped speech slipped in there too, something that I don't recall hearing TD use before!

Finally, it has to be said that the final two tracks, 'Largo (from Handel's "Xerxes")' and 'Quaser' (sic) are little more than fillers. For a start, they don't fit into the album's overall theme (I'll leave you to work it out for yourself! This band is inspired by Roger Waters in more ways than one, it seems...). Nor do they fit musically. The former is as embarrassing as most pop covers of great Classical originals. Its only saving grace is the sensitive sax line added by Linda Spa, which is very sweet. 'Quaser', meanwhile, sounds like TD's bid for a club mix single, with its non-stop drumming pulse over a bobbing synthesiser ground. Whilst fun, this track is mercifully short. Fortunately, the disc is generously proportioned even without these two final tracks, so even if you don't like them, they don't really detract, either from the disc's overall value, or, indeed, from its worth. (And if you especially do like 'Quaser', then "The Dream Mixes, Vol 1" is just for you! Check it out!)

I believe that I bought Tyranny of Beauty when it was first released a few years ago. I've never listened to it much, but I still regard it to be a satisfactory album. Every track is listenable. The ones that I like the most are "Stratosfear 1995," "Largo," and "Living in a Fountain Pen." "Living in a Fountain Pen" contains some nice guitar playing to it. Tyranny of Beauty is pretty good and worth a listen.

My first album was Le Parc back in 1985, and this was an evolution from previous albums. The heavier guitar riffs and powerful notes rung out and Stratosphere 1995 is a song I haven't heard in 9 years and one of the best songs ever from Tangerine Dream.

Of course, we all are entitled to our opinions, especially regarding music taste, and I am glad many of you like this album. Unfortunately, I did not experience the same level of enjoyment as you did, and I regret it because I am a long-time fan of TD (I discovered TD with Stratosfear, and they immediately became my top 5 bands in the 70s). But, and here is the huge BUT on this album: it is too busy and at the same time too plain. Nothing stands out.

TD use to have very distinguishable (unique) melodies and rhythmic sections. This album has no pulse, and barely any life (listen to the closing song "Largo" and you will see what I mean: it ends the album with an attempt to a more classical note with a flute-like leading instrument that is just plain and uninspiring). Even the "new" version of Stratosfear 1995 does not come close to the original version (no I am not a snob who only prefers old versions - take the remake of Led Zep "No Quarter" by Page/Plant in 1994, and it has remixed songs that are unique and improved over the originals like "Nobody's Fault but Mine", with middle eastern musical accents that are beautifully arranged). Where the original Stratosfear was focused, sharp, and very effective, the remake is busy and diluted, with unnecessary additions in the rhythmic structure.

Overall it is an unsatisfying album. TD has created high expectations for their fans and they reap what they saw with this album. This CD is not a horrible exercise, but close to their worst one, and by far inferior to my favorite landmarks: Rubicon, Stratosfear, and Optical Race.

listening to this music is a must for those who are interested in mind expantion and getting in touch with there more unihibited side. Great music that has alot of feeling. This CD is a must for couples.