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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The unforgettable masterpiece, September 22, 2001
By A Customer
In late 1977 Edgar Froese, the founding father of Tangerine Dream was very busy, indeed. At the time he recorded yet another of his solo album, and looked hard for replacement of the irreplaceable, namely Peter Baumann. Since the motto of Tangerine Dream in the 70s was - experiment, innovation and spontaneity, he decided to employ two new members of the band, momentarily diverting from the unspoken rule that Tangerine Dream was, is, and shall remain a trio. Perhaps there is nothing extraordinary in the mere fact of expanding the band, but considering its history, the changes were indeed revolutionary. Why? The new members were: Klaus Krieger, a drummer, who played a standard jazz hand-made percussion, and Steve Joliffe, a vocalist and multiinstrumentalist, who used a new generation of Fairlight synthesizers, and played analog instruments like bass and tenor horns, bass and alto flutes, piccolo, cor anglais, bass clarinet, and grand piano. Although yet again Tangerine Dream had a member playing flute, the sound of Tangerine Dream Anno Domini 1978 did not resemble their previous recordings. The compositions on "Cyclone", which was recorded in early 1978, are more aggressive than ever, more rock-oriented, while still complex and touching. The album was a shock for the electronic community. Ever since the audience has been divided - for "Cyclone" is a very controversial album. The attitude has been: love it, or hate it. Most of the audience objected the introduction of vocals, and even the essence of the Joliffe lyrics was objectionable to most. Still, the album is very coherent - it might be even christened a concept album, the expression we usually associate with Pink Floyd. Perhaps it's not a coincidence, for the first two tracks slightly resemble the older songs by that famous British group. The resemblance is slight, for the vocals are unique, while the overall impression is that of originality. The album withstood the flow of time, and is still considered among the very best that the band ever conceived. This is also due to the multiinstrumental fugue of 'Madrigal Meridian', the last and the longest, purely instrumental composition on the album. There, the excellence of the musicians shows and we cannot help but admire the perfection with which the track was recorded and performed. Just like in the old times of "Stratosfear", the composition is multithreaded, albeit much more dynamic - it features melodies, ostinata, solos of various instruments interlaced together in the fugue. This is the work of genius, indeed. Usually it's the case that the artists try to develop their own, unique sound. This certainly applies to Tangerine Dream, but how many artists, how many bands can boast of so many innovative, unique compositions that have little in common? In the 70s, Tangerine Dream produced many albums, each of which could be considered as the discovery of new lands, of new ways to express the mind. Each one could be very well followed by a few epigone albums, just as is so often the case with other artists. Tangerine Dream were not the slaves of their own work, of their own success - not in the 70s. Within such a short time, they invented, expanded, and created the whole universe of music, the whole genre. No one before or after was able to match their originality, even the band itself in later years. "Cyclone" is one of the unforgettable masterpieces, whether you like the vocals or not. Personally, I love them.
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