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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Dynamic percussive flamenco, January 5, 2002
By A Customer
In 1988, Tangerine Dream substantially slowed down with album releases and soundtracks. That trend was to persist in later years as well - and for a few reasons. First of all, the band was now a duo instead of a trio, and the main force behind soundtrack work was missing from the band. Another reason might be that Edgar Froese finally realized that there is an upper limit of compositional burden anyone can take. Previous years showed clearly that even if Tangerine Dream was to become a machine for output creation, it might just as well break, and as any machine, it does have its friction coefficient, and other limitations of physical nature. Whether or not it was in the remaining members' power to continue, is debatable, and best left for the listener.The year 1988 brought us only two releases from Tangerine Dream (which is little only if compared to their output in previous years) - a studio album "Optical Race", and a soundtrack, "Miracle Mile". Released for public consumption a year later, the album provides us with some very good music, almost worth comparison with previous efforts from the band. Almost, but not quite. On the one hand the album contains watered-down themes resembling previous work on "Canyon Dreams", "Near Dark" and "Heartbreakers". A derivative work, but worth listening. Perfect examples might be 'One for the Books', 'Running Out of Time' and 'After the Call'. On the other hand, we have some unique and original tracks, which are consistently in the moody percussive rhythmic mode. A pleasure to listen, undoubtedly, but nothing that would set us on our knees. Good representative tracks that set the mood on this album are 'Teetering Scales' and 'All of a Dither'. Musically, these tracks do not contribute to the musical heritage of the band, but nevertheless represent solid, good soundtrack work. Proceeding further, we once again come back to slightly derivative work in 'Final Statement', 'In Julie's Eyes', and 'People in the News'. Good old times, one might say. However, time and again we scratch our heads with a powerful deja vu. Have we heard it somewhere already? This album would earn solid five stars if not for these mixed emotions. The cheesy ending, 'Museum Walk' leaves us a little too hungry as well. Despite all these mumblings and grumblings, this is a must-have for all those who like solid electronic soundtrack work.
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