1.) Tangerine Dream – Alpha Centauri Vinyl, LP, Album, Gatefold - Germany - 1972 - Ohr – OMM 556 012 Media: EX to NM / Sleeve: EX A1 Sunrise In The Third System 4:20 A2 Fly And Collision Of Comas Sola 13:05 B Alpha Centauri 22:00 As if the sound is breaking through your speakers, Alpha Centauri begins its journey. Crackling and swirling synthesizers seize control of your stereo. Like a call to psychedelic arms, the first track "Sunrise in the Third System" marches on with its organ. The mixing of the three tracks found on Alpha Centauri leaves something to be desired, in that the tracks are not mixed the way they would be today with each track endlessly flowing into the next like a stream. Nonetheless, when one is not paying too close attention to such details, the album seems to flow quite smoothly. The sound is not of the highest standards either, as should be expected, this being a 1971 release of "space music." Tangerine Dream's style of "space music" had not yet been refined and revolutionized as it was a couple of releases later with Phaedra and Rubycon. Regardless, for those interested in a wilder and more reckless ride on the "space music" autobahn, Alpha Centauri should satisfy the need. 2.) Tangerine Dream – Stratosfear Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo, Gatefold Sleeve - 1st Pressing - Germany - 1976 - Virgin – 28 146 XOT Media: EX / Sleeve: VG+ A1 Stratosfear 10:04 A2 The Big Sleep In Search Of Hades 4:45 B1 3 AM At The Border Of The Marsh From Okefenokee 8:10 B2 Invisible Limits 11:40 Stratosfear, the last Tangerine Dream album by the great Baumann/Franke/Froese threesome, shows the group's desire to advance past their stellar recent material and stake out a new musical direction while others were still attempting to come to grips with Phaedra and Rubycon. The album accomplishes its mission with the addition of guitar (six- and 12-string), grand piano, harpsichord, and mouth organ to the usual battery of moogs, Mellotrons, and e-pianos. The organic instruments take more of a textural role, embellishing the effects instead of working their own melodic conventions. Stratosfear is also the beginning of a more evocative approach for Tangerine Dream. Check the faraway harmonica sounds and assortment of synth-bubbles on "3 AM at the Border of the Marsh From Okefenokee" or the somber chords and choral presence of "The Big Sleep in Search of Hades." The title track opener is the highlight though, beginning with a statuesque synthesizer progression before unveiling an increasingly hypnotic line of trance. 3.) Tangerine Dream – Rubycon Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo, Gatefold Sleeve - 1st Pressing - Germany - 1975 - Virgin – 88 754 XOT Media: EX / Sleeve: EX A Rubycon, Part I 17:18 B Rubycon, Part II 17:35 The members of Tangerine Dream continued to hone their craft as pioneers of the early days of electronica, and the mid-'70s proved to be a time of prosperity and musical growth for the trio of Chris Franke, early member Peter Baumann, and permanent frontman Edgar Froese. The three of them had been delivering mysterious space records on a regular basis, and their growing confidence with early synthesizers (the best that money could buy at the time) made them virtuosos of the genre, even as they kept things organic and unpredictable with gongs, prepared piano, and electric guitar. Rubycon has aged gracefully for the most part, making it a solid companion (and follow-up) to their 1974 album, Phaedra. The somewhat dated palette of sounds here never overshadow the mood: eerie psychedelia without the paisleys -- Pink Floyd without the rock. "Rubycon, Pt. 1" ebbs and flows through tense washes of echo and Mellotron choirs, as primitive sequencer lines bubble to the surface. "Pt. 2" opens in a wonderfully haunted way, like air-raid sirens at the lowest possible pitch, joined in unison by several male voices (someone in the band must have heard György Ligeti's work for 2001). Rising out of the murkiness, the synthesizer arpeggios return to drive things along, and Froese weaves his backwards-recorded guitar through the web without really calling too much attention to himself. The piece evolves through varying degrees of tension, takes a pit stop on the shoreline of some faraway beach, then ever so gradually unravels a cluster of free-form strings and flutes. The rest are vapors, your ears are sweating under your headphones, and the smoke has cleared from your bedroom. This is a satisfying ambient record from the pre-ambient era, too dark for meditation, and too good to be forgotten. 4.) Tangerine Dream – Phaedra Vinyl, LP, Album, Gatefold - 1st Pressing - Germany - 1974 - Virgin – 87 761 IT Media: EX / Sleeve: EX A Phaedra 16:45 B1 Mysterious Semblance At The Strand Of Nightmares 10:35 B2 Movements Of A Visionary 7:55 B3 Sequent C' 2:17 Phaedra is one of the most important, artistic, and exciting works in the history of electronic music, a brilliant and compelling summation of Tangerine Dream's early avant-space direction balanced with the synthesizer/sequencer technology just beginning to gain a foothold in nonacademic circles. The result is best heard on the 15-minute title track, unparalleled before or since for its depth of sound and vision. Given focus by the arpeggiated trance that drifts in and out of the mix, the track progresses through several passages including a few surprisingly melodic keyboard lines and an assortment of eerie Moog and Mellotron effects, gaseous explosions, and windy sirens. Despite the impending chaos, the track sounds more like a carefully composed classical work than an unrestrained piece of noise. While the title track takes the cake, there are three other excellent tracks on Phaedra. "Mysterious Semblance at the Strand of Nightmares" is a solo Edgar Froese song that uses some surprisingly emotive and affecting synthesizer washes, and "Movements of a Visionary" is a more experimental piece, using treated voices and whispers to drive its hypnotic arpeggios. Perhaps even more powerful as a musical landmark now than when it was first recorded, Phaedra has proven the test of time. _________________________________________________________ These records have been cleaned with a professional ultrasonic machine. New inner and outer sleeves included. Fast & careful shipping.