Re: A Question for Edgar Froese/Tangerine Dream Fans...

[klm@cme-durer.arpa (Ken Manheimer)]

In article <1330001@hpmwbam.HP.COM> benoitm@hpmwtd.HP.COM (Benoit
Menendez) writes:

>>     "Aqua" - 1974, Brain Records
>>     "Epsilon in Malaysian Pale" - 1975, Virgin Records
>>     "Macula Transfer" - 1976, Brain Records 
>>     "Stuntman" - 1979, Virgin Records

> Yes,I have Aqua (which I do not like) and Stuntman (which I like a
> lot) on CD.  here). How do Epsilon and Macula Tranfer compare to the
> other two albums ?  Benoit Menendez

I am not particularly drawn by Aqua; i like Stuntman a bit more,
sometimes.  I keep _Epsilon in Malaysian Pale_, however, among my set
of 'sublime' records.  It is among my favorite synthetic albums (and
among my favorite records in general); in fact it is on the basis of
this album that i have any other froese or tangerine dream albums.  I
should mention that no other of these albums have come close to
appealing to me as much as epsilon - if you're a TD fan, be wary, i
don't think epsilon is near typical td (or other froese) fare.

Taking a stab at describing the album, i'd say it's distinct from most
synthetic stuff in its murkiness.  Each side contains a single piece
(_Epsilon_ on one side, _Moruba Bay_ on the other), with each a
particular kind of wash as opposed to a sharp-edged sound.  The
epsilon side tends to a kind of plaintive pastoral apect, while the
moruba bay side has more of an ominous, overcast feeling.

My 'sublime' record section is for some records that have a peculiar
staying power - most are not immediately spectacular (with a few
exceptions, like _Larks Tongues in Aspic_ or _Northern Song_), and in
fact most were not immediately among my favorites, or even
particularly appealing at first.  They all came the top, specifically
to be those favorites that most solidly stand the test of time - ie,
ones which never grow tiresome.  This is in contrast to a (large)
number of more overtly sensational records that i find not so
consistent - sometimes they're great, sometimes not so much so...

This has turned into a long reply to a simple question - i wanted to
clarify what kind of record _Epsilon_ is for me, partly to be
informative and partly because the album, and what it represents (my
sublime category) is sort of dear to me...  Hope this answer is of
interest...

Ken Manheimer		 klm@cme-durer.ARPA or ..!uunet!cme-durer.arpa!klm
National Institute of Standards and Technology
(Formerly "National Bureau of Standards")
Factory Automation Systems, Software Support

-=-				-=-				-=-

"Hey, mister, how come you charge so much more for this bird i'm
holding than for those two in that bush over there?" - some cartoonist