Best Tangerine Dream Album (1970-1979)

Im not sure about those vocals on Cyclone.

ilxor should check this poll

Thanks, I saw it!

These are the ones I have so far:

1974 Phaedra 11
1972 Zeit 6
1979 Force Majeure 5
1976 Stratosfear 5
1975 Rubycon 3

I've heard Electronic Meditation is good and saw that one at the local shop, so probably getting that one next.

That one may be too rockist for you (sounds like early Pink Floyd)

it's great. Very different to anything else they ever done. Also check out Atem.

Which I am going to listen to right now. Been ages since I listened to the spacey stuff.

I cant find Green Desert online anywhere on any blogs.

Herman, hit me up off line for a YSE.

Awesome,I'll send you a webmail with my email, thanks!

Or I would if the webmail thing worked... gmail me at pfunkboy@

oh and Nate check out Best Track on Tangerine Dream - Force Majeure?

I just picked up a $3 copy of Phaedra today cuz of this thread, the only other one I have is Electronic Meditation so it's nice to know where to start.

It's totally different to that album. Like the 1st 2 Kraftwerk albums and their later material, the difference is astounding. Still really like EM and the 1st 2 Kraftwerk though.

Yeah I wouldn't say EM is much of a primer for anything they did afterwards. Same with the first Van Der Graaf Generator or the first couple Pink Floyds. Just a whole different beast really.

But still enjoyable! I listen to the 1st VDGG album a lot and the 1st Pink Floyd is by far my favourite.

I'd hardly place the 1st Pink Floyd album in the same category as the first VDGG album! Or the 1st TD album, for that matter!

I don't think that's what Nate meant, he just means that it's totally different to what came later, like with these other bands.

fopp are currently doing most of the tg virgin albs for 3 quid a pop. i bought rubycon (a winner) and ricochet (v gd 2nd side, not so wowed by the gtr and vox on the first track.) looking at this poll, will prob go back for stratosfear and maybe force majeure - i did have a copy of encore on cd and wasn't that thrilled by it, so had p much written off everything post-phaedra, may have to revise that opinion in the light of rubycon.

Rubycon is probably my just-about favourite

the virgin years 1974-1978 can be found for under $15 in several online stores.

force majeure is awesome but that and stratosfear do have spacerock guitar on it (which makes them awesome but you might not agree)

Cyclone, despite it's dreadful vox is a pretty damn tight record.

Side 2 of Cyclone heads off into this amazing motorik synth jam, side 1 is ruined by the vocals though. Sorceror is a little talked about goodie too, somewhat of a throwback to the Atem era sound on some tracks.

Phaedra is a really good pick as it is kind of the fulcrum from their early space sound and the beginning of the rolling sequencers that would dominate their later records.

That said, TD were a consistently good group through the 70s.

I've been enjoying the Sorcerer soundtrack. from 1977, comprised of short pieces, so I guess it's atypical. some synth bits cry out "Depeche Mode!" "80s R&B!" like, prescient.

Word! Sorcerer was 'xactly the one I thought of first, too.

God I love that bit like 4:40 into "Phaedra" where it has that rolling bass line that sounds like a guitar

It sucks about the vocals on side 1 of cyborg because the music is pretty tight

Ok so what's the scoop on White Eagle? Geir's description sounds like most of what I listen to these days.

Yeah that period of T. Dream was very straightforward synth with a very poppy edge to it, so if you like that sort of thing you'll like White Eagle and Hyperborea...will probably hit the spot if you liked those early Jean-Michel Jarre albums like Oxygene and Equinoxe, too.

Sounds good, will have to keep an eye out for 'em.

white eagle sounds ace these days

its all about the title track.

Took me 11 years but I picked up the two post-Atem Virgin collections (which are very cheap and sound great) and basically every one of these records (ending at 1983's Hyperborea) is pretty excellent. Varies from pop ambient-new age-y synth to haunting moody soundtrack patches to kraut-trance-rock w solos to match. I'll have to sit down and figure out all my faves (Encores and Tangram are both uniformly excellent).

This past year I picked up the deluxe 2CD reissues of Atem, Alpha Centauri and Zeit, as well as the 4CD Virgin Years: 1974-1978 box, and this week I got the Edgar Froese Solo (1974-1983): The Virgin Years 4CD set as a companion. Lot of great stuff on there.

The amount of music they made in those years is amazing, love Froese's contemporary solo albums as well. TG is basically unimpeachable from their beginning through the mid 70s. And the 80s stuff is pretty cool too!

The amount of *quality* music, I should say. The purest 'light a spliff' records if you're willing

Force Majeure is my favorite TG album, though, by far

i find it hard to single out a fave as this whole era of the band is full of perfection for me.
from the early space rock grooves, via the bonkers vocals album (which i hated at first, but now love), to the then futuristic sounding brilliant use of midi enhanced sequencers.
a year ago i got the EF boxset and since then, my limited 12Gb phone has had the following on it :
the complete Virgin era TD material, the EF boxset, Kraftwerk remasters and the latest Neu! remasters.
i have had a few sonic based detours over the last 12 months, but this core set has been my mainstay of 2015.
and i am still not bored with any of it.
(hence the revival of the FAX groove in recent weeks)

Just listening to "Alpha Centauri", SOMEONE SHOOT THAT FLUTE PLAYER FFS! I use the phrase 'flute player' rather than 'flautist' because flautist implies someone who has some skill and knows what they're doing. The flute is a nearly insurmountable problem with a lot of (early) Krautrock - Florian Schneider is the only person who seems able to do anything useful with the damn thing. Also "Alpha Centauri" isn't very good.

flute is a beautiful sound you monster

the longer i've lived with TD the less interest i've got in anything from Ricochet on tbh

altho some of Froese's solo stuff is still good up to the v early 80s

nonsense... hyperborea, thief, wavelength, flashpoint, logos all totally rule

... and White Eagle and Poland.

Beyond Poland you're in rough territory though

I like the first couple of ones with haslinger ok

Yeah I've repped for Optical Race a few times on TD threads

as I think I've said on every TD thread, I get off the bus at Underwater Sunlight, although it has a couple of decent tracks.

I've decided I really don't like "Force Majeure" very much apart from that awesome end section to "Thru Metamorphic Rocks". The rest of it is too like tasteful prog rock for my taste, too 'musical', and too much guitar and, as I think I've said ad nauseum, I don't like Edgar Froese's guitar playing at all.

i have never ever FP'd anyone ever on ilm as its not my groove, but damn ...

LOL I was just listening to it and thinking this really is not the flavour of Tangerine Dream I prefer.

I agree with you vis-a-vis Froese's axe-spanking. Dude seemed to think he was some kind of Neil Young-manqué, but he really hadn't the chops. None of that detracts from his talent as a visionary electronicist, mind.