Tangerine Dream, Rubycon part 1 - A Classical Musician’s First Listen and Analysis

[@AndyKing1963]

Rubycon Part I - Karl Dallas interviews Chris Franke of TANGERINE DREAM: The beginning is Baumann on Fender Rhodes piano, “playing very lonely notes”, with bell-like Moog tones from Franke, joined by an oboe sound from Froese’s [M400] Mellotron. All three lines come closer and closer together, but there are quiet spaces between the notes. “It’s the first time we have put breaks between the notes, but it’s very important, so you can get your brain clear for what’s coming.” A very high melody line on Franke’s Moog comes over the long, slow notes, is joined by tapes of mixed voices on the Mellotron with glissandi from Baumann. The Moog melody returns and Froese changes to strings tapes for a brief section of trumpet-like tune and strings. “Peter has some very nice voltage-controlled bits with the synthi. Sometimes he comes very near with his glissandi, through the well-tempered melody line. I like it very much if there are two scales of notes together -- a well-tempered scale and a not-tempered scale producing, like birds, quarter notes, like Schoenberg. “This part gives me the impression of a very big river, at the end of the river coming into a big sea, the ocean. It’s very liquid.” Wind noise is followed by a cymbal-like tone created by a cluster of 20 or 30 notes very close together and a very low bass, with feelings of fuzz in it. “It’s a little meditation tone.” After a rhythm sequence, Froese plays the main theme on the strings followed by a remarkable duet between Baumann’s Fender Rhodes and Froese’s oboe-tapes, in which they swap phrases and half phrases. The rhythm continues, very ostinato, “a repetitive rhythm like the Negroes make it, very often”, Baumann switches to organ and the duet continues. The rhythm doubles and Franke adds an overdubbed piano tape loop: a backwards tape is joined to a forwards tape so that the sound comes to its attack and then dies away. The rhythm becomes very complex, with Moog tones and snare-drum sounds, plus overdubbed piano, “prepared” with pieces of wood stuck between the strings to give a more percussive effect. Over this Froese plays chords and Baumann plays a very high melody line on organ. A change in the rhythm is overlaid by clashing sounds from Baumann’s voltage controlled oscillator, played over a very fast-running Leslie speaker and very long echo delay. Froese plays a reprise of the original oboe melody while the decay of the snare drum sound becomes longer and longer so that the beat disappears. Later Baumann plays grand piano over a Leslie. “In this piece I think all the melodies, rhythms and all the sounds are much, much more complex and much better than on Phaedra. I think it is a step forward, this record.” The piece ends with a long sitar-like sound created by scraping the strings of a grand piano with a piece of metal, recording it, cutting off the attack at the beginning of the note, and playing it back on multi-track at different speeds, giving several different pitches. The rhythm becomes simpler and simpler, moving from three to two to one single tone, and the piano loops are faded across to each other, making chords, slowly shifting.

[@pontram]

" a backwards tape is joined to a forwards tape so that the sound comes to its attack and then dies away" -- do you mean the sound to hear from 23:04 (and sometimes earlier) in this video ? - That is totally Pink Floyd "One of these days" and I wonder how that sound was really achieved...

[@mt1452]

It's a soundscape. You put it on in the dark with headphones on, and let it take you away while your mind journeys through the world it ceates for a while. Like a dream.

[@danielgarlock2074]

34:00 ...what context? In the car. Perfect driving music, esp for something like California freeways; flowing, merging, thinning, surging,...

[@CapuletLeGrand]

Yep! Did this in 1976 or so, I had the best dreams ever!

[@thomasruwart1722]

Do you happen to know if you have Synethstesia? What do you *experience* or *see* when you close your eyes listening to this music?

[@nickwillder]

I could fill a book with a response to this! This music has dominated the last 50 years of the playlist of my life. Here are a few sound-bite responses. Yes, the name originates with Lucy in the Sky. The Second World War and Salvador Dali are both important contexts. The description "Berlin School" often refers to analog synthesizer sounds where a relentless pulse (a 'clock') drives a pitch-controlling 'sequencer'. It is possible to interact with a sequencer in real-time, but takes great skill, not the least because the 24 (in this case) pitch-control knobs are not quantized. Music technology moved so fast in the subsequent few years that the skills and technologies this music needed became stranded in time. Niche enthusiasts have kept it alive; some have explored and developed it further while artificially constraining the technology (plug here for Mark Shreeve's wonderful 'Red Shift' recordings); and latterly, 'old school' nostalgia has re-popularized the analog instruments for a new generation.

[@krzysztofkietzman3332]

The term Berlin School also seems to be in contrast to the Dusseldorf School with Kraftwerk, 4/4 and Detroit techno onwards.

[@RileyELFuk]

Yes, Craven Faults is particularly notable imo as working within this tradition, today, making largely ambient pieces, with arpeggiations that evolve almost imperceptibly, at times. Just beautiful stuff to relax and drift with.

[@nickwillder]

@RileyELFuk I am not familiar with the artist you mention, but I will be sure to put that right as soon as I can. Thanks.

[@nickwillder]

​@@RileyELFukWell, I put it right already. Oh man! That is so good. Thank you!

[@RileyELFuk]

@@nickwillder Always happy to hear that.

[@DavidMorley]

IMHO Rubycon is one of the greatest albums ever. Changed my concept of music the moment I heard it. I still adore it. I really enjoyed your analysis.

[@groundzeroken]

Mine too. My very first album at the tender age of 12. Stratosfear and Ricochet were awesome too...

[@darislar]

I stopped being a simple child when I heard Rubycon

[@GR-M3]

Same here!

[@davekershaw3695]

TD’s music is best heard in the evening, lights off, headphones on and a half hour excursion into the infinite! Such a marvellous experience 😊

[@peters1711]

Thats how i discovered there Albums when in was a Teenager. Of course in Vinyl at that time.

[@gerdschoppenhorst1154]

@@davekershaw3695 don't forget the candles...🕯️🕯️🕯️

[@TheloniousCube]

Or 6-8 hours

[@xosefc]

yes, and just before getting asleep.

[@CapuletLeGrand]

and a funny cigarette!

[@EverythingEcstatic]

I’ve listened to TD’s masterpieces from the 70’s so much, I can actually hum every song. They never get old

[@dreamcyberium]

Atem is really pretty, too. God, I love TD.

[@a.k.1740]

I discovered Tangerine Dream through my cousins, who had bought the Rubycon album when it came out in early 1975 (I was nine at the time), and this pictorial/cinematic approach set to music grabbed me straight away. It immediately conjured up mental images and soundscapes. The world of Tangerine Dream is a musical journey through sound painting. Founder Edgar Froese studied painting and sculpture at the Berlin Academy of the Arts, and was invited by Salvador Dali to his villa in the mid-60s, which was decisive in his adventurous musical approach. Amy, I invite you to continue your discovery of Tangerine Dream, and what better way than to listen to Rubycon part 2.😉

[@gerdschoppenhorst1154]

RicOchet is the masterwork of electronic rock music !

[@hilmarkoerner2603]

That is my favorite TD album as well. Then comes Phaedra, Rubicon and Stratosfear - oh the good old days. The Virgin years

[@andyacker991]

That second side! Ethereal, erotic, vivid.

[@MikeDickson]

@@andyacker991 Overdubbed! 🙂

[@andreasunruh4381]

Yešsssssss

[@boblee3437]

That album is my favourite.

[@scottharrison812]

I’m 61 and still find this album incredible (bought the vinyl when I was 16). Loved your exploration of Rubycon. I remember almost entering the music as one might a landscape - losing myself there in different physical features- now a forest, now a wild coastline. It also somehow gave expression to the depression I struggled with much of my life which I couldn’t articulate or find a way to acknowledge.

[@brianbell3836]

Good luck, Scott.

[@stevecampbell9686]

Ooh! This takes me back to my teens. Back in my little bedroom. Lights out, headphones on and off we go.....😊

[@MiscellanyTop]

In those days they were amazing, too - saw them in Coventry Cathedral (UK) in 1976/77 - and was even more hooked. I still use them today when photo-editing or writing.

[@AndyKing1963]

@@MiscellanyTopOctober 1975 -

[@compfox]

Connected a light organ to the amp... never needed any drugs.

[@foxdenham]

Brave choice Vlad. Great review Amy. Tangerine Dream can be described as the birthers of 'Ambient Trance' music. This Album has a great spread of space, colour and atmosphere. I always feel I have visited strange land on a strange planet after listening to this album. For me this was a 'gateway drug' towards more avant-garde classical music, then onto all types of classical styles, not just towards Ambient Rock categories.

[@annclarke2702]

Oh my, this takes me back .......I spent many hours listening to this album, which I still have tucked away with the rest of my vinyl collection. Thank you for reacting to this, I forgot how good it was.

[@louise_rose]

The first two albums that introduced me to them were Ricochet (1975) and Tangram (1980) - both are groundbreaking and brilliant recordings that still sound powerful and musically advanced today, with absorbing keyboard work and great rhythmic sophistication.

[@steelheadplayer]

Tangerine Dream/Vangelis/Jarre/Kraftwerk , you are at the start of another journey, this one has some strange destinations , you could end up with Laurie Anderson, Mike Oldfield or Klaus Schulze or take a path that leads to concerts with more than a million people watching and has entire city skylines as the stage backdrop ( Jean-Michel Jarre ), who by the way has a laser harp !. As for where I listen, sat on a tractor cutting acres of grass, driving long distances or sometimes just sat at home, this music can take over your consciousness as it syncs with your brainwaves and opens your mind as you follow the musical twists and turns through a world that is no longer bound by verse/bridge/chorus limitations.

[@beckyrude9706]

Love Laurie Anderson

[@CopyKatnj]

I would also add Patrick O'Hearn to the list of electronic artists. I love listening to his work.

[@benschwader4537]

@@CopyKatnj Shadowfax, Tomita, and Alan Parson

[@peterattilakriszt3150]

And we shouldn't forget Kitaro to mention as well.

[@ronbock8291]

@@peterattilakriszt3150 and YMO.

[@croiners4166]

This was very entertaining, I love hearing reactions to recordings I’ve known most of my life!❤ I’ll definitely watch part two!

[@thomasruwart1722]

What other electronic artists from that Era have you listened to? Tomita? Vangelis? Brian Eno? Kraftwerk? Morton Sobotnick? Klaus Shultz?

[@Spencer_Beard]

love it, this was a good composition to pick for the channel, Amy, thank you

[@friotaiocht101]

From - '74 - '76... Tangerine Dream were at their creative peak... this album considered one of their best for sure 👍...

[@MiscellanyTop]

100% Agreed. (Though I like others equally, eg: "Exit", "Phaedra", etc)

[@AndyKing1963]

@@MiscellanyTop Exit is superb

[@AndyKing1963]

Edgar Froese: “there is no ‘best’ Tangerine Dream album” ;)

[@friotaiocht101]

@AndyKing1963 Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight!!!

[@robcresswell5511]

Swirlings - spot on - vowels flowing one to the other 😢

[@galandirofrivendell4740]

Rubycon was the first Tangerine Dream album that I bought. A friend recommended the band to me when I said that I like keyboards and synths in the music that I listen to. He informed me that the only non-keyboard instrument they play is the guitar. "No drums or percussion?" I asked. "Nope," he replied. I was intrigued because, coincidentally, just a few weeks before, I had seen a copy of Rubycon at a new record store that had just opened, and I was curious how a band could produce something good without any percussion. I took the plunge and bought it. The opening movement was pretty standard, in my opinion, with sounds that reminded me of a trip on a river or the sea, with its sounds like ocean waves and seagulls. But after about six minutes, those sequencers kicked in, and I immediately understood how a band could successfully make music without drums. I knew I had something unique, and I have been a fan ever since. Tangerine Dream's uniqueness appealed to me at once. I enjoy just listening to their music when relaxing. Sometimes I've used their compositions to inspire drawings I have made. Their works can be exciting or contemplative and everything in between. You never know what you're going to get with this band, but I guarantee you, it will be different, and in a good way.

[@petermcilroy1176]

It was mine as well. I had been introduced to electronic music with Jean-Michel Jarre which led to Tangerine Dream,Vangelis and Kraftwerk. It is through them which I believe led me to my current listening pleasure EDM

[@radman8321]

Amy is on a roll. Rainbow yesterday and TD today.

[@MiscellanyTop]

Good days. For me, Rainbow are very good indeed but, at their best, TD are exquisite.

[@orcaflotta7867]

... and krautrock tomorrow!

[@tracerx6324]

Ambient music is like an ocean wave on the shore, constantly moving, but every wave is different.

[@MrJohnnyMel]

"Phaedra" is one of my favourite albums. It precedes Rubycon

[@neilparnell5712]

For me also. ''Phaedra'' is the benchmark along with ''Epsilon in Malaysian Pale'' by Edgar Froese. There are many other good albums and I have a soft spot for ''Stratosfear'' and ''Ricochet'' but always go back to ''Phaedra''.

[@MrJohnnyMel]

@@neilparnell5712 I have not heard "Malaysian" (I lived there for a while when I was a child in 1965) thank you for the suggestion Neil

[@neilparnell5712]

@@MrJohnnyMel I'm sure you will enjoy it.

[@BrennanYoung]

yeah, that's my favorite TD too. I really like Force Majeure too because of the neat guitar work.

[@petermcilroy1176]

From that album my favourite track is Sequent C which has a very deep note which you barely hear but you feel

[@andreas-franke]

As a 11 or 12 years old boy I liked to hear this with headphones, lights off and eyes closed. It was always a journey into other worlds by imagination, guided by the music. Love it till today.

[@jjmourajr]

i found your analysis very accurate, you can hear different styles of music and capture the essence in a way i haven't seen in anyone here on youtube. Greetings from Brazil! I love you and liked to see you analysing more this kind of electronic music.

[@michaelmayo]

This is wonderful. It's the first time I've heard a classical musician analyze Tangerine Dream, which has been a part of my life for several decades. My exposure to them was accidental. I was the entertainment editor for a college newspaper so we got a lot of review records and in the midst of all the rock albums was one with a wierd cover called "Stratofear," by a band I had never heard of. I had a pretty good system at home, so fired it up, and just found myself floating away on the music. Glad I discovered you...

[@MrJohnnyMel]

That was very enjoyable, lovely to be able to hear all the music. "Tubular Bells" has to be soon.... please :)

[@peterkarlsson1825]

Yes! Tangerine Dream.

[@MiscellanyTop]

:) :) :)

[@Devoid_Freud]

This is beautiful! I have a few Tangerine Dream albums, and saw them live in 1986, but I never picked up this one. I'm enjoying listening to it with your comments interspersed. I thought I heard a little hint of Ravel in that oboe-like melody around 24:20 or so. As for listening to this type of music: I would put in on, sit in a good spot in the room, bring the lights down, and listen to it, much as i would watch a film. And be paying attention to the same kinds of details you listened to.

[@faz7248]

Tangerine Dream is definitely one of my all time favorite electronic acts. I can enjoy it both actively as on the background. Besides all the qualities you already mentioned, like the minimalism, subtle evolution and soundscapes, what really makes them stand out to me is the capacity to transport me with their hypnotic ostinato's. Most of their numbers have this quality where at some point i would struggle to stop the recording because it puts me in a kind of trance state.

[@pappapata]

Yes! TD❣ One of my favourite bands of all time 🤘❣ Have been with me since my early teens 👌🙏 And yes, Tchaikovsky is top notch too!😀👌

[@thomashoffmann3656]

Can you imagine the impact this music had on a 15 year old boy hearing this and part 2 of course for the first time? This boy was me. I am almost 57 now and TD was always a part of my life. TD and Klaus Schulze of course are the pioneers of this kind of music. This kind of music is what i would call the closest thing of modern music to classical music

[@johnapplegate1289]

You just dipped your toe into a deep ocean of music. I own everything by Tangerine Dream. It is a staggering catalog of music.

[@gozamite]

it's pretty bold to claim to own everything in TD's catalogue!

[@stevenscharmer1765]

My all-time favorite instrumental track of any band is Tangerine Dream's Cloudburst Flight. I hope you can check it out next! It adds acoustic and electric guitar to the mix.

[@AndyKing1963]

Fantastic drumming from Klaus Kruger as well - famously using his high hat cymbal as a trigger to control the tempo of the sequencer - so it was always slightly changing

[@eilandnews]

Thanks for your open mind and fresh analysis. As I listened to Rubycon again, it really hit me emotional, brought me almost to tears. So that would be the playlist reason for me!

[@PartTimeJedi]

My first introduction to Tangerine Dream was the soundtrack for 1980s Risky Business. Watch the "train scene" and the music makes the scene almost dreamlike.

[@AndyKing1963]

Based on Steve Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians part 6

[@spiderbass65]

Exactly! When I heard that I had to get that album, and fell in love. Warsaw live is my favorite.

[@edwardlongshanks827]

Mine was the soundtrack to the 1981 Michael Mann movie Thief, starring James Caan and Tuesday Weld.

[@longago-igo]

@@edwardlongshanks827Yes, what a soundtrack!

[@mattd2129]

It’s even better once you’ve heard it a hundred times. So many bits to discover and enjoy.

[@DaT0nkee]

Electronic music on this channel? Maybe Jarre and Vangelis has a chance then.

[@AntonNidhoggr]

Oh, I'd love to see Vangelis on this channel too! But it's hard to pick a proper track/album for a reaction. Heaven and hell? Mask? My personal favourite albums of him are probably The City or China, but you can't just take one track from there and listen to it. I think it won't work this way. p.s. and for Jarre it must be Oxygene. No doubts about that 🙂

[@DaT0nkee]

@@AntonNidhoggr Well, i have doubts it must be Oxygene, Jarre is still active since the 70's. For example he opened Coachella in 2018. Thats how you open a festival. kzbin.info/www/bejne/eqLMq3V6rNKqgck (Equinox infinity Movement 08 (The Opening)). Personally I prefer the Chronology album from him. But, obvoiusly Oxygene is unavoidable. From Vangelis it can be anything. I would suggest Albedo 0.39 or Spiral. But also his cinematic scores are world famous. Btw, actually all his music is cinematic score, because they was (and are) widely used as music for scientific shows. The most famous in the US maybe Cosmos by Carl Sagan (which is Heaven and Hell 3rd Movement)

[@bobobobee9708]

Anything from Blade Runner is a must.

[@britainthroughmylens]

I first saw Tangerine Dream perform here in southern England in the early 1970s. Their wall of electronic instruments, eerie light show and stage presence had me utterly spellbound as a teenager. I had been attending clsssical concerts at the same venue with my music teacher. It could not have been more different an experience. I was intrigued by the technical aspects of their music as much as the avant garde nature of their work.

[@rrowe1961]

I would HIGHLY recommend Larry Fast who’s pioneering work with sequencing and various voices and hardware voice cards were highly sought after in the 1970’s and early 1980’s. He worked with Peter Gabriel Pink Floyd and others. He released albums of his own as Synergy en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Fast

[@Bretthall8]

I recently attended a wonderful outdoor festival overseas; in the UK, this past August, to see Tangerine Dream, Gong... and Hawkwind. I love Hawkwind, but I wouldn't have gone if Tangerine Dream hadn't been headlining a night... and Gong helped ;) If I recall correctly, my first exposure to Tangerine Dream was sometime early 80's watching the 1977 film: Sorcerer... on the Tele, late at night, as a kid, while everyone was sleeping. It was the effect the soundtrack had on me that I recall.... It's now my go to Halloween album to give out treats to. * Tangerine Dream has been involved with many a film, I'm sure you've watched one or two or.... Tangerine Dream were more upbeat at the fest, and I'm pretty sure they played something from the Sorcerer film... If not, the feel was recognizable to me. I made my way up to about 40' from stage and just let the sound envelope... I had never felt anything like it before at a live show. It was as if the sound waves were encircling everything. I found myself in wonder about how strong the Bass was flowing through the ground, was fascinated by how my pant-legs were vibrating and how physical the experience was. Hawkwind also closed the following night, and that physical aspect was even more magnified... everything on me was shimmering, vibrating and sometimes even pummelling the diaphragm.... and yet, just as uplifting as Tangerine Dream. The difference to me was: Tangerine Dream encircled and entwined... and I suppose, had an origin point. Hawkwind engulfed everything at once... The sonic experience came from everywhere... like being absorbed by a Gelaninous Cube, while releasing all that energy outwards from the self at the same time... with total clarity of sound. Hawkwind produced so much more volume than Tangerine Dream did.... once I moved away from the main kick drum speaker, I must add... that was too loud. ;) It's interesting how perceived sonic chaos can be so calming... and make one still. Spacing out with the headphones on, lights off, finding ones place in the moment and soundscape, until time dissolves, is a wonderful thing... that said, I think Electronica, Ambience, Space Rock; and the like, really need to be experienced live (and perhaps outdoors in a natural environment), to really be felt. P.s. The Festival I attended is: A New Day Festival (in Kent/Faversham UK). * Not: Newday Festival I'm pretty sure if you look up A New Day Festival here on 'Utube, you'll find a clip or two of Tangerine Dream. The 2025 line-up looks promising.... Id love to see Hawkwind again... this time with EBB, and The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, and Caravan playing in their own backyard: The Land of Grey and Pink. * EBB did an excellent impromptu cover of Dave Brock's 'The Demented Man' during the pandemic that you can find on here... (song is from Hawkwind's: Warrior on the Edge of Time). P.s.s. Check out the documentary called: The Delian Mode - Delia Derbyshire documentary. Delia is the unsung hero of the Doctor Who theme and in the vanguard of Electronica.

[@hilmarkoerner2603]

I love to listen to Tangerine Dream to get lost in space and time. It's always with 100% focus on the music and it has to be absolutely quiet. I imagine traveling through the universe, visiting strange planets and worlds.

[@johnyoung4561]

My favorite band of all time 👏👏👏

[@watkinry]

I checked and you were right, Tangerine Dream was indeed named after the Beatles' lyric. I'm excited to see you getting into more electronica. I haven't gone down the TD rabbit hole yet - their catalogue is a bit daunting, but it's definitely in my wheelhouse. I hope you get to a few of my favorite artists in the genre like ambient pioneer Brian Eno and some artists from the UK's IDM movement(intelligent dance music- NOT named by the artists) like Aphex Twin and Squarepusher. It's a hard genre to pin down because it can take so many forms but there is so much great music there to discover. Depending on the style I can listen to it while I study, play games, drive or even while taking a walk through nature or just sitting outside. Other times I'll slip on a sleep mask and some good headphones and immerse myself in it. I suppose I don't listen to it in social settings much, but I'm not sure if that's just because I know it is something of an acquired taste or because it just doesn't work well; maybe it depends on who I'm hanging out with. I'm looking forward to more of this type of review even if Richard D. James (Aphex Twin) once said of this music "It's not music you talk about, it's music you listen to"- or something to that effect. I'm sure you'll figure that part out though 😁.

[@AndyKing1963]

DJ (1): “Where did you get the name of the band by the way, Tangerine Dream?” Edgar Froese: “Uh (sighs) I believe, but sorry I can’t say it exactly, but I believe it was a Beatles song (general Laughter)

[@felix-zt5cs]

I always think that the only way to listen to TD is with good headphones or really good speakers, in a darkened room with your eyes closed and no distraction. And then just let yourself be consumed? by the sound.

[@musicalBurr]

Very true, in other words taping a KZbin reaction video is not ideal, although, we are all DEEPLY grateful that Amy has done it! But perhaps we’re all hinting that she give another quiet listen as Felix suggests. We all suspect it will grow on her - yes Amy?! :-)

[@KM769]

Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells Jean Michel Jarre - Oxygene 4, Equinoxe 5 Kraftwerk - The Model, Computerworld Mike Vickers - Visitation Andrzej Korzyński - Baby bump Pink Floyd - Saucerful of secrets Herbie Hancock - Rockit The Residents - Hello Skinny

[@PatrickBaele]

Rubycon is an absolute masterpiece. It completely changed my perception of music ,sound when I heard it first time when it came out in the seventies. I was baffled ( just as with timewind)

[@bodhibick2378]

Thank you for responding so wonderfully to this piece! It’s refreshing to hear from someone who gets this music! 😃❤️🙏

[@MrJohnnyMel]

Where would you listen to music like this? In the car with a good sound system, at night on lonely roads and in the rain. It is amazing!

[@davidlawrence9091]

In the bedroom with the lights out in solitude, and in darkness!

[@croiners4166]

At home ❤

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

Check out Tomita. He arranged famous classical pieces for synthesizer in early seventies. I love Tangerine Dream and I think you are right about them taking name from Beatle song. Thanks for doing Tangerine Dream.

[@altair8598]

@@Hartlor_Tayley Yes. I think I suggested Snowflakes Are Dancing to Vlad/Amy months ago but I'm not sure they have time to read many comments these days (unless one buys her a Kofi...)

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

Also Morton Subotnik did some great electronic works in the sixties

[@johnmcallister3180]

Tomita’s Pictures at an Exhibition is marvellous

[@Hartlor_Tayley]

@ yes and the Planets and Firebird. I really liked those albums.

[@shades_of_twine]

I love Tangerine Dream. For a while I used to fall asleep listening to their albums every night.

[@pete-m86]

I would find a comfortable chair and sit in complete darkness in front of my stereo, or wearing my headphones. This music doesn't really accompany any other activity, thought or mood. I just focus and get drawn into the detailed and constantly changing sounds. It's the audio equivalent of staring at a burning log in a fireplace, letting it drawn all your attention to the exclusion of any other thoughts.

[@kentfrazier5757]

My introduction to Tangerine Dream was from the 1981 Movie "Thief". I've been exploring this rabbit hole ever since. :)

[@thomasruwart1722]

I like to ask people attracted to electronic music this question: Do you happen to know if you have Synethstesia? What do you *experience* or *see* when you close your eyes listening to this music?

[@EnigmaticBiker]

Like abstract watercolour painting in sound.

[@AndyKing1963]

According to a recent poll that I ran on FB - TDs top two albums from the 1970’s are 1. Ricochet and 2. Force Majeure - Rubycon was at no.3

[@MashLimit]

Yeah I remember that.. 🎵

[@antoniomonsanto3925]

GYORGY LIGETI's "Atmospheres"! No electronic needed.

[@AndyKing1963]

a big influence on Edgar, Chris and Hans-Peter

[@AndyKing1963]

EDGAR FROESE: "Our music should have an individual effect on everyone. The only basic principle is to pay attention to flowing transitions and never to abruptly introduce new themes. Theoretically, our music is exactly as György Ligeti describes it in his "Klangfarbenmusik".

[@Johnny_Socko]

I don't have much of a musical education, but Ligeti was the first thing I thought of.

[@mattd8725]

Cosmic music from the space age.

[@Oliverdobbins]

I’ve been a fan of Electronic music for 40-something years, and it has been a genuine delight to listen to the first half of Rubycon with you. I’ve always found the opening parts to be a difficult listen, but you have given me a new perspective on it! I would like to return the favour and give some options for directions of travel in the beguiling world of Electronic Music: ORIGINS: Really started in Germany as a reaction against the American Pop music or German Schlager that was all that was available on the radio after the war. Thus it is a type of music that is uniquely European and owes nothing to classical, blues, or rock ‘n roll. Started to gather speed in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s as more affordable instruments became available. More TANGERINE DREAM. Members came and went over the decades, but always surrounding founder Edgar Froese. When people talk about “Berlin School”, they’re really talking about Tangerine Dream. Opinions differ about the qualities of their various “periods” but no one else has ever made music like them. KLAUS SCHULZE: Confounding German genius. Also Berlin School and was briefly in Tangerine Dream in the very early days. His solo career matches Tangerine Dream for scale of output. In 60 years he never played the same thing twice. His concerts were always more-or-less unique compositions that were often largely improvised. Hard to know where to start with his work, they all vary widely. Perhaps with “Deus Arrakis”, released after he died. Which is a shame because it’s a great album. JEAN-MICHEL JARRE. Suave French genius. Start with his first album “Oxygene” and proceed from there. Does gigantic “son et lumiere” concerts attended by millions. Much more accessible sound than Tangerine Dream, and a pioneer of the genre. Be advised that his first four albums: Oxygene, Equinoxe, Les Chants Magnetique and Zoolook, will absolutely blow your mind. VANGELIS. Grumpy Greek genius. It was through him that I discovered music as art. His style is conveniently described as “symphonic” but is wonderfully emotive and complex, particularly the earlier stuff when he was working in London. Everyone knows him for “Chariots of Fire” but there’s much much more to discover in his catalogue. KRAFTWERK. Enigmatic German Geniuses. Reflecting their home town, the industrial city of Düsseldorf, their music is precisely-made and expertly-crafted. You’ll understand when you hear them. Avoid the very early stuff and start with their first proper album “Autobahn”. Their music never lost its razor-sharpness but became warmer and richer as they went along. Surprisingly small catalogue but a huge influence on popular music. Legendarily the most-sampled band in the world. It really was a pleasure watching this. I hope you’ll give Oxygene a listen soon!

[@dannymcgovern40]

Monolight by tangerine dream is a beautiful thing.

[@TimJacksonOriginal]

This era of Tangerine Dream was a direct influence for ambient electronica from the early 90s onwards, alongside experimental classical musicians like Stockhausen, Philip Glass and Steve Reich. You can hear definite references to Rubycon in Orb tracks, particularly those writtn by Kris 'Thrash' Weston. He's an interesting composer/producer worthy of a listen - he has a way of layering dozens of sounds and including very dissonant or atonal elements that work incredibly harmoniously. You should also listen to 'Chill Out', the seminal album by the KLF, perhaps their best album. And if you want to bring it full circle you should definitely try listening to System 7 - the duo of Miquette Giraudy and Steve Hillage, who was a guitarist in prog rock band Gong for a while. That brings you back to rock and Gong are another journey you should go on, with their crazy space pixie themes mixed with psychadelic space rock jazz.

[@thomasruwart1722]

I was introduced to Philip Glass in 1975 listening to an afternoon radio program on Detroit Public Radio. I also worked at record store - bad idea if you're a music junkie. I bought the Philip Glass album Nova. For reasons I won't go into here, I liked to play tracks backward to see how they sounded. Turns out, some of the vocal tracks on Nova sound the same backwards as they do forwards. Try it. 😊

[@modularmuse]

Yes! This is the stuff that got me into modular. Ricochet is a great live album by the same trio.

[@nah_cl]

Hey, Nathan McCree and his work in Tomb Raider is something that actually inspired me to pursue music as a goal life. You have a wonderful channel, thank you so much!

[@AndyKing1963]

Listened to TD almost every day for the last 44 years - not just TD of course, that would be boring. However you will find 'everything' in TD's music

[@1-JBL]

My first experience with TD was PHAEDRA, the 1974 album that predated RUBYCON, and the first disc on which they used sequencers for rhythm lines. It's somewhat like RUBYCON, but not quite as refined. The second album I ever heard from TD was 1970's ALPHA CENTAURI. Seek that out now and give it a spin. You will have to readjust your expectations and mindset enormously. I know I sure did. But I love both those albums, and RUBYCON as well. It was a period when synthesizers and what they could do had just begun, and every new album pushed the envelope -- not just TD, but many other bands as well. No doubt TD led me to both Philip Glass and Karlheinz Stockhausen...

[@TequilaDave]

I am loving the videos of yours I have watched so far, sounds like you have a wide eclectic appreciation of music like me (and yes I do like classical music too and used to sing in a church choir!) I'm interested to see if you have analysed any sort of EDM/D&B/Techno tracks/albums yet. Loving the content and insightful and knowledgeable views 💜

[@seramerika]

Oh, how I loved your expressions during the audition of Rubycon. I grew up in communist Romania and stumbled over Tangerine Dream' s "Ricochet" which really puzzled me. I never heard the sounds they made before, the rithms, effects. They had a very unique vibe, in fact they were the pioneers of electronic music(beside Vangelis, J.M.Jarre...) with a very german approach, in the sense of the lack of melody(in most part), mostly the sequencers are defining their music. So I started to listen more and more their music, I was fascinated by their style (kosmik rock was called for a reason). Sadly, when they became more popular, making soundtracks and trying to please the corporate world, they lost their soul. Like Peter Bauman said in an interview,"We were not hungry lions anymore". But what I was pinpointing in the beginning, it was your amazing facial expression through the evolution of the track followed by your personal experience in a very analytical/critical/intellectual dissection of a piece of music which touched many hearts. Thank you.

[@Lars-GöranTängmark]

Great analysis of one of my favorite tracks! I'm a bit surprised that noone comments on the improvised nature of this piece. I think lot of it is playing the "wrong" chord and sticking to it. It's very spontaneous music, which I think parts of its otherworldly appeal. Making an orchestral score of it is an interesting idea, but I'm not it would have any of the appeal of the original recording, which is as much about the sound as it is about notes.

[@a.k.1740]

Yes, Tangerine Dream's studio work in the 70s was a real musical laboratory, with many hours of improvised recordings, meticulously chosen to end up on disc. The most stunning is that this improvised work in the studio was extended on stage, where each performance was never the same! (the many official recordings and quality bootlegs allow to prove it).

[@AndyKing1963]

Peter Baumann: "There was really never a ‘wrong’ note, just parts that didn’t fit as well. But that was not a reason to stop playing… as long as it didn’t throw the mood of the track. In the studio, we would keep recording and edit out anything that went against the grain.”

[@johnkx2484]

For me is one of the best discs I´ve ever heard in my life, I listen to this disc for 32 years and until now sounds different... ah just listen to my tribute version for these 3 big genius ( Franke , Froese and Baumann ) on Magnum Opus - The Dream.

[@peters1711]

Since 1980 i discovered Tangerine Dream and hear them since them. My first Album was Logos. I also would recommend to Hear and analyse „Cloudburst Flight“ and „Exit“ which are still my all times TD Favorites

[@eurositi]

I listen to both Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Jean-Michel Jarre, Mike Oldfield and Vangelis both to "get into the mood" of writing pen & paper fantasy roleplaying scenarios or simply 'lore' or other things related to it like handouts to the players. I also listen to it when I am trying to get into the mood to write short (horror) stories. It is music that I grew up with and also music that was playing in the background when I was introduced to tabletop roleplaying. We always played through the night. Now I'm 30 years older, so we don't play longer than until 2 or 3 AM anymore ... but we still listen to this music. I regard this as a masterpiece. The sound of the old analogue synthesizers is quite unique and not that easy to reproduce today. Another Tangerine Dream pick should probably be "Invisible Limits" (from the 1976 album "Stratosfear"). It's somewhat shorter and resembles more of a rhapsodic composition.

[@pablohrrg8677]

Is the other way around. Tchaikovsky made this kind of music with the tool available. It starts as a doodling sounds, aesthetic choices are made, and it is morphed to a more classical approach. It is poetry. Uses our language but doesn't become a prosaic narrative of the real world. But it is. Most people doesn't get music not based on concrete things.

[@jonnajois]

I use to listen to TD a lot in my early 20s. Often alone, often with shut eyes on my bed when I got home from university. Floating away with the musics different faces. My first electronic experience was Jean Michel Jarre "Oxygene". A little simpler och closer to popular music, but still symphonic. I read The Lord of the Ring with that in the background. Another gound breaker with electronic in popular music is I Feel Love by Donna Summer from 1977. It still sounds futuristic.

[@paulcollins5586]

A lot of their work was improvised.

[@musicalBurr]

I have so many things to say about this choice Amy, but right out of the gate - THANK YOU! I’ve followed you from day one here on KZbin, and enjoyed so many of your first-listens and analyses, but none more than this. This is like the BIG PAYOFF today! :-) Tangerine Dreams is one of my favorite bands - Rubycon probably my favorite of their albums. I’ve listened to it over 100 times since I first heard it back in high school around 1976, so maybe I can help answer your questions about what kind of playlist would this be on? Consider a long drive on a lonely highway, well past sundown and you still have another 2 hours of driving ahead of you. Play Rubycon. Perhaps on a camp site, in Northern Ontario, on the edge of a lake as the stars are just peeking out, your canoe is pulled up on shore, you are alone and the campfire behind you keeping you warm as Rubycon plays on your Sony Walkman tape player and headphones. It’s late night, you just got home from a party, but not sleepy yet, so you squirrel away downstairs, turn on the old B&W portable TV and turn the dial to a channel that’s only “snow”, then pop Rubycon on the turn-table and just watch the snow on the screen while Tangerine Dream grinds out those sounds and patterns. You might be surprised at how entertaining it can be. Simply laying back on the couch, with headphones and listen while you stare into space works well too. Time to mull over the day and perhaps do a bit of day dreaming. Your descriptions of the sounds, washes, changes, etc is SPOT ON. I’ve always felt like this era of Tangerine Dream’s music is like an M.C. Escher drawing come to life in musical form. Especially, those long panels Escher did called “Metamorphose” I, II or III. Very Tangerine Dream like. Your idea of doing an arrangement of this piece with a traditional orchestra is a GREAT idea. I think maybe it’s been done already? Not 100% sure, but it is a really great idea. Maybe if you give TD a few more listens it will grow on you some more and who knows!? Maybe this is something in your future that you could spearhead. I’ll be in the audience on the first night! Other things about Tangerine Dream that appeal greatly to me is how cinematic it feels. Sound scapes that have texture and evoke images and feelings that are hard to put your finger on (like a dream!) but are distinct and come back each time you hear the piece. One of the greatest (IMHO) films ever made is called “Sorcerer” by the director William Friedkin. It’s for sure his greatest film, and he did “The Exorcist” and “The French Connection” which are no doubt masterpieces of cinema too to give you an idea of its strength. Anyway, Tangerine Dream did the score for the film, it was the first (and not the last) film they scored. The story of how they got involved with the film is interesting, but note worthy is that they hadn’t seen the film. Wrote like 45 minutes or more of music, taped it and sent it to Friedkin as he was shooting the film in the middle of a jungle in the Dominican Republic. When he heard the music he said it changed the way he was shooting the film. It’s the only film of his that he says that he wouldn’t touch one frame of - in other words he considers it his only perfect film. The music is a deep part of that film and just about ALL the music they wrote is in the film. I truly hope you give it another listen (or 10) and perhaps try the flip side, Rubycon Part 2. I’d really like to hear what you think of it upon multiple listens, even more so than your first impression as I KNOW you’ll tell me things that I had never thought of and will give me a deeper better appreciation of it too. Thanks again! James.

[@biraoliverio]

Jean-Michel Jarre is worth hearing to continue this exploration into electronic music.

[@MiscellanyTop]

YES! YES! YES! For me, he and Tan-Dream are the second-highest Prog-Rock acts after The Beatles and Queen. (NB I know both those bands did many more genres - even invented some (The Beatles may even have invented Prog-Rock) but, for me, many of their best works are Prog-Rock. JMJ is fab.

[@ForbiddTV]

@@MiscellanyTop Early Kraftwerk too.

[@krzysztofkietzman3332]

The main lead you're listening to is a Mellotron sampler, which in fact sampled choir, flute, and violin on looped tapes for each pitch, so yes, you're listening to all three morphing in and out.

[@wdblackb]

Yay! Some Krautrock! I’ve been looking forward to this, as I was hoping Amy might eventually arrive here! There are so many wonderful bands to explore from this German movement: Popol Vuh, Can, Faust, Neu!, Ash Ra Tempel, Cluster, Kraftwerk, the Krautrock supergroup Harmonia which comprised artists from Cluster and Neu! And of course Tangerine Dream!

[@wdblackb]

I should thank Vlad for suggesting Tangerine Dream to Amy. I'm sure there will be more Krautrock to come. I'll be patient till then…

[@AndyOldfieldSurfingJackdaw]

Loved your reactions to this. On subject of classical crossover with this kind of music, Philip Glass has written orchestral versions of Bowie’s Berlin Trilogy which is far removed from the ambient(ish) originals, but still recognisable.

[@jmrecillas]

Oí este disco hace más de cuarenta años y me sigue pareciendo una obra maestra que no ha envejecido un ápice. Un verdadero viaje musical de proporciones bíblicas. Gracias por tus observaciones, y los de tus seguidores, muy ilustrativos.❤

[@markmoore236]

They were on the soundtrack for the movie Risky business, Love on a real train is a great track

[@barriniho]

It's what got me into TD and still my favourite track by them. I actually prefer the 80s work they did like Exit, Hyperborea, Logos, Firestarter , Le Parc and Optical Race.

[@440hz8]

I recognize that this is tempting to make this piece played by a symphonic orchestra. It is intuitive to come back to what we know, and it sometimes helps to appreciate music as it connects the "unknown" to structures we have already integrated. Now, I think that this music needs also to be enjoyed for what it is : electronic or electro-acoustic instruments playing a long piece mainly improvised. Doing this kind of music in 1975 was really a kind of avant-garde (imagine also the fact that you have only one piece for a whole side of the vinyl, which was still weird at that time), and I can imagine that the idea was precisely to get away from the standard classical structure (e.g : unknown timbres, strange music machines (at least in the early '70ies) and positively strange guys playing them, improvisation - while classical music is mostly written), unconventional picture sleeve,etc... This music is overall a sort of "daring" attitude towards music, intermixing the creation process and the result of doing it in such a way. And indeed, we can always compare to oboes, Tchaikovsky, written scores, etc... This music has connections with classical music (it is overall modal). We can also just sit and close our eyes, listen to it for what it is, with its analog and moody sound (and electronic music sound changed a lot afterwards in several decades). In one word, trying to appreciate this kind of sound, and also to see a little bit how it was done (it allows sometimes to better appreciate the "what" when we see the "how")... After all, those electronic instruments have also an history, like the classical acoustic instruments. Anyway this is very nice overall to build bridges between several kinds of music and introduce this in a positive attitude as you do 🙂

[@Electrohedron]

Well said. Well sorted out.

[@froilandecan5821]

Rubycon is a quantum leap in music, a break from the past that tells you: "This is what to come". You listen to it when you want to take a trip to the future . For better of for worse.

[@davidlawrence9091]

Otherworldly, is one of the attractions of 'Rubycon' that makes it one of my favorites!

[@christhomas507]

Putting Tangerine Dream on while driving through any of the national parks in the American southwest enhances the experience in a non-linear fashion.

[@vanceblosser2155]

I bought this album when it was released, I found it soothing and relaxing with a note of sadness. This album and Phaedra both remind me of sounds from my dreas. The first part of this one makes me envision a rocky beach with birds flying around. As I stand there time starts rolling backwards, now I am aware that we are back in the time before man. Time continues to go back and soon the birds are gone, they haven't evolved yet. The shallow waters close to shore are crystal clear and I can see trilobites and other primitive life forms swimming in the water. There are a few plants on land but nothing complex. This all fades away as the music changes.

[@eoincoveney6531]

Founded by Edgar Froese, a Dali Protegé and early psychedelic rock artist. They did indeed glean their name from Lucy, when Froese mistook “tangerine trees” for “Tangerine Dream”. The pulsating, sequencer- driven sound from these 3 albums, was in large part due to Christopher Franke, a highly- rated jazz drummer in late ‘60’s Germany. He was the first to use a sequencer with synthesizers in live performances. Peter Baumann, a trained flautist, completed the trio. Discovered in my student days, these albums still transport me to another plane. Extraordinary music. R.i.p. Edgar Froese. ❤️

[@GR-M3]

This is by far the best Sci-Fi Movie I ever heard! The sounds on this album are out of this world! An absolut favorite of mine.

[@yfrontsguy]

An entire symphony composed & played by just three geniuses in perfect harmony & cohesion to be listened to with perhaps a glass of excellent wine of an evening by the fire I never knew that they used tape loops in this though, thanks for discovering that 😘

[@Swizz12]

I do enjoy your takes on these things, especially as it is from someone who has never heard this before. I have loved Tangerine Dream for a long time. My most played albums by them (besides Rubycon) are Rocochet, Phaedra and Stratosfear. All were recorded from the 1974 to 1976 period. This particular track is (for me) very reminiscent of being on a beach, with the washes of sound like the waves pushing back and forth over a beach made of small pebbles that get disturbed by every wave. Overhead - seagulls of course. The biggest thing I get from T Dream is the relaxed way that sound develops - they are never in a hurry and give you time to enjoy the sliding shifts. This is chilling-out music for when I want to sit/lay back and just immerse myself into the shifting motifs. I love the (usually) unhurried flow where you can just enjoy the way different elements just slide in and out of the piece. A very nice choice and very German in origin (bands like Kraftwerk, Neu and Faust are from this time - and I think they are all mainly German). Some idiots mis-named stuff like this under the generic title of Krautrock, which is a very bad description as it isn't rock at all. Electronica is a better description as it is largely synthesizer-based - if I were to try for a description of things like this, it would be 'Soundscape' music. If you want the polar opposite to music like this, I'd cite Gentle Giant, which is an extraordinarily rich and complex tapestry of music, but almost entirely without the relaxed pacing of T.Dream. It is fast-changing, challenging to follow sometimes and absolutely stuffed with ideas that they want to shoehorn into each track. I love both groups, despite how different they are. I mentioned GG, because with Tangerine Dream I can sit down (and almost dream or meditate) to the tracks, whereas with GG you want to be up and moving, as it plays.

[@Perebynis]

Great review. Rubycon, Phaedra and Pergamon are my favorite pieces by TD, with Pergamon (Quichotte pt. I & II) probably being their best. No other music has a comparable synesthetic impact on me.

[@robboaron]

Great start for Tangerine Dream. It was my introduction to Tangerine Dream, after already havng discovered other electronic artists like Jean-Michel Jarre, Vangelis, Isao Tomita or Kitaro, For me the way to listen to music like this, is laying on my bed, lights off, eyes closed and headphones on and then just let it take me away. If you continue exploring electronic music I think Jean-Michel Jarre's album Oxygene is a must. Each side consists of three tracks, but transitioning into eachother. So I'd suggest part 1-3 as one listen and part 4-6 as another.

[@bgdexter]

When I discovered early TD as a teenager, the context was a my bed or a comfy chair, headphones, doors shut, eyes closed, and just let the music take me on a trip. Later TD can be listened to casually, but I think early TD will always grab my full attention. There is something deep, a hint of something supernatural, in these deconstructed, abstracted and reassembled sounds and patterns, with the sequencer working like a tribal drum on a shamanistic voyage.

[@Art0691p]

A brilliant album. Came out when I was 14. Blew my mind :) Ahead of its time. Still great now.

[@yes_head]

Wow. This is a departure for this channel, in a good way. Yes, it's not progressive rock, but 70's electronic music and synth-rock are usually considered progressive rock-adjacent. By the mid- to late-70's there was a lot of crossover happening between this kind of music and mainstream popular music. Musicians like Brian Eno and David Bowie had absorbed much of this (along with its sibling style, krautrock) and were busily incorporating it into their music. It does push more experimental boundaries for a lot of listeners, so it often comes down to personal preference whether you spend much time with it or not. It TD is too out there then someone like Vangelis or Jean-Michel Jarre or Suzanne Ciani might be worth a listen.

[@bungopony]

What Tangerine Dream is really all about is being the soundtrack to the movie in your mind. It's really good background music to do stuff by. I saw them in concert 3 times and one of them was one of the most entertaining shows I've ever seen. They can go from sensual and beautiful to scary and disturbing, just like life.

[@edmorris517]

I first heard this in the month that it was released. It was my introduction to the world of The Dream and admittedly it took a few spins to appreciate it. It’s been in my top 10 albums for 50 years and still listen to it on a regular basis. A classic 👍 thanks for the interesting review

[@RodneyABrubaker]

I recommend Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bell. It had a large influence on elctronica, new age, rock, metal, and movie soundtracks.

[@REPLICANT84]

I recommend kraftwerk and gary numan tubular bells was influenced by them! 😊

[@MashLimit]

Tubular Bells came out in 1973, I doubt if it was influence by either, Kraftwerk were around at that time, sure, but their music at that stage was nowhere approaching Mike Oldfield's sound/genre. As for Numan, '73 was way too early, I don't think he started recording til '76 or '77.

[@AndyKing1963]

@@MashLimit Numan keeps telling a mate of mine he hasn’t heard of TD but I’m not sure I’m buying that

[@AndyKing1963]

Kraftwerk and Can (well Irmin and his wife) both checked out TD in 1976 in fact they were in the audience at the same gig

[@REPLICANT84]

@@MashLimit I stand corrected I did not know it was that early. I like TD especially the first three albums. But my love for numan who is criminally underrated and never hardly reviewed except for cars influenced my first reply.

[@WilliamKinsey-dx2dn]

It's an absolutely amazing piece of work Lucky to have on record ⏺️

[@kaleidophon]

I have a 'project focus' playlist that I have when doing design work at the computer ;) I have to say that this is the perfect TD album to jump into the discography with. Personally, I believe the Virgin years are the definitive sound of the band. They improvised more in the earler years. I had everything they did on vinyl up until Underwater Sunlight. After the departure of Chris Franke they, morphed into something more pedestrian for my taste. It was this band that got me into making electronic music at the age of 17 (a LONG time ago!). Frome the same year, Ricochet is like a rocky, live flip-side to Rubycon. This album is my absolute fave. Akin to Floyd's Dark Side as the band's creative peak. Thanks for a great video. Subbed ;) - Note: Some of their influences (cited from vaious interviews) Steve Reich, Ligeti and Pinks Floyd.

[@podrunner743]

Re your question about under what circumstances someone would want to listen to this stuff: I've spent half a century writing fiction listening to Tangerine Dream, Brian Eno, some classical composers, and (in the last 20 years) electronic dance music mixes -- all for exactly the same reason. They're not wallpaper but neither do they steal focus. They drone, and induce a trance-like state (alpha-wave state, it used to be called) that I find absolutely immersive for creative sessions. I've heard similar from many artists in a variety of media (music composers being an obvious exception; I doubt many put music on while composing).

[@thomasalexand]

Brian Eno's ambient music is great to relax to.

[@scottstevens7639]

Wow! First Captain Beefheart, now this. You may be in danger of becoming musically radicalized 🤤 Believe it or not, this band is still going strong to this very day. Being around for so long, they are now part of a small contingent of bands that have NO original members left. The one mostly constant member (the lineup changed a lot over the decades) was founder Edgar Froese. He passed away in 2015. His son was in the band for a while, but has since moved on to other projects. It should be noted that being around for decades inevitably means that their sound was going to morph over time. In fact as the years rolled by, they slowly embraced more traditional melodic and harmonic structures as they progressed. You may find some of their later material a little closer to your tastes. I myself discovered TD in college back in 1980 with their first album on Richard Branson’s Virgin label, ‘Tangram’. I freely admit that I didn’t really understand what they were doing back then, but they are my all time favourite musical entity now. Richard Branson is Britain’s version of Elon Musk. He owns a bunch of companies, including Virgin Space (not sure if that’s the actual name) which offers tourist travel into orbit. And his whole empire started with Virgin Records. Specifically with Michael Oldfield’s “Tubular Bells”, which you may or may not want to react to at some point.

[@oldwaitekauri]

When the modulation kicks in it has always made me think of a spaceship coming to earth. Bought the vinyl in the 70s ☺

[@hippydippy]

I prefer their earlier album "Phaedra" myself, but we all have our opinions.

[@PROPHETVberlinschule]

So, completely way ahead of its time and still sets the bar for all budding ‘TD bands’ 11:13 to try and emulate. Timeless music👌

[@Jaxy451]

Love this group.