“You are looking for a tribute? You are seeking for the best legacy that Edgar could have left? This is the one to have”
1 Traffic of Silence 6:25
2 Vault of the Heaven 5:32
3 Daluminación| 8:46
4 Lightcone 6:48
5 Timanfaya 5:50
6 Tropic of Capricorn 5:03
7 Dalinetopia 7:51
8 Stuntman 5:06
9 Metropolis 5:55
10 Daliesquador 8:59
11 Drunken Mozart in the Desert 9:17
12 Pinnacles Part One 8:31
13 Scarlet Score for Mescalero 5:27
14 Hamlet 11:00
15 Maroubra Bay 9:35
16 Pinnacles Part Two 6:22
17 Heatwave City 5:52
18 One Night in Space 9:22
19 Serpent Magique 11:06
20 Leviathan 9:22
Eastgate – 007 DVD
Eastgate - 040 CD en 2009
(2CD/1DVD 155:56) (V.F.)
(Berlin School)
How to say...! Fans of Tangerine Dream are we extraterrestrials? Are we living on another planet? The question deserves to be asked because it's with consternation that I noticed that the death of the old silver fox hasn't make any waves. But where do I begin? There is so much to say. True that I always had a critical ear in front of certain albums from TD. This musical ship that Edgar Froese downright puts to dependence in front of these new technologies since the arrival of the digital synths and sequencers in the 80's. But it was the shout of the hunger! The hunger for what Tangerine Dream, what Edgar Froese and his superb solo albums from this era, has insidiously put in me, in my ears. But I always respected the man. Without Edgar Froese, what would be the face of EM today? Klaus Schulze is not the answer to everything. Without Froese, there is no TD. EM would not have the face it has today. Edgar has completely democratized this art by bringing into it a harmonious and a rhythmic vision. We may not agreed on it, but Edgar has brought this breath of fresh air that this industry needed in order to reborn from its ashes in the 90's. I raged in those years and I had to make my mourning. That been as long as restless, especially since this old man had begun to make me dream again with his damn Sonic Poem Series. And recently his Quantum Years. I knew that Edgar was just sleepy. The thing is, he won't wake up anymore! What is left of his inheritance? Hundreds of albums my friends. Music to make you bulimic. DVD! Lots of them. And like a man grieving of love who is looking at videos of his ex, until all tears fled his body, I looked. The old ones like the new. And what I cursed at that time; I love it today. Not always agreed! Oh no! Linda Spa and her saxophone which brings frigging nothing to the music of Dream. Iris Camaa and her percussions which seem to dictate the speed of her hands and not the opposite. No... Not always agree. But strangely here, it's OK.
Recorded within the framework of the famous Dutch event of EM; the E-Day Festival on April 13th, 2008, TANGERINE DREAM PLAYS EDGAR FROESE - The Epsilon Journey is the most beautiful legacy, the most current one, where we see an Edgar still in great shape interpreting, with his gang of young wolves, some of his best music. In spite of big absentees from Aqua and Epsilon In Malaysian Pale, the set list remains impressive. Set apart Hamlet, which is particularly good by the way, and the last 3 tracks, the whole thing comes from Edgar's creative mind. And there, no doubts! The gang of Froese plays for real. The camera shots seem to have been taken in order dissipate any doubts on this matter. Is it good? Better! It's a blow of nostalgia where we seize all the dimension of the character. On a solid performance of the band and the very good interpretations, yes yes you read me well, (OK I hate hearing Linda Spa plays sax on Lightcone, Stuntman and Metropolis... Anyway, I never understood how come she lasted that long with TD. There it's written!), the DVD presents some good video footages of an Edgar dragging its smile and a small keyboard in a desert or on a beach or into a rowboat (what a sneaky little romantic fox he was). There are so many delicious wink to his Stuntman period, as well as those videos of the Three Bikes in the Sky's era. We see a serene Edgar with these short footages which are melting quite artistically to the video scenes of the event. An event which is well filmed by the way, with a beautiful lighting and good camera angles which make no doubt on the skills of the quintet. Surprise, and that passes well enough, the images are mainly in black and white or in sepia drawing, giving a rather particular cachet to this concert which uses aptly its numerous computer-generated images on a giant white sheet screen. The interpretations are delicious (Bof! I'll skip my thoughts on the sax parts) and the old music of Edgar (what a version of Metropolis!) takes a good youthful boost. And we see our dear Edgar smiling constantly, as being proud to transmit his philosophy, his legacy to Thorsten Quaeschning who I'm sure never asked for that much. The whole thing, what! The key points? They are several. Drunken Mozart in the Desert is something not to be missed. The same goes for Bernhard Beibl's stunning guitar solos on One Night in Space and Leviathan. The duel of both guitarists is a good moment in Hamlet, which is much better on the DVD than in audio. At this level, I strongly recommend you the DVD instead of the audio version which seems lacking depth, punch. But we are not for a controversy near in the world of the Dream, No?! But no matter.
You are looking for a tribute to the great man? Don't expect the unexpected and get yourselves this DVD. The music and Edgar's images will have ever aged so well. And when your ears will cross this infernal melody which roams as a trap to madmen in Drunken Mozart in the Desert, you will understand everything. The best memory of him, his music is here on this TANGERINE DREAM PLAYS EDGAR FROESE - The Epsilon Journey.
Sylvain Lupari (January 30th, 2015) *****