I've been following this series silently and haven't said anything due to me not listening to most of TD's stuff, but... shit, man. Saving those two albums for last was 100% the right move. I came into this video to see you tear a bunch of their later albums apart; I wasn't ready to cry too. Ik this video is crazy long but please everyone, don't miss the last 30 minutes. RIP Edgar Froese.
Wonky, I salute you. Not only have you posted a very impressive review of a global overview of the majority of Tangerine Dream's work, it is also a very personal one and that alone makes it interesting. I also largely agree with your reasoning regarding all the albums the band has made. But taste always remains subjective and personal and that is fine. Aside from your impressive anthology, I would like to point out two compilation box sets that are definitely worth your time, namely "In Search of Hades: The Virgin Recordings 1973-1979" and "Pilots of Purple Twilight - The Virgin Recordings 1980 - 1983". The first box set includes the first official release of an almost lost Tangerine Dream album called Oedipus Tyrannus, which I believe was originally recorded between the Phaedra and Rubicon albums. It is a gem of an album and therefore recommended. The box sets also contain unique material, including live material and soundtrack work. Overall, these box sets are highly recommended, as they cover the entire Virgin Years period, which for logical reasons is considered pretty much the best and most influential period of TD's music. Congratulations again for the time and energy you have put into the work of Tangerine Dream to create useful, informative and fun reviews.
Bravo, man, bravo. This was genuinely amazing and not just because of its length. Your explanations are on point, and the number of twists and turns in the band's discography is insane, it felt like I was watching multiple videos right after each other. Even though the series isn't entirely done yet, you've done a lot (some would say too much) to make it as good as it is, and you've succeeded. 10/10 video and series for sure.
wonky angle...you deserve more recognition. I don't think there is another music reviewer with such enthusiasm. It's sad that the shitty critics are far more well known.
Glad you enjoyed "Epsilon in Malaysian Pale", and does indeed grow on you! Give it a few more years and come back to it, and you'll likely rate it higher as it's so easy to listen to again and again and hear new depths and insights.
That last section was genuinely incredibly moving. I have had similar trepidation surrounding the post-Froese years for similar reasons-my "maybe you just should've stopped while you were ahead" band was Soft Machine, although the coda to their story has been a *lot* less depressing than that of Yes-but hearing you talk about these records and your own journey with them, as well as my own reflections on legacy, has really turned me around on the subject. So. Quantum Gate and Raum are on the list now, along with Edgar's early solo material. I have much to catch up on, I think.
monumental video, even considering the fact that you have to focus on like half or even less of their output! BTW I agree with you on Edgar´s second solo being one of the best works he as ever done (by himself or within TD) Anyways, thank you for making this discography review, it made me to re-discover some good stuff like Green Desert
Thank you Wonky, I hoped you would review Raum and Quantum Gate.....you did and I still prefer Raum but happy that you enjoyed Quantum Gate and less so Raum. I would be happy if that was the last 2 albums they released under the Tangerine Dream name. Again many thanks for your honesty but i still really enjoy White Eagle, haha. I understand your aversion to a non Edgar TD but proud that you eventually got your head around it, big thumbs up.
I've been a big fan of tangerine dream for a long time ever since I bought Canyon dreams it was a pretty good soundtrack. then a few months later, I started buying they album called Tyranny of beauty It really Blow Me Away when I start listening to the music I was really hooked instantly. now I have over at least 100 albums including DVDs LaserDisc and also some bootlegs copies of Tangerine Dream music and man I had a lot of them. enough TD music will last me for a lifetime. 20 years later i'm still listen to Tangerine Dream no matter what. still a good synth music. I kind of disagree with your opinion about Odds and Ends. Tangerine Dream will continue on.
Thanks for covering the Edgar Froese LPs.. not heard anyone cover him before. I never really dug Epsilon and only liked bits of Aqua. Macula Transfer, Ages , Stuntman, Solo 74-79 and Pinnacles were more my taste. Really formed my musical tastes and expanded my horizons.... Fav tracks IF810, Capricorn, Mozart in the Desert, Dali-esque Sleep Fuse.... amazed how you don't find the Stuntman LP melodic... it really is a melodic catchy tour de force... and was my fav LP as a teenager. I guess you might have been a bit overloaded with this catalog to be honest...
This was a really great video, thank you for this. In my opinion Raum is a real grower, and Is one of my favourites by anyone. On another note the live sessions album's with Ulrich Schnauss are also really great.
The filmakers originally wanted Steve Reich for the soundtrack of Risky Business, but they couldn't come to an agreement so they turned to TD. If you listen to section V of Reich's "Music for 18 Musicians", you'll discover exactly where Love on a Real Train came from. Reich was not happy about that.
Excellent overview of their remaining catalogue! Glad to see you had a change of heart over post-Edgar TD and the last two albums. The drama surrounding that and the "legitimacy" of the band now under Thorsten and some comments from Jerome, Peter, and Johannes upset me to be honest. I personally prefer Raum over Quantum Gate, but both are solid albums and TD's best releases in decades undoubtedly. I will respectfully disagree with you on Raum being the last album as I really (perhaps selfishly) want to see where Thorsten, Paul, and Hoshiko go moving forward in the years ahead. I listened to a podcast where they mentioned plans to start work on a new album this year with possible release for 2025, and I really think this current lineup is the best one since Froese/Franke/Schmoelling. As beautiful and poetic as it would be for Raum to be TD's sendoff and a final tribute to Edgar, I feel TD goes beyond just Froese or the sum of its parts, regardless of the bandmembers. Its inherently a musical philosophy and concept that sort of reincarnates itself almost cyclically through different eras and people coming and going, leaving their own indelible marks on the legacy. And to me, there's something really beautiful and comforting about that.
Nice a 2h Tangerine Dream video. Also The Zeitgeist Concert is pretty good. And the Audience on the Norwegian Woods Cover is from the Zeitgeist Concert.
Tyranny of Beauty is similar to Turn of the Tides but with better percussion, Jerome bringing in his interest in ambient techno to the beats occasionally. That approach actually hits its peak on 'Towards the Evening Star', the Underworld-sampling opening track from Goblins Club, which is worth a listen, even if the rest of the album isn't dramatically different to the other early '90s material, albeit with a touch of an Enigma vibe. Mars Polaris is definitely the first album since the early '80s that actually 'feels' like a classic TD record. I actually adore Jeanne D'Arc, it's a top three TD album for me. I love the hugely sentimental melodies throughout it. Le Combat Epees is my second favourite TD track ever. The only downside is the opener, which is dull and too long, but otherwise I can't fault it. Eastgate-era-wise, Springtime in Nagasaki is definitely worth a listen. Especially the second half, Thorsten's 'Persistence of Memory', which has some gorgeous post-rock and modern classical stuff on it. That run of 25 minutes is up there with my all-time favourite TD material (part 2 might be in my all-time top ten pieces of music). Absolutely worth a listen if you like Thorsten's Metaphor pieces, his more contemporary production is very evident here. The other Eastgate-era records that are maybe worth a listen are Purple Diluvial - largely a Thorsten solo album, quite dramatic and dynamic - the two Chandra records, which have some nice atmospheres and some genuinely intriguing production ideas (especially in the first half of the first volume), and the Sonic Poems, which are somewhere between classic chunky sequencers and the Mars Polaris sound. No hugely memorable tracks on those latter ones, but the production is top notch. Blasphemy about Edgar - yeah, I'm with you, once a visionary, but from the start of the '90s I've generally preferred both Jerome's and Thorsten's contributions to Edgar's. I loved him, I cried when he died, but TD without Edgar, on a purely creative perspective, isn't inherently a bad thing. Get yourself a full listen to Mala Kunia, it's my favourite Quantum Years release. But yeah, all the studio discs from the era are excellent. The live improvs get tiring quickly, but the 'main' releases are all great - although I prefer Quantum Key to Quantum Gate. Electron Bonfire is a proper banger. Raum I adore, as you say, it's beautiful and emotional. It's definitely less sonically exciting - I think that was an Ulrich thing, and it's sad that he's gone - but any album with material like You're Always On Time will always be a winner for me. And agreed, it would be a fitting end to their studio career.
I own 93 TD albums ( I know , I'm missing a few ) ... It's funny that Livemiles and 220 Volt Live are in my favorite list of TD albums .... also check out the band Loom which is Jerome Froese / Johannes Schmölling / Robert Waters.
I remember back in the mid 90s I made a decision to sell off all the Tangerine CDs and LPs I didn't listen to and went to a record shop in Manchester UK and I think they gave me £300 credit for buying s/h records.... spent it all on jazz records which I (mostly) still own to this day.
I watched ALL! And I'm saying thank you! 2,5 hours I mostly nodded my head approvingly (there was few places where I didn't agree) -But this was important to me!! I've been listening TD about 44 years now, I bought my first Album (Exit) around when it was released. But all this time I didn't have anyone that I could share my excitement with. I was always alone with my biggest passion of music. But since you gave Exit or Tangram only about 8,5 (or something) I'm very interested to hear what would be in your opinion an album of 10? (Artist - Album)?
I listened to a lot of New Age in the 90’s - the best was an 80’s compilation called Narada Decade the First Ten Years. Only some of it is electronic but it does contain some great acoustic instrumental tracks - it even has a Hans Zimmer track.
just looked that up, that's a single not an album and it was originally credited under Tangerine Dream. without having heard it, I'm guessing from the era in which it was released that my feelings on it would most likely line up with my feelings on the material included on the Booster comp
@@TheWonkyAngle I know it's credited to TD, even though it is technically an Edgar solo "virtual album" (two tracks, so technically not a single). I think there are a few other releases that fit that category. Having said that, I do think it's worth a listen.
idk if you've seen any of my previous replies to you making this exact comment before but I did this video on him with the full In Brief segment th-cam.com/video/ksMdPhM1y0Y/w-d-xo.html
Honestly that's the problem with electronic music it's mainly instrumental and TD could only take their sound so far and music w/ no lyrics that explains why majority of their albums sucks
this take is super reductive and a little insulting imo, there's tons of depth that can be gleaned out of all-instrumental electronic music and it's the entire basis upon which this channel has been built for the past near-decade I think TD's later albums mostly tend to suck because they weren't really putting as much thought or effort into them and were focusing more on what sells well and quantity over quality
I think the problem with the majority of music is that people insist on wailing lyrics over the top of it, because they are under the misguided impression that they have something noteworthy and interesting to say. I'd far prefer people let their music do the talking.
@@TheWonkyAngle you got a lot of nerve 😂 as much complaining as you do about alot of these albums being terrible or boring it's the truth not all but a good majority of Electronic music that is mainly instrumental sucks
@@southcoastsynthesis honestly lyrics do help because it's still a song and a lot of these producers don't really understand how to take the tracks in different directions and there's really no need for some of these tracks too be so long
I've been following this series silently and haven't said anything due to me not listening to most of TD's stuff, but... shit, man. Saving those two albums for last was 100% the right move. I came into this video to see you tear a bunch of their later albums apart; I wasn't ready to cry too. Ik this video is crazy long but please everyone, don't miss the last 30 minutes. RIP Edgar Froese.
You were right, the raum talk got me emotional
Wonky, I salute you. Not only have you posted a very impressive review of a global overview of the majority of Tangerine Dream's work, it is also a very personal one and that alone makes it interesting. I also largely agree with your reasoning regarding all the albums the band has made. But taste always remains subjective and personal and that is fine.
Aside from your impressive anthology, I would like to point out two compilation box sets that are definitely worth your time, namely "In Search of Hades: The Virgin Recordings 1973-1979" and "Pilots of Purple Twilight - The Virgin Recordings 1980 - 1983". The first box set includes the first official release of an almost lost Tangerine Dream album called Oedipus Tyrannus, which I believe was originally recorded between the Phaedra and Rubicon albums. It is a gem of an album and therefore recommended.
The box sets also contain unique material, including live material and soundtrack work. Overall, these box sets are highly recommended, as they cover the entire Virgin Years period, which for logical reasons is considered pretty much the best and most influential period of TD's music.
Congratulations again for the time and energy you have put into the work of Tangerine Dream to create useful, informative and fun reviews.
Bravo, man, bravo. This was genuinely amazing and not just because of its length. Your explanations are on point, and the number of twists and turns in the band's discography is insane, it felt like I was watching multiple videos right after each other. Even though the series isn't entirely done yet, you've done a lot (some would say too much) to make it as good as it is, and you've succeeded. 10/10 video and series for sure.
LOL, such an awesome thumbnail and intro! 😂 I cant wait to chip away at this video, odd and ends are the best!
wonky angle...you deserve more recognition.
I don't think there is another music reviewer with such enthusiasm. It's sad that the shitty critics are far more well known.
imo the far more well known music critics on this platform are still doing good work in their own right, but very much appreciated anyway
Haven’t heard any of their albums yet but well done for putting out a 2 hour video of their extra stuff. Must be incredibly hard work!!
Glad you enjoyed "Epsilon in Malaysian Pale", and does indeed grow on you! Give it a few more years and come back to it, and you'll likely rate it higher as it's so easy to listen to again and again and hear new depths and insights.
THE 2 HOUR WONKY ANGLE DROP IS FOR REAL!!!
2 hours & 28 minutes blimey!! Well done 👏🏻
wow, uh… f*cking congratulations 😭🎉
Thank you so much for your hard work ❤
That last section was genuinely incredibly moving. I have had similar trepidation surrounding the post-Froese years for similar reasons-my "maybe you just should've stopped while you were ahead" band was Soft Machine, although the coda to their story has been a *lot* less depressing than that of Yes-but hearing you talk about these records and your own journey with them, as well as my own reflections on legacy, has really turned me around on the subject. So. Quantum Gate and Raum are on the list now, along with Edgar's early solo material. I have much to catch up on, I think.
monumental video, even considering the fact that you have to focus on like half or even less of their output!
BTW I agree with you on Edgar´s second solo being one of the best works he as ever done (by himself or within TD)
Anyways, thank you for making this discography review, it made me to re-discover some good stuff like Green Desert
Thank you Wonky, I hoped you would review Raum and Quantum Gate.....you did and I still prefer Raum but happy that you enjoyed Quantum Gate and less so Raum.
I would be happy if that was the last 2 albums they released under the Tangerine Dream name.
Again many thanks for your honesty but i still really enjoy White Eagle, haha.
I understand your aversion to a non Edgar TD but proud that you eventually got your head around it, big thumbs up.
I've been a big fan of tangerine dream for a long time ever since I bought Canyon dreams it was a pretty good soundtrack. then a few months later, I started buying they album called Tyranny of beauty It really Blow Me Away when I start listening to the music I was really hooked instantly. now I have over at least 100 albums including DVDs LaserDisc and also some bootlegs copies of Tangerine Dream music and man I had a lot of them. enough TD music will last me for a lifetime. 20 years later i'm still listen to Tangerine Dream no matter what. still a good synth music. I kind of disagree with your opinion about Odds and Ends. Tangerine Dream will continue on.
Thanks for covering the Edgar Froese LPs.. not heard anyone cover him before. I never really dug Epsilon and only liked bits of Aqua. Macula Transfer, Ages , Stuntman, Solo 74-79 and Pinnacles were more my taste. Really formed my musical tastes and expanded my horizons....
Fav tracks IF810, Capricorn, Mozart in the Desert, Dali-esque Sleep Fuse.... amazed how you don't find the Stuntman LP melodic... it really is a melodic catchy tour de force... and was my fav LP as a teenager. I guess you might have been a bit overloaded with this catalog to be honest...
This was a really great video, thank you for this.
In my opinion Raum is a real grower, and Is one of my favourites by anyone.
On another note the live sessions album's with Ulrich Schnauss are also really great.
Tangerine Dream are only just starting ;)
The filmakers originally wanted Steve Reich for the soundtrack of Risky Business, but they couldn't come to an agreement so they turned to TD. If you listen to section V of Reich's "Music for 18 Musicians", you'll discover exactly where Love on a Real Train came from. Reich was not happy about that.
Cool eno shirt
Excellent overview of their remaining catalogue! Glad to see you had a change of heart over post-Edgar TD and the last two albums. The drama surrounding that and the "legitimacy" of the band now under Thorsten and some comments from Jerome, Peter, and Johannes upset me to be honest. I personally prefer Raum over Quantum Gate, but both are solid albums and TD's best releases in decades undoubtedly. I will respectfully disagree with you on Raum being the last album as I really (perhaps selfishly) want to see where Thorsten, Paul, and Hoshiko go moving forward in the years ahead. I listened to a podcast where they mentioned plans to start work on a new album this year with possible release for 2025, and I really think this current lineup is the best one since Froese/Franke/Schmoelling. As beautiful and poetic as it would be for Raum to be TD's sendoff and a final tribute to Edgar, I feel TD goes beyond just Froese or the sum of its parts, regardless of the bandmembers. Its inherently a musical philosophy and concept that sort of reincarnates itself almost cyclically through different eras and people coming and going, leaving their own indelible marks on the legacy. And to me, there's something really beautiful and comforting about that.
Nice a 2h Tangerine Dream video.
Also The Zeitgeist Concert is pretty good.
And the Audience on the Norwegian Woods Cover is from the Zeitgeist Concert.
Damn, missed Tyranny of Beauty. I randomly found it at a store last week and got it. literally the first tangerine dream project I've heard
Tyranny of Beauty is similar to Turn of the Tides but with better percussion, Jerome bringing in his interest in ambient techno to the beats occasionally. That approach actually hits its peak on 'Towards the Evening Star', the Underworld-sampling opening track from Goblins Club, which is worth a listen, even if the rest of the album isn't dramatically different to the other early '90s material, albeit with a touch of an Enigma vibe.
Mars Polaris is definitely the first album since the early '80s that actually 'feels' like a classic TD record.
I actually adore Jeanne D'Arc, it's a top three TD album for me. I love the hugely sentimental melodies throughout it. Le Combat Epees is my second favourite TD track ever. The only downside is the opener, which is dull and too long, but otherwise I can't fault it.
Eastgate-era-wise, Springtime in Nagasaki is definitely worth a listen. Especially the second half, Thorsten's 'Persistence of Memory', which has some gorgeous post-rock and modern classical stuff on it. That run of 25 minutes is up there with my all-time favourite TD material (part 2 might be in my all-time top ten pieces of music). Absolutely worth a listen if you like Thorsten's Metaphor pieces, his more contemporary production is very evident here.
The other Eastgate-era records that are maybe worth a listen are Purple Diluvial - largely a Thorsten solo album, quite dramatic and dynamic - the two Chandra records, which have some nice atmospheres and some genuinely intriguing production ideas (especially in the first half of the first volume), and the Sonic Poems, which are somewhere between classic chunky sequencers and the Mars Polaris sound. No hugely memorable tracks on those latter ones, but the production is top notch.
Blasphemy about Edgar - yeah, I'm with you, once a visionary, but from the start of the '90s I've generally preferred both Jerome's and Thorsten's contributions to Edgar's. I loved him, I cried when he died, but TD without Edgar, on a purely creative perspective, isn't inherently a bad thing.
Get yourself a full listen to Mala Kunia, it's my favourite Quantum Years release. But yeah, all the studio discs from the era are excellent. The live improvs get tiring quickly, but the 'main' releases are all great - although I prefer Quantum Key to Quantum Gate. Electron Bonfire is a proper banger. Raum I adore, as you say, it's beautiful and emotional. It's definitely less sonically exciting - I think that was an Ulrich thing, and it's sad that he's gone - but any album with material like You're Always On Time will always be a winner for me. And agreed, it would be a fitting end to their studio career.
I own 93 TD albums ( I know , I'm missing a few ) ... It's funny that Livemiles and 220 Volt Live are in my favorite list of TD albums .... also check out the band Loom which is Jerome Froese / Johannes Schmölling / Robert Waters.
I didn't count but I think I have at least that many!
I remember back in the mid 90s I made a decision to sell off all the Tangerine CDs and LPs I didn't listen to and went to a record shop in Manchester UK and I think they gave me £300 credit for buying s/h records.... spent it all on jazz records which I (mostly) still own to this day.
I watched ALL! And I'm saying thank you! 2,5 hours I mostly nodded my head approvingly (there was few places where I didn't agree) -But this was important to me!! I've been listening TD about 44 years now, I bought my first Album (Exit) around when it was released. But all this time I didn't have anyone that I could share my excitement with. I was always alone with my biggest passion of music.
But since you gave Exit or Tangram only about 8,5 (or something) I'm very interested to hear what would be in your opinion an album of 10? (Artist - Album)?
these are the albums I've scored a 10/10 th-cam.com/play/PL9VloxGOomL4Wy6IzlZ7ewiYUI522uWkQ.html
The Keep is worth checking out, since you LOVE Hyperborea !
Love that shirt!
I listened to a lot of New Age in the 90’s - the best was an 80’s compilation called Narada Decade the First Ten Years. Only some of it is electronic but it does contain some great acoustic instrumental tracks - it even has a Hans Zimmer track.
I think you might have missed Edgar's solo "Armageddon in a Rose Garden".
just looked that up, that's a single not an album and it was originally credited under Tangerine Dream. without having heard it, I'm guessing from the era in which it was released that my feelings on it would most likely line up with my feelings on the material included on the Booster comp
@@TheWonkyAngle I know it's credited to TD, even though it is technically an Edgar solo "virtual album" (two tracks, so technically not a single). I think there are a few other releases that fit that category. Having said that, I do think it's worth a listen.
Poland…finally 🙂🙏
That eno shirt is so cool. Where on earth did you get it??
Have you ever done your top ten favorite non electronic album? Things like Pink Floyd etc? Would be interesting
What's Your opinion on Massive Attack's Mezzanine?
Iirc he's mentioned he's not a fan of Massive Attack, not that he doesn't like them just that he's ambivalent towards them
@@jennyl309I think he said he liked Protection the best in their catalogue
I think "Rockoon" is a word play on "Raccoon".
about equally meaningful then
"phaedra papyrus edition" HAHAHAHAHAHA
support comment
HOOOOLLLYYY F**K I'M COMIN AHH LOIS I'M COMIN
Oh and funny as hell…👍
now do Ashra Tempel )
I know you can't just ask for a discography review... but wouldn't a clark discography review be cool ?
not within my current plans but not against the idea
How about a Klaus Schulze Review?
idk if you've seen any of my previous replies to you making this exact comment before but I did this video on him with the full In Brief segment th-cam.com/video/ksMdPhM1y0Y/w-d-xo.html
@@TheWonkyAngle OMG I though TH-cam would notify me if I got replies. I stop bothering you from now on.
Greetings from Germany
Here before brendawg comments wonky slush
Edit: Btw just thought of this but if you think TD is the simpsons of electronic music who is the family guy
wonky slush
pls give velvet acid christ a listen
Wow really stretching the 10-minute monetization mark here...cool!
Also are you planning on doing The Prodigy next? Am eagerly anticipating that...
Ok, now do Klaus Schulze ;)
wonky slush
Honestly that's the problem with electronic music it's mainly instrumental and TD could only take their sound so far and music w/ no lyrics that explains why majority of their albums sucks
this take is super reductive and a little insulting imo, there's tons of depth that can be gleaned out of all-instrumental electronic music and it's the entire basis upon which this channel has been built for the past near-decade
I think TD's later albums mostly tend to suck because they weren't really putting as much thought or effort into them and were focusing more on what sells well and quantity over quality
I think the problem with the majority of music is that people insist on wailing lyrics over the top of it, because they are under the misguided impression that they have something noteworthy and interesting to say. I'd far prefer people let their music do the talking.
@@TheWonkyAngle you got a lot of nerve 😂 as much complaining as you do about alot of these albums being terrible or boring it's the truth not all but a good majority of Electronic music that is mainly instrumental sucks
@@southcoastsynthesis honestly lyrics do help because it's still a song and a lot of these producers don't really understand how to take the tracks in different directions and there's really no need for some of these tracks too be so long
Go tell Rachmaninov his music needs lyrics.