ALPHA CENTAURI

After some reformation, this is a milestone in Tangerine Dream's development. It is a very experimental album that most people will find very difficult to access. Much of the album is devoted to spacey sounds without clear structure. Only the end of "Fly and Collision of Comas Sola" has an eruption of drums, otherwise (leaving apart the Ultima Thule single that is a bonus on this issue) the music is not rhythmic but free form. Some jazzy melodic elements are brought in from Udo Dennenbourg's flute, and there are some pastoral organ sounds and some very rare guitar chords, otherwise tonality is left to the side as much as rhythm. In terms of sound experimentation, the album is quite colorful, and more radical than most that was around at the time; its spacey atmosphere with many things flying around is still something special to this day. That said, I don't find myself listening to this album much, and I have a clear preference for the following two albums Zeit and Atem which would explore the territory opened here further. On Alpha Centauri, the musicians seem still to be overwhelmed a bit by their own experimental powers. I think that they try out and play around a bit too much here. The music seems directionless at times and not as consistent as on the following offerings. Alpha Cenaturi is an interesting exploration of what can be done, but feels somewhat immature in its use of all these effects. Of the bonus tracks, I like Oszillator Plant Concert a lot, it seems like a further step in the direction of Zeit. Ultima Thule Part I is some noisy rock dominated by guitar and drums for a change. I wouldn't go to Tangerine Dream for this kind of music. Its Part II combines the space sounds and drums in a way that reminds me of the later Atem, but is better played out there.

I have huge respect for this record and know that it works very well for some. Personally I think of this as useful training for the band before they come up with the real gems.