PHAEDRA

I find progressive electronic music more indescribable than most other forms of music, and this is definitely no exception- it's an art form that almost needs to be heard to be judged at all. Words fall short. Yet reviewing, by nature, is done with words, so I will give it my best. That said, Tangerine Dream's most celebrated work is a dark and gloomy affair, but a masterpiece of the genre in my thin book. The strange thing is, no matter how hard I try to concentrate on it, the hypnotic nature of the music loses me, and suddenly I am drawn back into it and wondering at what point it all shifted- kind of like lying in bed on a sleepless night, thinking of a series of things, only to reach a thought that begs an auditing of the thoughts that led up to terminal one. Again, words fail.

"Phaedra" Somber and meticulous, a repetitive electronic rhythm rises from the musical mist. But that first lead instrument, which sounds like a modulated Mellotron, grabs me each and every time. Bird-like noises surface in the airy, almost bleak landscape of music. The latter half is empty and yet somehow full, full of unseen life- a fullness that resonates from somewhere within.

"Mysterious Semblance At The Strand Of Nightmares" Dirge-like and somber, this music is melancholic and reflective, as though depicting a quiet funeral on windswept snowy mountains. Each texture washes over the next like a watercolor masterpiece.

"Movements Of A Visionary" Odd noises abound until the electronic rhythm can fade in. A church organ follows. This is the most difficult to follow despite its relative brevity- perhaps that is due, ironically, to its simplistic nature.

"Sequent C'" This final track offers more despondent tones, bringing the album to an abrupt but meditative conclusion.