DREAM MIXES 4

The latest in TD's series of remix albums,"DM4" is the best of them. The first was too rushed and not taken seriously enough,with the second and third they had realised that this concept was not just something to play around with for fun in between the "proper" TD albums,but a whole new avenue of creative expression in itself. Which leads us to "DM4",the pinnacle (so far!) of the DM series. Unlike the previous ones,all the tracks,while separate,are linked in a long,uninterrupted chain,creating a concept like feel to the album,reminiscent of TD albums of yore. It makes for a more interesting listening experience and gives the whole thing a cohesion that,while excellent in their own right,the first three DM's lack. As with the preceding three,"DM4" consists of older TD music,all the way back to the early 70's in some cases,given a remix and rearranging treatment to such a degree that all these tracks,while based on previously released material,have been altered to such an extent that it's true to say that this is brand new music in it's own right. I may be in a minority of one here,but in some cases these reworkings makes the music much better than it was in it's original state. "Meta Morph Magic" is a case in point. The original,"Thru Metamorphic Rocks" from the "Force Majeure" album from 1979 I have never really cared much for,finding it needlessly experimental. On "DM4" they have "firmed it up",stripped off those unecessary experimental doodlings and highlighted the qualities that the track undoubtedly has which I always thought was obscured on the original. Another inventive reworking of the TD back catalogue is the new version of "Ricochet",called "Rebound 03",a clever reworking of the title too!, with it's variation of the piano intro from the second part of "Ricochet". Like the previous ones,"DM4" is packed to the gills with percussion,played by Jerome Froese who has turned out to be a quite excellent drummer and his percussive contribution to the DM series is one of it's major strengths. He plays a beautiful acoustic guitar too on the arguably best track,the closing (and longest number) "The Metropolitan Sphere" and also the odd electric guitar parts here and there throughout this electronic soundscape. "DM4" for me is up there with the very best of TD's work and I would have no hesitation to recommend this to anyone wanting to get a taste of TD at their best.