OPÉRA SAUVAGE (OST)

Opera Sauvage is one of the strongest and most consistant collection of songs Vangelis had come up with at that point, and it's also one of his most pleasant listens. While China had found him leaning more on the beautiful aspects of the electronic prog albums of Albedo 0.39 and Spiral, Opera Sauvage concentrates almost completely on that side of his music, and also happens to contain some of his best compositions. The melodic and lushly arranged "Hymn" and "L'Enfant" are both well known, and the soft electric piano atmosphere of "Reve" is one of his most relaxing pieces. On "Chromatique", Vangelis uses rhythm to great effect to make a timeless melody out of a simple chromatic scale. The album may not have the same exciting energy as some of his earlier albums, with the exception of the appropriately named "Flamants Roses", with Jon Anderson on harp, but Vangelis has clearly grown even more as a songwriter, and every piece is a marvel to listen to. One of his best.