X

I have never heard a better mix of strings and electronics than on Klaus Schulze's double disc "X". These compositions definitely stand out from what is on his previous albums. I'm not sure about why the progressive electronic music of the seventies always tend towards minimalism or "ambient" (speculating about that would probably lead this review in the wrong direction). However, "X" is another minimalistic work from Schulze. Fans of minimalism (which is a simplicity in expression rather than only simple) definitely get their thing here. CD 1, which could be described as the easier part to get in to, contains four tracks. The first three tracks all have quite clear directions and sometimes they are even very rhythmic. The music then gets more loose and ambient. The best moment of the album is "Ludwig II. von Bayern" the first track of CD 2, where the strings are very prominent. The closing track "Heinrich von Kleist" (I don't have the bonus track "Objet d'Louis" so I can't comment on that) is in my opinion the weakest part of the album, because it doesn't give me anything new and it feels a bit stretched out. The same goes for "Friedemann Bach", the closing track of CD 1. But overall this is a highly recommended album, if you're into minimalism that is.