TIME MACHINE

Somehow the easy recording of music has brought upon its respective pros and cons. I will consider the cons. Nowadays studio time and its costs have been beaten down considerably, therefore musicians can release dozens of works any given month or year or Sunday. This advantage is a con?

Well taking into account that musicians have escaped from the industry , almost by rule, they also publish whatever they record and have become, not by rule, over indulgent with the record-sell ideology. I mean, instead of releasing and selling 6 albums per year they could release only 2, they could actually compile all of the recorded best compositions and just release one, or 2 tops, perfect albums.

Anyway, all these comes to mind, while listening to Frederich Shuller's, "Time Machine", 2014, so many good things yet some others are just too close to his personal influences therefore not unique. Quiet a dilemma.

"Eternity", track one, a cool and polished approach to both the Berlin and the U.S.A.'s West Coast schools. The moog soloing certainly is welcomed as it is measured and unpretentious, yet quiet effective. The splashes of Tangerine Dream's colors, well, are not that necessary, but as it seems most contemporary Progressive Electronic musicians just can not do without them, anyway 3 stars.

Track 2- "Changing Lanes" could be a cover of J.M. Jarre's "Equinox", a downer for starters, if we are looking for new things in progressive electronics, besides those very personal acoustic, woody "creaking" noises, which could become a perfect Frederich Shuller trade mark, but sadly not even this can keep my mind of J.M. Jarre (no problem with Jean Jarre, but if I want to listen to him, I will be doing so). 2 stars.

"Reversed Time", next track, is the sure winner in this release. A perfect union of attractive cosmic electronic and drone like elements, structured with a polished, quiet unique and personal language. 4 full stars.

"On the Clock", track 4, plays along with the previous track's ideas but sets them in a more pulse like environment, adding dynamic, yet losing personality by doing so in such a quiet done manner. 3 stars.

"Neverlasting", the last track, is inclined towards the robotic Alan Parsons' mode. It has it bright sections, adding some retro like fun-feeling, even between its cinematic drama, involving a retro-synths' sounds display. The kind of track that somehow stays short but proposes a bigger result. 3.5 stars.

3 good tracks , 1 so-so track & one almost masterpiece.

***3 PA stars.