ASH RA TEMPEL

For whatever reason, the term "jam band" has become synonymous with one of its narrower variants, the stoner-improv of the Grateful Dead and Phish. But Ash Ra Tempel is certainly the work of a jam band, the kind of band that doesn't get overly concerned about rehearsal and whose compositions are by their nature unpremeditated.

Side One, "Amboss" (English: "Anvil"), reminds me of a live Jimi Hendrix Experience jam - - but whereas in Hendrix's hands this piece would have evolved out of a structured song, and would eventually evolve back, "Amboss" is just the jam. As sidelong power-trio jams go, it's not bad. And it definitely hints at the in which direction Ash Ra Tempel's drummer, Klaus Schulze, would be heading over the next few years as a solo artist.

In some ways Side Two, the twenty-five minute "Traummtaschine" ("Dream Machine"), is even more Schulzian. While guitarist Manuel Göttsching was the star of "Amboss," "Traummtaschine" is much more atmospheric; occasionally one instrument is prominent, but there really isn't a lead part here. Both Göttsching and Schulze are credited with "electronics," and while that's pretty descriptive, I'm not sure exactly what means they used to achieve some of the sounds of the soundscape.

So Ash Ra Tempel is one side freakout and one side chillout. To a Klaus Schulze fan like me, it fits perfectly on a timeline between his prior album, Electronic Meditation (1970, with Tangerine Dream) and his first solo record, Irrlicht (1972). Whereas Electronic Meditation was marked by experimental antimusic, and Irrlicht was largely an ambient drone album, the experimentation on Ash Ra Tempel is carried out within some degree of structure, even if that structure is inferred by comparing Ash Ra Tempel to the other two LPs. Although it must strike many listeners as noise for the sake of noise, Ash Ra Tempel is actually closer to art for the sake of art. And whatever they were doing with this album, Göttsching, Schulze, and bassist Hartmut Enke weren't creating music as entertainment.

I guess it makes sense, then, that I admire and appreciate Ash Ra Tempel even more than I enjoy it, which I do on occasion. In particular, "Traummtaschine" fits well as part of an early-Schulze playlist.

Anyway, three stars for a good album. It's not a bad place to start for those interested in this group, although the identically structured Join Inn (1973) is definitely more accessible.