BEAUBOURG

First of all, I take umbrage at the star rating system for this album, since it is not actually prog rock. It is experimental electronica. There are many reviews here that lambaste this album because it is not what they expected from Vangelis. However, one has only to listen to the modular synth electronica that is being made today to realize that Vangelis was only about 45 years ahead of his time. Also, if one wants to put this album in context, then one must listen not to other Vangelis music or prog rock, but to go back and listen to such works as Stockhausen's Etudes or Ligeti's Artikulations. Beaubourg is like those works, only less formal and more melodic. There are actually some really beautiful sections of Beaubourg -- for example, the first five minutes makes a very compelling composition, full of beauty and drama.

When I first got this record back in the early 80s, I didn't really know what to make of it. However, it is now my favourite Vangelis album. Another Vangelis album that I thought was really useless at the time is Invisible Connections. However, it is now probably my second favourite Vangelis album. These albums are pure abstract electronica, and they are very good in that context. In my view, much of the more accessible Vangelis music has not aged particularly well, but that certainly cannot be said of Beaubourg and Invisible Connections -- they stand up very well amongst the experimental electronica being made today.