JOIN INN

With this album, Klaus Schulze is back on the drumkit and he also brought his VCS3 synth with him. He stepped out for the last album Schwingungen to record his debut solo album Irrlicht. He did not use any synth on that album, but did on the follow up Cyborg. I don't know which was recorded first: Cyborg or Join Inn; either way 1973 was the first year you hear Schulze using synth. Guitarist Manuel Gottsching brings along his girlfriend Rosi Mueller to add some vocals.

Like the previous two albums, the music here is based on improvisation and jamming. Like the self-titled debut from 1971, there are two long tracks; one a rocker, the other an ambient piece. I prefer "Amboss" from the debut to "Freak'n'Roll" here, but "Jenseits" is much better than "Traummaschine".

"Freak"n'Roll" starts off with typical late '60s/early '70s bluesy jamming. The synth noises used sparingly throughout the track are a nice addition. It keeps the music from being *just* another blues-rock improv. After the bluesy jamming the music goes into more free and frantic sections before going back to the bluesy jamming. Schulze does some interesting drumming after 13 minutes. Gottsching almost plays a riff at the end.

"Jenseits" is over 24 minutes long and must have been one of the longest tracks on one side of vinyl at the time. This 'song' deserves 5 stars alone. An early ambient masterpiece. You hear the voice of Rosi talking in German throughout the piece. I like Gottsching's tremoloed soundscapes here. There is more synth here than in "Freak'n'Roll". Hartmut Enke's bass playing is more minimalistic than on the other track. Schulze mostly plays organ on the track. There really is no drums or percussion, but there is a heartbeat type sound around 17 minutes which comes back later. The music gets very spacey at times with the synth and guitar effects. There is a synth near the end which almost sounds like a cello.

Not as rough around the edges as previous ART. A good sound and certainly not overproduced. This is my favourite ART album, although the bluesy jamming in "Freak'n'Roll" sometimes outstays it's welcome. In "Jenseits" you can hear glimpses of later solo Schulze and the more electronic Ashra. Great album. 4 stars.