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20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Flangers on overdrive; a Force truly to be reckoned with!, 21 May 2000
By A Customer
Edgar Froese and Christoph Franke-with some assistance from Klaus Kreiger on drums -manage to recapture some earlier Tangerine Dream magic with this 1979 album. And actually go one better! For from the opening clamour of the 18-minute title track, to the final dying gasp of overdriven flanger at the album's close, "Force Majeure" presents an altogether rawer and more powerful face to the band's music than is to be found on their earlier albums. The album has some very beautiful moments-like the mournful synthesiser call used to summon calming string washes from the opening chaos-as well as many unusual surprise elements-a stream train hauls through at one point, for example. Mostly, though, it is an album of powerful synthesised tunes and pounding sequencer rhythms of the type that Tangerine Dream have made uniquely their own.Once it gets under way, the opening (title-)track turns into a classic TD pulsing romp, with pace changes aplenty. There are strong, eminently hummable tunes aplenty too, although, refreshingly, much use is made of noisier, unpitched sounds as well, all drifting easily from idea to idea in a seamless progression. In typical Tangerine Dream fashion, some stunningly intricate (as well as beautifully simple) sequencer patterns weave their hypnotic way through the almost mystical and, at times, majestic synthesiser melodies. Exquisite! And I defy anyone not to have this on the brain for days afterwards! The shorter (7:27) 'Cloudburst Flight' begins with a quiet acoustic guitar opening but it is not long before another strong synthesiser tune calls things to order once more. A rising sequencer-and-drum pulse then leads into some wild, soaring, electric guitar playing in an altogether moodier and troubled number, although a calm and peaceful synth line arises in the end to sing it all to sleep. This is another strong track and it is interesting to note that Chris Franke was still incorporating a version of this in his solo concert tour of 1991. The final track is another lengthy work: 'Thru Metamorphic Rocks' (14:30). Drum patterns dominate this track from the opening, where some fabulous electronic percussion voices clank and pound their way brutally through the gentle piano and synth intro (and the rather over-done hi-hat beat!) Froese's guitar playing is also notable here-with the opening section grinding its way ever more potently sky-wards until it suddenly evaporates some 5 minutes into the piece to be replaced by some inspired heavily flanged percussion, whose beat insistently permeates the whole of the rest of the track. In fact, the rest of this track is an absolute masterpiece of construction, growing moment by moment into an ever more powerful parade of synthesised sound. While the pace never lets up, and the ideas are developed but little (although constantly and subtly), new voices are thrown into the mix all the time and one just never has any opportunity for boredom. Rather like Ravel's "Bolero", raw, visceral and insistent, this track gets its hooks in early and hauls the listener along with it in the most merciless of manners. This remastered "Definitive Edition" of the disc is of excellent quality and mercifully free of any of the glaring errors of production that mar many other releases in the series. Its only drawback is its paltry 40-minute length, although in this case, even that isn't sufficient for me to feel able to withhold any stars! So, go on: treat yourself!
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