I’ve liked the music of Tangerine Dream since I first heard Phaedra at John Hardy’s house in East Kilbride in the early seventies and for all of that time I’ve referenced Phaedra as my favourite of their albums, followed by Rubicon. Today I listened again to Zeit (released in 1972) for the first time in ages and was stunned.
This is not dance music or really what has come to be known as ambient music: it is not bouncy, bouncy electronic pop and isn’t driven by sequencers as their later music became. This is the slow accumulation of sounds, tones and textures which give you the opportunity for taking your mind for a walk down pathways which are dark and mysterious – and occasionally very beautiful. But you have to give it the time and respect to let it work its magic. And sometimes that magic can be genuinely disturbing (particularly “Origin of Supernatural Probabilities”, the organic density of which left me exhilarated but slightly nauseous).
Amazon reviews of the album have referenced early Pink Floyd but, as with the introduction to the later Rubicon Part 1, my first thought was that this music is reminiscent of the great Delia Derbyshire, especially of her Blue Veils and Golden Sand and the soundscapes which she created for the Inventions for Radio in 1964. This connects Zeit to the musique concrete movement, albeit by extension and notwithstanding that this music is synthesised rather than being manipulated natural sound. Tangerine Dream moved away from that in later years but Zeit (and Phaedra) are playing in genuinely inventive territory and were the richer for it.
Make no mistake, it is not an easy listen, but I may just have to review my thoughts as to my favourite Tangerine Dream album.
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