Anyone who knows the name Tangerine Dream should also be familiar with the name Edgar Froese. Froese was one of the founding members of the aforementioned electronic-prog band that created some of the most beautiful sounds of the '70s and ‘80s. Along with Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream brought electronic music to the forefront and showed sounds could be created in an otherworldly way. Although mostly assembled on organic sounding analog equipment and containing heavy elements of progressive rock instrumentation, Tangerine Dream's albums painted images of futuristic lifestyles and landscapes.
During the height of their career, several members ventured off to do solo material. Luckily, most of it was very similar to the Tangerine Dream sound. Froese, most notably, gave the more exciting performance and delivered one of my favorite TD-related electronic albums, Stuntman. Showcasing his attempt to move further away from the progressive rock aesthetic and veering towards a strictly electronic vibe.
Stuntman is stuffed with gliding synthesizers and dreamlike soundscapes. But it's not only a venture in electronics. It also reveals an interesting new aspect of guitar work and how the instrument could be paired with the keyboard. The guitar sounds as if it were processed in the same way as all the other sounds made during the era.
Contrary to how most things were done in Tangerine Dream, Stuntman delivered songs that were decisively shorter than that of albums like Alpha Centuari, Rubycon, and Force Majeure. Keep in mind that these were times when vinyl was at its height and there was only so much material you could fit on one album (a decisively shorter length of time than on a CD). But like many other artists of this time, Froese (and Tangerine Dream) utilized the space to the fullest with only one or two movements of a particular song.
Froese got a little more adventurous, too, with song titles on Stuntman. Names like "Detroit Snackbar Dreamer" and "Drunken Mozart in the Desert" showed a more playful approach, yet the music is just as focused as it was elsewhere. Cinematic is the easiest word to describe Froese's work, and Stuntman is no exception. On "Drunken Mozart in the Desert," there are moments of abstractions that never appeared on any of his work before. Was it forward-thinking even at the time? No, not really. But it was consistent, and that's what makes all the albums in the Tangerine Dream family enjoyable. Even by today's standards.
1. Stuntman
2. It Would Be Like Soma
3. Detroit Snackbar Dreamer
4. Drunken Mozart in the Desert
5. A Dali-esque Sleep Fuse
6. Scarlet Scope for Mescalero
1. Stuntman
2. It Would Be Like Soma
3. Detroit Snackbar Dreamer
4. Drunken Mozart in the Desert
5. A Dali-esque Sleep Fuse
6. Scarlet Scope for Mescalero
More about: Edgar Froese
