RICOCHET (part 1) by: TANGERINE DREAM (TD classics edition vol 3), and the Rare track ...

Another edition of classic TD tracks is here for you. Remember that this is in 1975, so the band was quite ahead of it`s time :-)

Barock 3 by Tangerine Dream

(reviewed by Jacob Pertou Denmark)

Already the same year as Rubycon, Tangerine Dream release their first album including live material. Although Rubycon is out-of-this-world great, Ricochet is even better.
It is doctored live recordings with studio overdubs. The music is more accessible, than ever before, but still anything, but mainstream.
Listen to the record!
If you still need more information on the tracks I can tell you, that Part 1 is perhaps one of the best TD tracks ever. Chris Franke delivers one of his best acoustic drum performances to date, obviously overdubbed in the studio, as he operated the big moog sequencer on stage.
In spite of the drumming, a synthesizer is cleverly used to make the rhythm track.
Edgar plays a repetitive guitar pattern, in his delicate trademark picking style. He then loses himself in free form impromptu. The sound is very Oldfieldish, and sometimes it's muffled up in reverb.
The sequencer comes out clear and bright, and duels with the drums for dear life. Production wise, Ricochet is perhaps their best album ever, as it uses the stereophonic possibilities to the full. The cd version is also well remastered, if you want it digital.
Ricochet Part 1 is a very heavy piece, and excactly with its use of frantic guitar, drums and sequencer, it also appeals to the hard rocking side I have.
The intro of Part 2 has been played several times live, but whether or not the version on Ricochet is live, is extremely doubtful.
In 1975, it was the melodic pinnacle of their carreer. Chamber music is a word that pops up inside of my head, as it's classically inspired grand piano accompanied by Mellotron flute. It turns into sequencer driven euphoria, but once they decides to pause for breath, the synthesizers begin to talk. One says "doh-doh, doh-doh..." and the other manically drone out "Edgaahh, Edgaahh, Edgaahh..." (in the time spans of 13:07-13:17 and 13:40-13:51)
So many things are going on, I can not describe them all. Therefore: surrender, and get sucked into the fantastic sonic universe of Tangerine Dream. This is utter, sheer genius!
Listen to the record!
If you want to have spelled anything out in a critical way, then it is, that the disadvantage by the cd version is the removal of the introductory clapping, by one of the band members, in Part 2. It's recorded in the studio, and has to be seen as an ironic twist, as it isn't a live album in the true sense of the word.
It's said that Ricochet was recorded at Croydon Fairfield Hall in 1975. The references are evident, but the outcome has only been improved, with the pitstop studio makeover.
Listen to the record!
Ricochet is a synthi orgy, that makes Kraftwerk, Jean Michel Jarre and other later artist to look like amateurs.
No more talking. Listen to the record!

Please visit Pertou`s Tangerine Dream site:

The Line up during Ricochet:

Froese-Franke-Baumann