Tangerine Dream Machu Picchu (2012)

Years ago when Eastgate started the Booster compilation series, it used to be mainly a collection of cupdisc titles and newly recorded music material originally composed for various occasions. We never thought that it will become one of the best accepted CD releases out of our very extensive catalogue. Now we've achieved Booster number 5, a very special collection because the band themselves selected it out of a variety of known and unknown material. We do hope that this record will become a good companion during your diverse daily activities or private moments. Enjoy more than two hours of Tangerine Dream's description of another time in another country - far far away…

The Virgin Years 1977-1983 is the follow-up to last year's The Virgin Years 1974-1978 (see review) by Tangerine Dream (TD). The latter album was a 3CD-box set comprising the five remastered albums TD recorded for Virgin Records between 1974 and 1978: Phaedra (1974), Rubycon (1975), Ricochet (1975), Stratosfear (1976) and Cyclone (1978) plus a selection of rare single releases, 7-inch edits as well as two rarely heard radio adverts. However, it didn't contain Encore, originally released in 1977. The follow-up to this previous release contains seven albums plus two singles all packed on a 5CD-album set.

Tangerine Dream live in concert at Thomas Wolfe Auditorium during the Moogfest 2011.
It’s end of October, the 28th, 2011, 8 pm - a night to remember for many fans - a lot of them already in funny Halloween costumes - who turned up at Moogfest especially for the Tangerine Dream performance at the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium in Asheville, NC. American, Canadian as well as British TD fans have such a loyal connection to the energy of a TD concert that it is even for the band themselves always a breathtaking experience.
Now in their 44th year after the name Tangerine Dream appeared first time in public, one could assume that the musical energy has probably slowed down, but it is the opposite, a bundle of energetic rhythms, sounds and lead lines will accompany you through a night of a remarkable live experience…

This release contains a real time composition from the TD line-up Thorsten Quaeschning, Hoshiko Yamane, Paul Frick. As a guest musician they invited Michał Łapaj of Riverside. This live session was recorded during their performance at the United Arts Festival in Gdansk and at Progresja Summer Stage in Warsaw in August 2021. The session is a special one, as it consists of a montage of the two live sessions from Gdansk and Warsaw - let yourself be surprised!

Tangerine Dream's 'Wavelength' is the soundtrack to an obscure Robert Carradine sci-fi film from 1983, and while it offered nothing truly fresh or groundbreaking from the band, it's still makes for a fine background listen while offering several variations of spacey/electronic ambience. Composed by the trio of Edgar Froese, Christopher Franke and Johannes Schmoelling, considering the albums around it such as 'Hyperborea', 'White Eagle' etc, 'Wavelength' still features the ghostly Melloton, as well as having a distinct mid-70's TD period sound instead of the cold plastic 80's that was emerging during that time…

Tangram marked the beginning of a new musical direction for Tangerine Dream. It's closer to straight-ahead, melodic new age music and more tied to their soundtrack material. The first of the two side-long pieces progresses through several different passages that use gently brushed acoustic guitars as well as the requisite synthesizers. For new age fans, this is the first glimmering of Tangerine Dream's eventual direction during the '80s.

Tangerine Dream set the stage for the style of "artsy" soundtrack music that dominated the '80s. Although Hyperborea is not a soundtrack, it was clearly influential on some of the work the group was hired to do for Risky Business, Flashpoint, Dreamscape, Firestarter, Legend, and close to 20 others. There have been at least a dozen members in this trio over the years, but the assembly of Chris Franke, Edgar Froese, and Johannes Schmoelling proved to be one of the most prolific and influential. Hyperborea was a turning point for the band - a distinctive departure from the free-form psychedelica-and-moog prog rock improvisations, it was an album of crispness, structure, and a little bravery too - a showcase for artists with enough chops to adjust to the new technology without getting lost in it…