Electronic Meditation | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | June 1970 | |||
Recorded | October 1969 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 36:37 | |||
Label | Ohr | |||
Producer | Tangerine Dream | |||
Tangerine Dream chronology | ||||
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Electronic Meditation is the debut album by German electronic music group Tangerine Dream. It was released in June 1970 by record label Ohr.
The album was recorded in a rented factory in Berlin in October 1969, using just a two-track Revox tape recorder.[3]
Electronic Meditation is the only Tangerine Dream album to feature the line-up of Edgar Froese, Klaus Schulze and Conrad Schnitzler. Two other musicians, organist Jimmy Jackson and flautist Thomas Keyserling, also performed on the album although they were uncredited in the original release.[4]
Its style is a unique form of free jazz, electronic art music, and instrumental rock; or as Sound on Sound magazine described it, "free electronic rock".[3] Its instrumentation ranges from conventional instruments such as the guitar, organ, drums, and cello to various custom-made electronic devices implemented by Edgar Froese and found sounds such as broken glass, burning parchment, and dried peas being shaken in a sieve. The backwards vocals at the end of side B are of Edgar Froese reading from the back of a ferry ticket from Dover to Calais.[3]
The first five albums released by Ohr Records, including Electronic Meditation, featured sleeves by Reinhard Hippen, all with dismembered baby doll parts as a central aspect of the imagery. The original LP had a balloon inserted in the cover; the 2004 Japan CD release is a copy of the original LP cover and includes the balloon.[4]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Classic Rock | [5] |
Pitchfork | 7.6/10[1] |
In its retrospective review, AllMusic wrote: "The album is not without its flaws, but it's strong in many ways and shows abundant promise".[2] Stephen Dalton in his review for Classic Rock described the album as "more an historically interesting cult curio than essential Krautrock milestone"; however, he added that "from sketchy but seminal basement tapes like these, an entire cosmos of sound was mapped."[5]
All tracks are written by Edgar Froese, Klaus Schulze and Conrad Schnitzler
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Genesis" | 5:57 |
2. | "Journey Through a Burning Brain" | 12:26 |
No. | Title | Length |
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3. | "Cold Smoke" | 10:38 |
4. | "Ashes to Ashes" | 4:06 |
5. | "Resurrection" | 3:27 |