RARITIES

Artist: Francis Rimbert
P: 2006
LTD: 400
All tracks composed and played by Francis Rimbert.
Track 1 features Patrick Rondat.
Exclusive limited special edition cd for "Le Salon De La Musique", Paris, 09.09.2006.
Sounds like a rock hymn.
 

Artist: Frank Klare
P: 1996
It has to be said that ex SYNCO member Frank Klare released a brace of albums conspicuous by their blandness earlier in the year. The title, and the fact that four of the 6 track are specified as being improvisations, would suggest that there's room for optimism here though. 'Intro' opens brightly enough, with a heavy bass beat backed by a lively sequence. The melody is pleasant enough but after a while it becomes predictable and repetitive and consequently the track out-stays its welcome, even at only 5½ minutes. The four part 'Improvised Eternity' dominates the album, and thankfully proceedings take a marked turn for the better with the arrival of part 1. Choral refrains introduce the piece before a sequence slowly starts to take shape, backed by a foreboding drone. Simple drums and percussion also join the fray, building in intensity as the track progresses, and though variety is not the track's strong point it compensates with lots of atmosphere and imagery. Part 2 repeats the formula with a traditional style sequence underpinning choral synths straight from the Tangerine Dream archives. Part 3 confirms that Frank Klare has very much done on this album what he didn't achieve on his previous two: recapturing some of the form shown on the SYNCO 85-89 album. Overall this album does more right than it does wrong, and SYNCO fans I'm sure will welcome it. (GG)

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Artist: Frank Klare
P: 1995
This time Frank Klare has "realised my favour for sequences. I haven’t played any moog solo voices to force the original effects of the dynamically developing sequences". The 16½ minute opener ‘Impression of Arkana’ builds slowly on a simple sequence. It is most successful after the midpoint at which stage a bass sequence is introduced, however it never strays far from the opening riff and after 10 minutes it becomes heavy going. Not much relief is afforded by track 2 ‘Schräger Otto’ which consists of a repetitive discordant theme, however the 18 minute ‘Homage to K.S.’ follows and here things do brighten up considerably. Some classic sequencing is on show which ebbs and flows to powerful effect, and it’s very easy to imagine frenetic Schulzian accompaniment. ‘Dream’ presents a slowly repeating theme for a gargantuan 25 minutes, accompanied by subliminal effects and delicate sequences. Another Traumklang collaboration ends the album and again it’s a very impressive piece with some exciting sequencer runs and fine complementary soloing. (GG)

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Artist: Frank Specht (Rainbow Serpent)
P: 2000
"Sebastian im Traum' is named after a track from the Klaus Schulze "Audentity" album.
This is something of a concept album following the passage of a series of dreams. Cosmic shimmers act as a gentle introduction to ‘Traum 1’ but then a great whoosh of sound descends on us like a tidal wave. A gorgeous shimmering lead line then grabs the focus and a bass beat forms a solid structure on which a sequence starts to emerge and another brighter rhythm is layered over the top. An energetic driving number providing a splendid start. Each track runs into each other so we move straight into ‘Traum 2’ a very melodic piano lead piece. ‘Traum 3’ is a marked contrast to the previous number as we are immediately treated to dark synth drones. A delicate echoing motif is repeated and each time left to hang in the air until it fades away. A sequence emerges out of the dark but just acts as the backbone to a rather sleepy but hypnotic section. It is only after seven minutes that things start to take off and we get more umph! ‘Traum 4’ introduces a superb heavy rhythm over which floats a sublime melody. For the final minute and a bit we return to the world of shifting images.
‘Traum 5’ uses a faintly tribal rhythm, flute and didgeridoo. The didg is an instrument I don’t usually like on EM albums but here it fits perfectly. At two minutes the rhythm becomes rather manic then fades back again to allow Gothic chants to be heard, it all works superbly. I know some of you will be put off by the description of this track, don’t be it is extremely inventive, effective and not remotely cliched. We then return to the watery shifting thoughts of background sleep. ‘Traum 6’ retains the flute sound from before but then a sequence takes its first descriptively mellow steps. Another higher register one is layered over the top then more and more until I lose count of all the different lines involved. Superb stuff! More cosmic bleeps and twitters take us into ‘Traum 7’. From atmospheric beginnings a bass (non dance) rhythm very slowly unfolds then we get a steam train making its stately progress down the line. More atmospheric pads are used as the backdrop to a melodic sequence. This is a beautiful track and for me is the standout number on the album. We flow from one stunning melodic sequence to the next and the underpinning pads are just heavenly. Now on to the final Traum. The sequences are now menacing but are added to by a more playful one at around the four minute mark. We are dreaming again but this seems like a disturbed and unsettled sleep from which we will be pleased to wake.
So to sum up this album has sequences a plenty but don’t expect them to be of the thunderous earthquake or a million mile an hour variety. What you have here is quite an emotional album but in the best sense and not remotely twee.

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Artist: Frank Südekum
P: 2000
His debut is a beautiful mix of TD style sounds and melodies. His tracks had been produce and played along with Erich Schauder. The music reminds to TD's Exit till Poland area.
Played a lot with the PPG Wave. It was one of the best newcomer way back in 2000. Music like Rene Splinter, Arcane and Rob Essers.

 

Artist: Fred Becker
P: 1992
This CD is filled with sensations of space travel. Fred Becker's gentle, pulsating music has a slow-motion, zero-gravity feel to it, beginning with the quiet ascension of the opening and title track and through the nine-minute "Star Canopy", as one drifts out to the galaxies, and then on to the seven shorter pieces which lead to the heart of Inner, Stellar, the 27-minute opus, "Breakthroughs".
Here Becker unwinds and twists the sounds ever so gradually through a kaleidoscope of space music motifs, using a variety of synthesizers to achieve the desired effect.
This was the succesful debut by Fred Becker with his way of playing space-ambient at its best. He has some far away sequencing in his spacious titles with a lot of reverb and heavenly melodies which never get to direct.

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Artist: Freeform
P: 1998
Music played by Simon Pyke. While the overwhelming majority of Freeform's released work has involved a certain thumbing of nose and extending of tongue, Simon Pyke's first release for Bobby Bird's (ex-Higher Intelligence Agency's) Headphone label is surprisingly serious. More subdued than past releases such as Elastic Speakers and Prowl, Pattern Tub is similarly intricate, trading brashness for subtlety, but maintaining the level of compositional complexity that carried his previous albums. While the closing track -- 15 minutes of mostly untreated traffic sounds gathered via Pyke's bedroom window -- is an unfortunate cap to an otherwise excellent album, "Poundland" and "Monza Lecta" (the latter a duet with Bit-Tonic's Iris Garrelfs) are some of Pyke's most original songs to date.

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Artist: Freeze Frame
P: 1994
Here you can hear the swing of life, with nice melodies and a lot of relaxed rhythms with a sax like Klaus Doldinger uses to play.

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Artist: Freeze Frame
P: 1991
The Debut was released at the IC Label and the music fits into their program.  It is a 11-track concept album that delivers the smoothest of jazz and ambient one might expect from a master musician. With its rhythm and light guitar deliberately shifted ever so slightly out of focus, Ray Bach, the man behind Freeze Frame, gives his keyboard expertise freedom to explore every aspect of the floating spectrum to its optimum.

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