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| Tangerine Dream - Ambient Monkeys |
 Released: 1998 Label: TDI Music Cat. No.: Total Time: 45:32 | |
Reviewed by: Stephanie Sollow, February 2000 According to the liner notes, "this production has originally been used as pre-concert ambient music during Tangerine Dream's European tour 1997." Like Marillion did with their pre-show music around 1994 (Michael Hunter's The River), the Froeses decided to release the music, based, they say, on public demand. Ambient it is, with no less than 12 Tangerine Dream pieces, two of which are based on classical pieces- "Symphony In A-Minor" (J.S. Bach) and "Concerto In A-Major/Adagio" (W. A. Mozart). And yes, there are monkeys - screeching away. But, but more than monkeys, but the sounds of the rainforest - rain of leaves, animals creeping about, birds chirping… it's a soundtrack to a documentary that hasn't been made yet (though there are plenty on the subject of rainforests, of course). Some of the material is relaxing - "Pantha rhei" for example - some of it is a bit more energetic. But for the fact that my biology book is tucked away where I can reach it, I could tell you not only how many of the song titles actually refer to species of monkey, but also a bit about each species. My guess is that all of them refer to some variety of monkey, though there are some that are clearly not. Aside from the two classical pieces above, of course. I wouldn't make much sense to call it Ambient Monkey's otherwise, would it? You might even suppose that the non-Latin song titles refer to monkey themes, but "The Seventh Propeller of Silence" clearly does not. Although, as I write this, a very nasty image is coming to my mind involving one very unlucky monkey… they say seven is an unlucky number. At any rate, this is an interesting release by Tangerine Dream; I don't mean to sound glib about it. Although there are separate tracks, as mentioned, it all moves as once piece, evolving over time. Actually, it is quite stunning - excellently produced (when isn't Tangerine Dream material these days?). Outside of the concert-hall context, I can see this as a album to get lost in - so make sure you've got your fedora, leather jacket, and a thirst for adventure as Tangerine Dream take you on a colourful and fascinating journey. More about Ambient Monkeys: Track Listing: Token From Birdland (5:59) / Symphony In A-Minor (3:26) / The Seventh Propeller Of Silence (3:51) / Calyx calamander (4:51) / Riddle Of The Monkey Tribe (3:42) / Moon Marble (3:32) / Concerto In A-Major/Adagio (1:46) / Lemon Vendor Khaly (3:37) / Campera de Mon Glyan (4:47) / Virtue Is Its Own Reward (3:10) / Pantha Rhei (3:15) / Myopia World (3:46) Sound Clips: Real Audio format, www.tangerinedream.de/samples/ Musicians: Contact: Website: www.tangerinedream.org Discography
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