CELESTIAL OCEAN

BRAINTICKET were among the important pioneers of early psychedelic and spaced out cosmic releases "Cottonwoodhil"l, "Psychonaut" & of course "Celestial Ocean". BRAINTICKET is actually the brainchild of Joel Vandroogenbroeck of Switzerland with other musicians taking part on different albums. On "Celestial Ocean" Joel is joined by Carole Muriel with her cosmic voice and Barney Palm (percussion). Music is really early Krautrock mixed with a fair amount of analog and spacey keyboards. Songs definitely explore the outer reaches of your mind with some pretty trippy moments all around. Instrumentation is also quite varied with loads of NASA-like space sound bites and some great percussion. This excellent space journey now can be yours thanks for the folks at Purple Pyramid Records who have released this gem for the first time on CD... A journey of a lifetime.

This album has been published in 1974 but remains absolutely modern and dynamic. I consider it as the last Brainticket's consistent work. After the primitive, stoned and weird improvisations of the two first, this time the Swiss collective put the priority on monumental, sensual electronic synth moves, also including acoustic arrangements (flute, "exotic" percussions, piano...). Their style is now closer to classic progressive rock within a lyrical tendency and technical instrumentations, partially rejecting the "kosmische" kraut essays of their debut. We are more into a meditative astral exploration, featuring natural organic sounds, creative harmonies and spaces. However krautrock fans won't be disappointed: "Celestial Ocean" is maybe much more organised and orchestrated but contains catchy psychedelic scintillations. "Egyptian kings" is a hypnotic world of sounds, including repetitive bass lines, druggy flute parts and a "cosmic" combination of voices. "Rainbow" is a kind of electronic raga for crystalline loops. "The space between" is an esoteric, atmospheric & percussive interlude . The epic and colourful "Visions" is almost symphonic. Profound and really achieved!

BRAINTICKET's third release finds the band stripped down to a trio. We get a different female vocalist for the third album in a row in Carol Muriel who also plays synths and zither.

The album starts off with my favourite BRAINTICKET track "Egyptian Kings". Everytime this song came on at work this week it had my full attention. It's one of those songs you hit the repeat button for when it's over. It starts off with some intricate sounds and lots of atmosphere. A full sound arrives a minute in. Male and female vocals are spoken. Low end guitar, organ, flute and drums lead the way. It has such a groovy, addictive rhythm. The organ before 5 minutes has a Canterbury flavour to it. "Jardins" features zither throughout, sounding a lot like a harp actually. Female vocals are spoken. Acoustic guitar and flute add to the sound. It blends into "Rainbow" where we get an Indian flavour added. The sound builds after a minute. Spacey synths all by themselves after 2 minutes to end it.

"Era Of Technology" opens with organ as we get more spoken words all speaking at once. No real melody until drums come pounding in at 1 1/2 minutes. Cool sound as spoken words continue.The song changes completely 5 minutes in for the better. Flute, zither, vocal melodies and percussion fill out the sound. "To Another Universe" opens with what sounds like vibes as percussion comes in. Synths and some catchy organ (later) create the sound. It blends into "The Space Between" as spoken words join existing melody. Words stop after 2 minutes. Synths and percussion to end it. "Cosmic Wind" is a very mellow and spacey song. Big surprise given the title. Zither and flute lead the way. Strummed guitar arrives 4 1/2 minutes in. "Visions" features some beautiful sounding piano melodies for 2 1/2 minutes. The tempo then picks up as percussion is added. Synths 4 1/2 minutes in. It ends with male and female vocals saying "Egyptian kings" over and over with a spacey background.

This one and "Psychonaut" are my two favourite BRAINTICKET records. Both are great examples of what Krautrock is all about.

Maybe first album in Krautrock genre I've ever heard. And so I wonder, was this wise choice ? After first listen, I wanted to give this just three stars. But "Jardins" was too strong to stand still. Such a potential in it. But short "Rainbow" was so annoying, "Era of Technology" so gray that I wasn't able to see something. Some people are colour-blind, maybe I'm psychedelic/kraut blind. But I don't believe it, because I could appreciate some of these albums in past.

I'm just not so keen on it, not in ecstasy from every cosmic sound I can hear here. So after good first two tracks came these "noises" (for me, not necessarily for you) which ends for a while with other half of "The Space Between" but only to return to some strange mumbling which could be heard in previous track. "Cosmic Winds" is again up on this strange sinusoid. Pleasant track to listen with these krautrock influences I like. OK, I lied a little bit, this is not my first Kraut album. At least it don't follow usual pattern, for example last track, "Vision" is very unique and as epilogue to story I didn't get is great.

So, follow the crowd and give 4 stars, or have my own mind and rate it 3. I have better idea - giving it 3.51, so it can fell to four star category. Because I really don't know how to move it from this average, 3-4 place. But there is this story which can be good (as soon as I'll understand it), so better mark is here. Enjoy it as well proggers.

Brainticket are a group from Switzerland. Celestial Ocean is their third album and is more modern sounding than the first two which almost sound like something from the 1960s rather than the 1970s. The use of synthesizers here clearly places this album in the mid-70s. Although the album is made up of individual songs, this really sounds like two epics since there are no breaks between the songs.

"Egyptain Kings" is the best song here and possibly the best song Brainticket ever made. I just love this song. It starts with random noises before a completely awesome riff on synth which continues for the rest of the track. A male voice speaks then a female voice repeats what he says. There is some good organ along with the synth. Later some wordless vocals and the drumming gets louder. An overdubbed organ solos over top of everything for the last minute or so. "Rainbow" starts with acoustic guitar and the sitar from the previous song, "Jardins". The volume increases, then gets quieter. Ends with sequencers.

"Era Of Technology" begins with dramatic organ. Then three voices can be heard: 1) a female (English), 2) a male(German), and 3) another male(French). I assume they are all saying the same thing. This is a very spacey and trippy song. Later some pounding percussion comes in. Near the end the percussion stops and then some melodic zither(?) and some flute. Then male vocals that remind me of Robert Wyatt. "To Another Universe" starts with xylophone, then rhythmic synth and zither(?). More synths come in. Two synths do a call and response thing. Some percussion, later organ.

"The Space Between" continues with the same music as "Universe". The three voices in English, German and French come back again. Some cool synth in this song. After the talking stops a synth solo. "Visions" begins with two pianos. At first they are playing two different things, but later compliment each other. The pianos change and then some percussion. Music stops and then some zither(?), then synths come in. Song ends with a reprise of the vocals from "Egyptian Kings".

This album is worth hearing for "Egyptian Kings" alone. Fairly consistent and a good sounding recording. Nothing truly original I guess, but a great mix of instruments. Almost equally spacey and melodic. I've only heard Brainticket's first three albums, but this is the best out of the three. 4 stars.

Supposedly based on the Egyptian 'Book of the Dead' Brainticket have abandoned the style of their previous 2 albums and they come up with this little cracker from 1973. Weird psychedelics are at the forefront, with a fair helping of electronic experimentation.

Carol Muiriel who looks like she just combed her hair with an egg-whisk still sounds completely stoned during her plentiful vocals but she somehow still manages to play some Zither too.

A bit of a crazy album that's full of flutes, synthesisers, bass and incomprehensible lyrics where all the tunes merge in to one another.

'To Another Universe' has what sounds like someone frantically rubbing a balloon in time to the music. The departure of the guitarist certainly seems to have made a big difference to the Brainticket sound. This is a more experimental than 'Psychonaut' from the previous year and is far more enjoyable.

Don't buy the 'Purple Pyramid' version. A pressing fault means you have to start on track two as the first tune is repeated!

Can you believe that... In this day and age!

Retaining only the drummer and vocalist from the previous album, Joel Vandroogenbroeck steers his Brainticket project into entirely different directions again for this third album. Two years have past since 'Psychonaut' and the 60's adoration has been tuned down in favor of a more experimental and electronic sound.

'Egyptian Kings' is a solid opener, immediately recognizable as a Brainticket track, with it propulsive organ-driven rhythm, whispered vocals and hazy atmosphere, much more relaxed and mature then previous work. Two short tracks follow with an ethnic flavor, putting the sitar upfront in the mix. 'Era of Technology' starts with lots of percussion and 'sampled' talking vocals, it almost seems to return to the stoned drone of the debut, but it's much more concise and gives way to a very contrasting end section with Wyatt-alike vocals.

Every other song seems to bring new ideas, and also 'To Another Universe/The Space Between' keeps the album fresh and surprising. It's an electronic piece a bit in the vein of what Cluster and Kraftwerk were doing in the same year. The ethnic accent returns on 'Cosmic Wind', offering a very reflective and dreamy vibe. It flows beautifully into 'Visions', where the piano takes over and changes the melancholic mood to subtle major keys.

Brainticket offer a new trip with every new album. I'd say this one is the best and most consistent, slightly preferred to the preceding 'Psychonaut'.

Brainticket's third album stepped back from the freakout direction of their debut and Psychonaut in favour of teasing out the space rock side of their sound, creating a serene but surreal journey based on the Egyptian lore of the afterlife (as recorded in the Book of the Dead). The subject matter was in vogue at the time, of course - Van der Graaf Generator did a song called The Boat of Millions of Years on a similar theme - but Brainticket execute it well and tease out the electronic possibilities they would explore further on later releases such as Adventure. I didn't rate Psychonaut particularly well but I think Brainticket have more than adequately recaptured my attention here.

Although the songs of Celestial Ocean segue from one to the next, to me the album has three phases. The first is the hypnotic opening song, "Egyptian Kings," is a promising slice of Krautrock: melodic and odd, based on a psychedelic groove reminiscent of Amon Düül II. The the overdubbed spoken words of Brainticket members Carole Muriel, Barney Palm, and Joel Vandroogenbroeck weave in and out of the track, which is the high point of the album. The final song, "Visions," represents a distinct third phase. "Visions" begins with a Vandroogenbroeck piano workout unlike anything else on the album, almost like "Cans and Brahms" on Fragile. While it sounds very little like Wakeman, and nothing at all like "Cans and Brahms," the first three-and-a-half minutes of "Visions" is nonetheless a showcase with no apparent relation to either the album's theme or the musical style of the foregoing pieces. On its own, though, this showcase - - and "Visions" as a whole - - is very good. In both respects is resembles "Egyptian Kings," and I'm only being slightly facetious when I suggest that an "Egyptian Kings" / "Vision" single would've been preferable to the entire album.

At twenty-seven minutes, the six-song heart of Celestial Ocean seems to comprise a cohesive album, though not a very good one.  It opens with four minutes of seemingly aimless guitar strumming and flute and synth noodling - - apparent filler, to my ears. The "Jardins" → "Rainbow" → "Era of Technology" suite-within-a-suite ends with an electronic section with which the vocals recommence. These three songs represent a microcosm of Celestial Ocean, which intersperses occasional acoustic or electronic parts between hybrid passages. "To Another Universe" is a case in point, opening with electronics over a driving tom-tom rhythm and closing to a Mellotron motif playing over an acoustic guitar. This song is also the last in which vocals play a significant role.

The meandering "The Space Between" and the atmospheric "Cosmic Wind" are oddly happy-sounding new-age slapdashery seemingly out of place on an album dealing with a a mysterious theme. Also odd is the use of western scales here and throughout most of the album. I'm no music theorist, but apparently there are Arabic modes and scales which might have been a better fit. Further separating the music from the theme is the dearth of spoken word in the eighteen-minute stretch from "The Space Between" until the last minute of "Visions."

In short, Celestial Ocean sounds like the result of some talented and very creative people getting their hands on some newfangled synthesizers and a bunch of studio time. Cleopatra Records declares it "the definitive album from Krautrock electronic pioneers, Brainticket!," but I genuinely hope this isn't the case, especially given the potential demonstrated in "Egyptian Kings."