WHITE EAGLE

White Eagle was released in early 1982 by Tangerine Dream and rings of pure 80's sounds. Edgar Froese, Chris Franke and Johannes Schmoelling had their sound ingrained in the Eighties culture by this album's arrival so the sounds are at times not unlike anything that would have been heard on the radio at that time. This divided some fans as is evident by the low score reviews here but of course music is always subjective and I actually liked this album quite a lot.

The track Mojave Plan opens with a 20 minute suite of buzzsaw synths landing on a percussive techno foundation. There are some spooky noises to give atmosphere and an overall joyousness overtakes the sound, with bouncy overlaid keyboards permeating the track.

Midnight In Tula has an upbeat sound also with Kraftwerk or Depeche Mode type synths on a hypnotic synthesized tempo. Convention Of The 24 sounds a bit like Sigue Sigue Sputnik but way better than those spaced out nutters. I like the crystal clear swishes and swelling synths. Some very nice percussion sections enhance the soundscape, and the ever present synth beat is mesmirising. It gets repetitive for a while but it somehow locks into your ears and its hard to escape.

White Eagle closes the album, used for a German TV show I never saw, and it is a bit of a hit for the group, which is a rarity for TD. I looked forward to hearing it after learning this and I was not disappointed. The melody is wonderful, and it is quite a pretty sounding track. It does remind me of Kraftwerk or Jean Michel Jarre but that is not a problem as I adore both artists. I guess what may be a problem for some is it is unlike a Tangerine Dream track, but they were trying something new to measure up to the new sound of the Eighties.

Overall this is a good album for background music especially or for driving to, but it is not up to the standard of some of the earlier TD albums, though it is not as mediocre as some may have you believe, not by a long shot.