ATEM

Just reading what instruments Froese, Baumann and Franke played on this album got me excited. All three play organ while two play synths (including Big Moog) and the other mellotron. Add piano, guitar, vocals and drums. This would be the last album they would do for Ohr Records. The first four album do have that Krautrock spirit about them but that would all change when they moved to Virgin Records. What makes this one a little different from the previous two is the mellotron. It's still dark and ambient but it almost seems like it would have been more suited as the second album bridging the debut to the dark, spacey soundscapes that would follow.

"Atem" means "Breath" and it's the side long opener. It sounds like the wind is slowly pulsating then the martial drumming comes in. It's all more intense before 3 1/2 minutes. Quite the drum show after 4 1/2 minutes. A calm a minute later and here comes the mellotron. It's dark and spacey. Big Moog after 10 minutes and before 11 minutes. Percussion sounds before 12 minutes then the Big Moog is back.Organ follows. Sounds get louder before 18 minutes.

"Fauni Gena" opens with melltron and synths then suddenly it sounds like were in the jungle. I can't help but think of Froese's solo album "Epsilon In Malaysian Pale" here. "Circulation Of Events" features sounds that wash in and out slowly as sounds hum. It's more powerful 3 1/2 minutes in. "Wahn" has these strange vocal expressions followed by loud outbursts of sound. Drums are prominant 2 minutes in, mellotron too.

John Peel claimed this was the album of the year back then. An incredible statement when you consider it was 1973.