AQUA

One of the true original psychedelic trippers in the world of progressive musical expressions, EDGAR FROESE is a legend having formed Tangerine Dream back in 1967 and remaining the only continuous member of the long running act until his death in 2015. Originally born in Tilsit, East Prussia which became the Kaliningrad region of modern day Russia (the city of Sovetsk) in modern times, FROESE was born during the second world war and did what a lot of his generation of Germans did and that was namely escape the horror of it all through sound.

In addition to the vast wealth of recordings put out by Tangerine Dream (well over 100 studio albums), FROESE has also released several solo albums over the course of several decades beginning with this 1974 debut AQUA. Recorded simultaneously with Tangerine Dream's classic release "Phaedra," AQUA was created in Berlin throughout 1973 - 74 and was basically made in the hopes of earning enough revenue so that the parent band could invest in the newest and most sophisticated equipment. Having been launched into the limelight in the worlds of progressive rock and progressive electronic with Tangerine Dream's mass appeal, FROESE received an advancement and immediately went shopping.

Unsurprisingly AQUA engages in the same surreal vortex of swirling synthesizer sounds, layers of abstract atmospheres and engaged in the musical equivalent of a helium balloon finding itself liberated from the gravitation constraints of the Earth's clutches. The original album from June 1974 actually found two separate releases on different labels. Each release featured a different version of the album therefore the Brain Records edition released in Germany and the Virgin Records edition released in the rest of the world featured different track orders, two completely different mixes of "Panorphelia" and "Upland" and a cover album inversion with one basically being the 180 degree rotation of the other. It's safe to say though that these minor differences don't necessitate experiencing both versions as they are negligible.

If that wasn't enough the album was re-recorded and re-released in 2005 and there exists a French version titled "Aqua II" Oh, brother. The album is notable in that FROESE engaged in experiments with artificial stereo where two microphones were placed inside the ears of a dummy head and then was recorded in a manner in which a real human would hear the sounds. This supposedly improved the stereo effect and created a more realistic 3D sound but given the abstract nature of the progressive electronic realm, this excessive nerding out goes above the heads of common music lovers who aren't obsessed audiophiles searching for the holy grail of recording techniques. While considered a solo work, FROESE was joined by fellow Tangerine Dream member Chris Franke who plays moog on a few tracks.

As far as 70s progressive electronic in the Berlin School style are concerned, AQUA is a totally listenable and quite enjoyable edition to any electronica freak's overall collection but it really doesn't substantially deviate from the Tangerine Dream playbook which one would hope for considering this would be FROESE's opportunity to deviate from his main band's signature sound so i wouldn't call anything about AQUA utterly essential but it's certainly a worthy slice of prog electro to experience. It features the usual bumpy ride synthesized sequences that simulate percussion along with all the glissando note glides and wobbly sound effects that are associated with the Berlin School. It's vocal-free, drum-free and devoid of any instrumentation other than the electronic synthesized sounds. It's definitely worthy of a trip beyond the confines of rock music but is a rather generic representation of the greater prog electro continuum that even by 1974 had amassed an amazing array of diversity.