KLAUS SCHULZE

After a number of albums that were easier on the ears, chapter X returns to the unobtrusive ambient experiments of chapters I and II. It brings music that is never uninteresting but hardly indispensable, and never reaches the cosmic levels of imagination that the pioneering albums from Schulze, TD, Cluster and others reached in the early 70's.

After 20 minute of sonic tapestries, Part III introduces mesmerizing beats with an almost tuneless rhythmic sequence. Great work, but the idea is dropped too soon. Part IV picks up the rhythm again but this time more melodious sequences and warm strings prevail. Part V is one of the highlights on the album: abstract glassy synths, slowly progressing minor chords and eerie sounds. There's no pulse, barely melody, only a desolate moon desert put to music. Part VI adds heavily processed moogs, almost sounding like guitars. If the previous 40 minutes made you wonder if Schulze was present at all during this recording, the last piece proves he was there. Actually, also part IV has a clear Schulze stamp.

This album was supposed to be the last in a series of 10 albums, but in 2008 another episode was added. I'm quite sure it will not be the end of it. The Dark Side Of The Moog offers unique and wonderful moments of electronic music that are quite different from both Namlook's and Schulze's concurrent works. It's a project that sits at a fringe of contemporary dance music but it is too experimental to reach mass appeal. Luckily, it rarely indulges into elitist tendencies and there's always plenty to relish.

After four years of moog silence due to Schulze's health problems, Namlook and Schulze came back with one of the more consistent album in the series. Over the course of the years, the project evolved from very hermetic ambient soundscapes into more melodiously attractive works.

Part 1 is a 20 minute sonic exploration that revolves around three repeated jazz chords on a synth vibe-sample. As usual, it doesn't offer quick thrills, it's slow, minimal and repetitive. Depending on your taste that means either great mood music or 20 minutes of monotonous frills. Around minute 15, Namlook makes one of his typical Tangerine Dream quotes by adding a sequence that is very reminiscent of TD's early 80's material.

The Tangerine Dream vibe continues on Part 2, a collage of unearthly sounds similar to the intros of many extended TD tracks. Part 3 continues around the chords of the opening part but develops into a warm slow sequence right out of the heydays of 70's electronics. After a good minute of wind sounds, we're back with the mellow sequences of Part 5 and Part 6. A slow and distant moog solo winds around minimal percussion and sparse bass lines.

3.5 stars. A good reflective album, better then just fan material, not compulsive enough for 4 stars.

There's still a flair of nice goofy humor in the title but the best music that Namlook and Schulze had in them must have ended up on the previous albums.

Maybe it just comes down to taste but I fail to find compelling music in the 25 minute opening track of the album. It's passable but it never seems to rise above decent background music. The lack of inspiration also plagues Part III, there's nothing obviously wrong with it but after 7 albums, we kind of got the idea. Part IV sounds somewhat fresher but loses my interest after less then 3 minutes. Part VI has a nice moog solo but the tepid rhythm make it into a drag. On Part VII, Namlook goes into complete drum & bass overdrive. A style that suits me quite well but that feels hardly relevant here. In fact, only Part VIII, a clear Schulze contribution, gives evidence of this project's potential.

I suspect Namlook wasn't really with his heart into this project anymore. He certainly doesn't give any impression of focus or inspiration on this album. Given that Dark Side Of The Moog is mostly a Namlook offering, it's no surprise that this whole album collapses as a result. If this would be your first or only experience with this project it still might tempt you with its dark atmospheres, but after the preceding albums it feels very inadequate.

Starting with 8 minutes of sparse synths and vocoder effects, this uncanny ambience will not remind you very much of the Pink Floyd album that this title is referring to. Not a very great pun neither really.

Part II gets me going though. A slow pace, lush sounds and mesmeric melodies show that the two artists are highly inspired again. It flows into Part III, which adds a faster beat that gradually develops into a drum&bass/jungle groove. Soft mellotron chords and a memorably lead melody turn this one into a very charming electronic piece. Part IV starts as a cosmic lounge take on minimal drum and bass. This album is from 1997 for something. I like the rhythmic development of it but it doesn't seem to evolve into much. There's a nice guitar contribution from Laswell though. I can see this one growing on me a bit more.

With 24 minutes, Part V is the focal point of the album and has a clear Schulze stamp all over it, featuring plenty of organically developing sequences and synth washes. Namlook is into it as well, adding sound effects and some of his Tangerine Dream alike sequences.

The best part comes at the end, Part VI consists of a number of sections really, beginning with those majestic minor chords from Schulze again. Then a slightly more experimental minute follows, suggesting watery sounds and introducing the bass line that will push the last 6 minutes forward. This last section is one of the best dance moments of the entire Dark Side Of The Moog project. It's amazing Trance techno that sits comfortably next to the music of Underworld and Orbital from those years. Stunning, could have lasted another half hour for me.

After a slightly problematical start on the first 4 albums, this Dark Side of The Moog project has turned into the most satisfying progressive electronic music experience of the 90's for me. Apart from a slow start, this Final DAT delivers. 3.5 stars

The fifth chapter in the moog series kicks off with an introduction from mr. Robert Moog himself My name is Robert Moog ... and I would like to present to you the Dark Side of the Moog, it 's followed by a wonderful moog improvisation from Schulze, whose presence is felt much more prominently then on the previous album. On Part III both artist are equally involved, Schulze with his rhythmic synth pulse and Namlook with fitting dub/jungle beats that will serve as a recurring theme through the album. Also Bill Laswell helps out a hand.

So far the album has taken an excellent start and Part IV continues the momentum with a gorgeous mellotron piece, throwing us right back to the out worldly beauty of Tangerine Dream's Phaedra album. Especially Sequent C and Mysterious Semblance come to mind. Beautiful contribution.

Namlook is a huge Tangerine Dream fan and - as already pointed out here - the basic pulse from Part V is a clear nod to their masterpiece Invisible Limits, which always makes me feel like I'm 12 years old as this used to be the tune for the weekly Lottery draw on Flemish TV back in the 80's. Namlook's ambient improvisation around the theme is very adequate. Of course, at 16.20 minutes it may be a bit too much for some.

Part VI starts as a continuation of the ambient dub of Part III, but after 2 minutes, the rhythm is dropped and Schulze reaches stellar heights with very melodious waves of orchestral synths. Part VII stays in the same cosmic territories with uncanny tube sounds. My best guess is that it is a Namlook contribution, as it reminds me a lot of some of the music on his Air I & II albums.

Part VIII is entirely different but equally gorgeous. It carries on the dub rhythm that was introduced in Part III and adds washes synths and mellotron on top, with a catchy melodious moog lead rounding it off at the end.

Psychedellic Brunch is a very rich and diverse album, the first entirely consistent high point in this series for me. 3.5 stars, strong progressive electronic release.

Yes, three pipers. A third artist is added to the project, Bill Laswell, as yet unknown to me but according to Wikipedia it's a versatile musician (bass guitaris/producer) that has been busy in diverse genres such as funk, metal, jazz, punk and ambient, leading to hair-scratching co-operations ranging from Motorhead to Herbie Hancock or from PIL to this Dark Side of The Moog series with Schulze and Namlook.

I wouldn't be able to single out what his contributions exactly are but the result is a Dark Side of The Moog chapter that is entirely different from the first three. This album veers off into more techno directions. No 'car tuning beats' or too obtrusive rhythms, but it's Dance nevertheless. So your enjoyment will depend on your beat-resistance. The quality is undeniable though but as usual in this series, not consistent.

Part I offers the known recipe of sound effects and slowly flowing melodies and minor chords. But Part II doesn't beat around the bush anymore. A particularly dark sequence on a rhythmically pulsed single bass note introduces a 20 minutes techno piece with an almost continuous 4/4 beat, sounding very close to the legion of concurrent artists that had been influenced by Schulze (Underworld, the Orb). The mixing is a bit strange, particularly at the end of the piece, rhythmic accents sound lots louder then the actual music. It makes for a confusing experience, but it's very captivating to my ears.

Part III returns to ambient textures and doesn't feature much else then sounds from the bushes and highly reverberated didgeridoo. Part IV dwells a bit longer in similar ghostly moods. Part V is short but sharp techno moment with a typical droning nihilistic beat. Laswell adds a little playfulness with nicely looping bass line, too bad this wasn't explored a bit further.

Entirely different sounds again on Part VI, the best piece here, featuring some sparse cosmic synth chords and a moody clean guitar improvisation. No one is actually credited for playing guitar though. Part VII is a one tone reverberated and tuned-down gong sound, quite morose. Part VIII continues the bass line and beats from Part V but it fails to build up to anything groovy or entrancing. The short Part IX ends the album with some interesting flanger effects that could have developed into something again but doesn't hit the mark really

Probably this shouldn't be listed under Schulze at all. His contributions are marginal and the resulting album sits miles away from his usual fare, unlikely to please his fans. As a progressive techno album it also doesn't fully deliver but it's still a good album. Approach with caution as your enjoyment will largely depend on your affinity with 90's chill-out techno.

The first album in the ongoing cooperation between the German sonic wizards Klaus Schulze and Pete Namlook is a difficult listen that takes its time to get going. Pete Namlook is a very versatile electronic artist with a strong tendency towards ambient music, a kind of electronic music that mostly limits itself to slowly weaving chords of sound as its means of expression. Both melody and rhythm are mostly given up in favour of texture and atmosphere.

It's a methodology similar to Schulze's first albums and kraut experimentations, the result is never equally overwhelming though. But this project goes far beyond the austere limitations of ambient music. Both Schulze and Namlook add mesmerizing touches of melody, moog soloing and layers of lush analogue sounds. Schulze hadn't used those for almost 15 years, but Pete Namlook gave him a strong impulse to return to the warmth of the 70's instruments.

This album is one continuous piece of music that is divided into 10 sections of exactly 5 minutes each, which is helpful if you want to proceed immediately to the more accessible sections at the end. The first half hour should not be ignored though. The atmosphere is very dark and spooky and both artists are masters in balancing their hermetic ambience with just the right amount of rhythm and melody. Part III - IV has such a moment with a recognizable moog solo contribution from Schulze. Namlook's rhythmical qualities can be enjoyed in short sections scattered throughout the album and add an ambient techno flavour to this project. It's something that won't sit well with all Schulze fans but I believe it really completes his shortcomings in that particular area.

Approach with caution, this first instalment is a slow and dense album that might keep its charms sealed tight for you forever. It also lacks real high points that adorn other albums in this series. 2.5 stars.

It offers weak and long interludes ("Part I") while some other moments are pure magic and fully Floydean oriented ("Part II"). I guess that the latter corresponds more to the "world" that one can imagine for this long sequence of albums. A deep and wonderful highlight for sure.

The problem is that it is one of the few?Some other "Parts" are quite difficult to swallow, even for die-hard fans of the great man as I am. Techno beats for a long while ("Part III"), jazzy items for short ones (not too bad actually like during the closing fourth part).

Still, the best is reached with the epic section ("Part V") which is a pure marvel of a melody as Klaus has used us to in the seventies. Splendid harmony, cold beauty, simple passion, skilled song writing and of course perfect execution. A perfect travel into TD and Floyd. What else can you expect?

Just some splendid key lines, I guess?And you'll definitely get them.

This long section is formidably saving the bill for this sixth leg of this dark side of the moog. Actually, the last part is also gorgeous and provides the same shivering skin effect. A memorable and grandiose piece of music.

I rate this album with three stars overall, but be aware that there are some darker and less appealing sides here as well; which means that there are also masterpiece songs to make the balance.

With that being said this double-album does in fact hint somewhat of Schulze's later masterpiece Mirage but that album is way more electronic and doesn't have the organic flow that is so prominent on Cyborg. Each of these four compositions have their own unique identities which might at first not seem as such but give this album some time to settle down and a whole story will unfold in front of you!

There is really not much more to say about this release, especially since I don't want to give away any spoilers, except for a slight word of warning to keep the volume low during your first spin since some of the sound effects might catch you off guard!

***** star songs: Synphära (22:49)

**** star songs: Conphära (25:52) Chromengel (23:49) Neuronengesang (24:57)

It's true that this album is similar to the follow-up album Cyborg but in my opinion Irrlicht somehow manages to miss the mark. The two 20+ min tracks are very organic but they lack a lead that would take them to a higher level. The shorter Satz Gewitter feels more like an experiment and could easily be omitted from the bunch.

I'm quite aware of the fact that this was Klaus Schulzes debut so I'll cut him some slack, besides it didn't take him long to perfect his formula. What I'm basically saying is that if you're interested in this electronic pioneers early career then you should probably start with Cyborg before checking out Irrlicht.

**** star songs: Satz Ebene (23:23) Satz Exil Sils Maria (21:26)

*** star songs: Satz Gewitter (5:40)