Progarchives, the progressive rock ultimate discography

ELECTRIC ORANGE

Krautrock • Germany


From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website

Electric Orange picture
Electric Orange biography
Founded in Aachen, Germany in 1992

ELECTRIC ORANGE is a german neo krautrock band, mainly based on two masterminds Dirk Jan MÜLLER (keys) and Dirk BITTNER (guitar). Up to now both musicians had uncounted collaborations during their development and produced a huge amount of material on MC, Vinyl and CD-R. Besides some temporary flirts with house/techno elements the band actually delivers modern trippy krautrock adapted music, where Tom RÜCKWALD handles the bass guitar since the year 2000.

The sound is decorated with cheerful electronic elements adapted from Tangerine Dream or Popol Vuh as well as provided with obsessional rhythms in the vein of Can or even Kraftwerk - all you might expect as significant for a contemporary krautrock sound.

The band offer an irresistible blend of hypnotic and tribal beats, soaring organ and synths, spacey guitars, recitatives, samples as well as analogue effects. Hereby they are keen on experimenting with all sorts of rare, obscure and vintage instruments. The song titles are often provided with funny and thought-provoking puns.

In 2009 ELECTRIC ORANGE decided to offer the first DVD release 'Live On The Psychedelic Network Festival 2007' featuring a complete show from 2007 in Würzburg as well as other recordings from a period between 2005 and 2008. And then at the beginning of 2010 the band released the new production 'Krautrock From Hell' where the line up saw a change according to the drums while Silvio FRANOLI was substituted by Georg MONHEIM.

Soon after second guitarist Josef AHNS left the band as well they decided to carry on as a quartet furthermore and once a year from now on a new album was produced, one of them including live recordings from Roadburn Festival in 2012.

MÜLLER and BITTNER are also regular members of the band SPACE INVADERS
Additionally Dirk Jan MÜLLER is driving an electronics project named COSMIC GROUND

ELECTRIC ORANGE Videos (YouTube and more)


Showing only random 3 | Show all ELECTRIC ORANGE videos (2) | Search and add more videos to ELECTRIC ORANGE

Buy ELECTRIC ORANGE Music


ELECTRIC ORANGE discography


Ordered by release date | Showing ratings (top albums) | Help Progarchives.com to complete the discography and add albums

ELECTRIC ORANGE top albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

3.21 | 15 ratings
Electric Orange
1993
3.07 | 15 ratings
Cyberdelic
1996
3.22 | 17 ratings
Abgelaufen!
2001
3.10 | 22 ratings
Platte
2003
3.71 | 24 ratings
Fleischwerk
2005
3.98 | 47 ratings
Morbus
2007
3.78 | 75 ratings
Krautrock From Hell
2010
3.82 | 30 ratings
Netto
2011
3.22 | 18 ratings
XX
2012
4.04 | 156 ratings
Volume 10
2014
3.78 | 41 ratings
Misophonia
2016
3.60 | 15 ratings
EOXXV
2017
3.98 | 12 ratings
Encoded
2020
3.61 | 11 ratings
psi-hybrid
2021
3.75 | 4 ratings
Gap
2023

ELECTRIC ORANGE Live Albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

4.00 | 3 ratings
Sessions Nebenan
2001
4.50 | 8 ratings
Unterwasser - Live 2002
2002
4.00 | 3 ratings
Live 2003
2004
4.00 | 3 ratings
Burg Herzberg 20.07.2007
2008
4.00 | 10 ratings
Live At Roadburn 2012
2013
3.98 | 9 ratings
Würzburg Cairo 2015
2017

ELECTRIC ORANGE Videos (DVD, Blu-ray, VHS etc)

4.00 | 5 ratings
Live At The Psychedelic Network Festival 2007
2009

ELECTRIC ORANGE Boxset & Compilations (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

4.00 | 9 ratings
Time Machine 1992-2017
2017
4.00 | 3 ratings
Patchwork 1996-1999
2020

ELECTRIC ORANGE Official Singles, EPs, Fan Club & Promo (CD, EP/LP, MC, Digital Media Download)

3.11 | 9 ratings
Orange Commutation
1995
4.00 | 2 ratings
Hörtest
1996
3.00 | 2 ratings
Totales Brummen
2001
4.00 | 2 ratings
Electric Mutation
2001
3.00 | 6 ratings
Tonbandreste
2001
3.00 | 2 ratings
Rote Sonne
2001
4.00 | 2 ratings
Cows Don't Dream At Night
2001
4.00 | 2 ratings
XX²
2014
4.00 | 5 ratings
Nein! HITS à Gogo - Golden Recordings
2015
3.55 | 11 ratings
Netto Companion
2015

ELECTRIC ORANGE Reviews


Showing last 10 reviews only
 psi-hybrid by ELECTRIC ORANGE album cover Studio Album, 2021
3.61 | 11 ratings

BUY
psi-hybrid
Electric Orange Krautrock

Review by BrufordFreak
Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

3 stars Dirk-Jan Müller and his band of Kosmisches groovemasters are back again with yet another highly engaging, enjoyable, and entertaining album release. Makes me wanna just sit back and veg!

1. "Report (0:57) 2. "Dilectric" (7:30) groovin' with some aliens. Very CAN-like. (13/15) 3. "Season of the Bitch" (9:32) great groove jam with sax and, later, wah-guitar soloing. I could psi-trail to this forever! (18.5/20) 4. "Shingle Robe" (7:17) very cinematic--and Australian Outback sounding. Cool shift in the middle. More alien voice recordings in the final third. (13/15) 5. "Phenomenon" (6:07) another kosmisches groove with some cool infinity guitar over the top--and dobro! (8.75/10) 6. "Psycho Harmony" (4:34) a more primal, worldly, David Sylvian-like groove (though, not uncommon to Holger Czukay, either) with Eastern percussives et al. Cool contrast between bass and flute/flute synth. Love when the bass harmonics are played solo opposite tribal drums and untuned metal percussives. (8.75/10) 7. "Mesocarp Blues" (8:52) more sedate, almost quiet jazzy groove with flute. Cool when 'tron play begins. Almost Beat/beatnik-like without it. (17/20) 8. "Subcutaneous Star" (8:21) keys give an almost orchestral/symphonic feel to this shamanic journey. Then some Frippertronics in the second half. Cool! (17.25/20) 9. "Wacky Amoebatrons" (11:07) crazy effects on guitar strums with "empty" bass and drum track beneath. And then pulsing organ chord joins and guitar groove goes more Ry Kooder--until the end of the third minute, then we go back to the experimental stringed-instruments strums & strikes--this time employing zither. When the whole band joins in again for the bounciness at the halfway point, it's good. Otherwise, it's only ? interesting. (16.5/20) 10. "Erusamu Basement" (7:34) dobro, cymbals, bass, and pulsing synth buzz open this one. Doesn't really go anywhere except to make room for guitarist to experiment. (12.5/15)

Total Time 71:51

B-/3.5 stars; a nice addition to any prog lover's music collection--especially if you like to just sit back and engage with the groove while musicians experiment over the top.

 psi-hybrid by ELECTRIC ORANGE album cover Studio Album, 2021
3.61 | 11 ratings

BUY
psi-hybrid
Electric Orange Krautrock

Review by Rivertree
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator / Band Submissions

4 stars A hybrid of paranormal phenomenons ... what could describe this in a better way? Compositions which do sound like jamming. With reason one can say that the ELECTRIC ORANGE members are the masters of uncommon ability. Since 1992 a chain of 14 items in the meanwhile, their albums are serving a priceless atmosphere in general. Absolutely reliable. If this band still should be new to you, how imprudent, well, it's nearly impossible to recommend THE starting point for the first listening session as such. It also could be 'psi-hybrid' quite naturally. They had to change the production procedure a bit in this case, of course also due to the COVID-19 circumstances. Which means more solo recording activity and less regular band session work. And with Werner Wieczorek they are having a new bass player aboard. And then, supporting some jazzy yet smooth moments, more by chance, Harald Königs was incorporated for some guest appearances concerning bass flute and saxophone.

Stylistically seen a pleasant move, more diversity as the result at any rate. What still stays, they are trying to assign funny track titles, mostly common terms altered to puns. Okay, not everything opens up to me hereby, eh, no worries anyway. Basically there's a very laid-back ride to state, underlaid with Georg Monheim's impeccable hypnotic and tribal drumming. Just to name the track Dilectric in this case. Dirk Bittner provides some wonderful spacey reverbs here. The 'regular' electric guitar does not appear with exclusiveness, alternatively you will be faced with zither and dobro for example. Proves the experimental character as no other.

Dirk Jan Müller delivers a wide range of keyboard and synthesizer stuff as usual. Provided with a strong Kosmische Musik relation, also known from his electronic project Cosmic Ground. If I should be forced to highlight other excerpts, let's say Shingle Robe with driving bass, symphonic keyboards and extraterrestrial backwards presented speech samples. Phenomenon is showing some nice tin drum impact. Or Mesocarp Blues due to the very relaxed and thriving flow. Although nearly everything has its roots in the Blues ... okay ... this has not much in common with the appointed style. Wonderful atmosphere here, including excellent bass line, flute and very effective electric piano as well as Mellotron. 4.5 stars. Great inspiration, wacky execution, still ... long live ELECTRIC ORANGE!

 Patchwork 1996-1999 by ELECTRIC ORANGE album cover Boxset/Compilation, 2020
4.00 | 3 ratings

BUY
Patchwork 1996-1999
Electric Orange Krautrock

Review by Aussie-Byrd-Brother
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

4 stars German band Electric Orange may delve into slowly unfolding and moody Krautrock atmospheres on their modern releases, but that wasn't quite always the case for the group! The core line-up of multi-instrumentalists Dirk Jan Müller and Dirk Bittner have been active with the project for almost three decades now, but during their early years, the duo were fusing retro-flavoured psych with Trip Hop, Drum'n'Bass and other related dance/trance electronic styles, through the use of analogue synthesizers, computers and samplers. Their new compilation, `Patchwork 1996-1999', provides a hypnotic and addictive overview of this unpredictable and fascinating early period.

A mix of rarities from obscure EP releases, oddities and unreleased curios, dating from around the time they were on the legendary underground Delirium Records label, `Patchwork 1996-1999' blends vintage and contemporary styles, always darting in different directions. There's chill-out, ambient, psychedelic and beat-driven electronic selections throughout the twenty-one pieces on offer, and while some parts are mere teasing fragments, others stretch out with an unhurried coolness as they fuse into a sixty-eight minute continuous whole.

Strident opener `Anihal' lurches in with a haziness, `Dance Music' is kitsch and playful, and slithering dark bass grooves through `Mocuba'. `A Slow One' is a head-bobbing saunter, the up-tempo `Kyoto Sacrifice' skitters with danger, and `Endstation (erste)' bristles with a sun-kissed dreaminess. `Abgerechnet' has an forceful hip-hop power, `Quantity' is a murkily drowsy trip-hopper, and `Secret Baby' alternatively thrums with menace and gloriously teems with liveliness.

Of the pieces that will particularly catch the ear of Krautrock purists, `Natural Electric' has a plodding and mellow Can- like groove, `Ambeins' fuses the pretty approach of parts of the first Harmonium LP from '74 with a gently slinking beat, and the eight-minute standout `N12' is a breathless space-music soar that reminds of Klaus Schulze and Tangerine Dream. `No Deal 1' and `2', `Transit Ins Jenseits' and `Some Day' are stunning droning interludes.

If you're worried with the mention of terms like "Trip-hop", "Trance", etc that this is some glossy, trendy or banal throwaway, think again. While this compilation may incorporate those styles, most of the various pieces retain that layer of lo-fi dirt, grit and edge that all the best Krautrock-related (and Electric Orange!) works should have. It even reveals hints of the later exploratory and experimental directions the band ventured into when wanting to create atmospheric music of more weight, mystery and power on their works over the last decade.

But really, just think of `Patchwork 1996-1999' as a trippy and cool psychedelic mix-tape to chill out to!

Three and a half stars.

 Encoded by ELECTRIC ORANGE album cover Studio Album, 2020
3.98 | 12 ratings

BUY
Encoded
Electric Orange Krautrock

Review by Rivertree
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator / Band Submissions

4 stars A new album from Germany's neo krautrock flagship ELECTRIC ORANGE. Relatively short, but yet again rather essential. At first glance all remains stable in 2020. I'm talking about the line up, as well as the basic stylistical trademarks in the same way. In an inimitable manner they are operating in loops, are blending mysterious soundscapes, soaring psychedelic explorations, and unusual hypnotic beats into their very own sonic cosmos. According to that the quartet is serving a matchless atmosphere as usual. Though yet variations are given anyhow, that's for sure. For example vocals respectively voices clearly are having a bigger role this time, served by both the Dirk's in one way or another. Just take the enigmatic and masterful opener Partial Encode which comes with swinging groove and a vocoder modified extraterrestrial conversation.

Low delivers a spheric and ambient synthesizer roundtrip. That's Dirk Jan Müller's playground and origin, also highly praised for his electronic project Cosmic Ground. But, if necessary, he can also operate the more traditional Hammond organ sound. Ekoshock and the following Ghost In The Bag prove this, where the vocals are deriving from a weird exotic location somehow. Woahhhhh! Solely the track Pawn falls back a little, appearing to my ears more like a filler, maybe a leftover from the previous 'EOXXV' recordings. Hey, okay, the band has a really huge discography available, hence occasionally there will be intersections of course. 'Encoded' may not necessarily be their best album ever, but this is definitely solid, unique and entertaining stuff for your experimental pleasure.

 Encoded by ELECTRIC ORANGE album cover Studio Album, 2020
3.98 | 12 ratings

BUY
Encoded
Electric Orange Krautrock

Review by BrufordFreak
Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

4 stars Now this is different! I like variety--and bands that experiment and grow. The album starts out with some very unusual and different sounds and styles (for Dirk Jan Müller) but then seem to revert to more traditional Kosmische Musik forms and styles. I would love to hear more "new" stuff like the opening song, but, still, I do love the serious dedication Electric Orange puts into their Krautrock revival releases.

1. "Partial Encode" (8:33) an excellent and refreshing opener using vocoded voice for vocals and a kind of straightforward Euro-rock groove to engage and hypnotize us. In the sixth minute the vocals get muddy and the music seems to "lose its way" (purposely), but the rhythm section slowly recovers in the seventh minute and we end on the hypnotic groove that started it all. (18/20)

2. "Low" (2:53) a very spacey, Blade Runner-like interlude. (4.25/5)

3. "Ekoshock" (8:05) Kosmische organ play with fast-pulsing bass underneath, both intensifying into a swirling cacophony before an American voice sample is used to bridge into a more hypnotic and traditional Kosmische rhythm track. Guitars and organ add incidental noises from beneath or from the periphery while the pagan dance rave goes on in the center. Very hypnotic and trance psychedelic. (13.25/15)

4. "Ghost In A Bag" (5:51) themed around the invisible that is electricity, there is a JIMI HENDRIX-like feel and construction to this one with lots of feedback and extemporaneous vocals thrown at us from all directions. At 2:05 a British-voiced psychedelic talk-vocal enters and takes the lead. Very trippy. In the fourth minute, after the voice has finished his incantation, a more heavy psych rock song takes form and carries on until the chanter returns around the five minute mark. Very cool, different, and interesting. (8.75/10)

5. "Prawn (3:32) more spacey synths, syncopated electric guitar hits, tribal drumming and bass rolling in the low end. Very traditional Krautrock of the CAN/TD order. (8/10)

6. "Passage (8:42) another Kosmische jam combining he space synth/keyboard sounds of TANGERINE DREAM-like music with the low end rhythm section of JAKI and HOLGER. The keys are the highlight at the forefront while the steadiness of the rhythm tracks provide the ocean of transport necessary to enjoy the show. (17.75/20)

Total Time 37:36

B+/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of modern Kosmische Musik and a wonderful contribution to the prog lexicon. If you're craving some wonderfully engineered trance-inducing Kosmische Musik, this is your album to check out.

 Unterwasser - Live 2002 by ELECTRIC ORANGE album cover Live, 2002
4.50 | 8 ratings

BUY
Unterwasser - Live 2002
Electric Orange Krautrock

Review by Aussie-Byrd-Brother
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

5 stars Getting a fresh release in two lavish and expanded separate double vinyl editions from Adansonia Records is a special live performance from modern German krautrockers Electric Orange, or at least the core line-up of two of its founding members in Dirk Bittner and Dirk Jan Müller. Recorded all the way back in April 2002 at the Manikan Records 10 year Anniversary Festival at a thermal bath/spa in Bad Sulza, Germany, the duo lugged in their collection of analogue synthesizers, Mellotron, guitars, organ, samplers and tapes and performed two fully improvised sets - one in the morning, one at night - running over two hours each. The results are a hypnotic drift of hazy electronics and dreamy psychedelic atmospheres, perfectly suited to the relaxed and warm atmosphere of the bath and those drifting in, around and under the water!

The side-long opener of the first LP, `Ffurg', offers many of the kind of sounds you can expect on the entire set, being a collage of incoherent vocoder ramblings, groaning electronics, fizzing synth spirals and a subdued pattering of lurching programmed beats all melting together into an unhurried and hypnotic aural stew.`Sauerkirsch' evolves from a cavernous drone into a swirling white-noise vacuum, and `Transit Ins Jenseits' sounds like a late Sixties jam from Pink Floyd at their most mellow, all dreamy guitar wisps, shimmering organ and stuttering bass (and throw in a pinch of Tangerine Dream's `Rubycon' while you're at it!).

`Myd' holds ebbing and seeping Cluster-like electronic drones flecked with unhinged spoken proclamations, stalking sequencer pulses and eastern-flavoured mantra-like ringing guitar reverberations to take on an eerie menace. `Not Off' is a meander of rising/falling grumbling distortion and twitching electronics with shambling guitar strums and tastily lethargic soloing, and `Wet Cake' is a shorter mix of bubbling electronica and loopy psychedelic ambling.

Volume Two's nineteen minute `Ortat' sounds like Pink Floyd and Hawkwind jamming in an alien nightclub before slinking into a grooving trance of the chilled dance sounds that used to pop up much more frequently on the earlier Electric Orange discs. Side F takes a darker turn with `Span' an unrelenting sequencer stalk and `Lake' a maddening tribal cult initiation (probably!). A relentless and punchy programmed beat charges the Neu!-like `Hydrog' stridently ahead amidst bleeding synth melts, there's plenty of fuzzed out guitars and electronics throughout `Quiet Party', and `Mk' is a final mellow Mellotron-seared come-down.

Every side of music on `Unterwasser' is a constantly floating, deeply spacey and endlessly trippy performance with that scuzzy trace of dirt and uneasy danger found in all the best `krautrock' works. Think Agitation Free, Cluster, `Alpha Centauri - Phaedra'-era of Tangerine Dream and early Floyd, and the sparse production of the analogue equipment makes it sound even more like a genuine lost Seventies relic. This might be a reissue, but it is one of the absolute standout releases of 2018, and a truly essential pick-up for Krautrock fans.

Five stars for an album you could keep disappearing into forever.

 Cyberdelic by ELECTRIC ORANGE album cover Studio Album, 1996
3.07 | 15 ratings

BUY
Cyberdelic
Electric Orange Krautrock

Review by mariorockprog

3 stars 3: The third album by Electric Orange. While I was looking by recommendations of some overlooked bands that sounds close to the Floyd or just space/psychedelic or krautrock style, I find a lot of references for this one, so I gave it a try. As this is the only album that I have available in my streaming service, i will begin with this one. For my surprise it is a good album with nice tunes, it includes the typical German style, combining electronic passages, but in this case, the space rock part is not so present. It maintain the minimalism style of some of the bands of krautrock movement, in specific the electronic side. Definitively, it doesn't include a lot of rock, but as a electronic album I considered it good. Also, the first part of the album is better musically. It has a lot of catchy moments, and even sound like a funky, jazzy and rap music combined with a good bass rhythms. Finally, I recommend it to anyone that want to hear something different, mainly if you like the electronic side, but not expecting a lot of prog moments.
 EOXXV by ELECTRIC ORANGE album cover Studio Album, 2017
3.60 | 15 ratings

BUY
EOXXV
Electric Orange Krautrock

Review by Aussie-Byrd-Brother
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

4 stars German band Electric Orange have been around in some form for twenty five years now, founded by Dirk Jan Müller, a multi- instrumentalist who primarily handles keyboards (and also recently started a well-received Berlin School-influenced prog- electronic side-project Cosmic Ground). Over their early years, alongside frequent contributor Dirk Bittner, the group was mostly occupied by guests and/or a rotating door of varied musicians, but a settled line-up of the band eventually found their calling in heavy Krautrock-flavoured ambient jams on their most recent works. To commemorate their anniversary, Dirk and the group have delivered three very different and worthy works this year, with the main focus being on `EOXXV', an expansive 134-minute set that falls somewhere between a new studio work and compilation (the recordings date from 2013 to January of this year), and for your money you get a lavish triple LP set or a double CD collection of superb Krautrock jams that frequently run to over twenty minutes in length each.

`Continuum' opens the album like many of the improvisations here and on recent Electric Orange works, blending long stretches of slowly unfolding ambient electronic drones, dusty distortion-laced guitar atmospheres and rumbling bass grumbles turned in multiple unpredictable directions by unrelenting drumming, the band expertly lifting in drama and retreating again over and over. Grumbling fluid bass ruminations and trippy guitar shimmers permeate `Under The Nun' around ethereal electronic canvasses, searing Mellotron bursts and slowly growing spacey swirling Hammond organ swells (that often call to mind the `Inside/Floating' psychedelic period of vintage German symphonic band Eloy). The sublime `Gnosis' (sadly only included on the CD edition) is spiced with the most subtle of delicate jazzy flavours among its glacial synth pools and lightly pattering drums that eventually take on a hypnotic tribal beat-like grasp, the piece taking a dangerous turn with some maddening fiddle slices and wavering electronic shivers in the finale.

There's an uncomfortable unease to the first half of `Misophonia IV's rumbling and brooding faraway ambient sound-collages that float and shimmer in unhurried hallucinogenic washes, with the piece soon moving in and out of tense drumming hypnotics, nightmarish psychedelics and stormy distortion melts. `Misophonia V' glides between dreamy mellow guitars, ethereal synth caresses and cacophonous flurries of wild drumming, the final crashing moments of `Faint' with its pounding mountain-sized drumbeat stomping down on everything in its path has to be heard to be believed, and album closer `Residuum' is equally a lulling space-music collage and darker ambient distortion drone with moments of blissful life- affirming touches.

`EOXXV' jumps back and forth between `kind of more of the same' as the last few studio releases, and serious contender for one of the albums of the year. While several tracks follow a similar pattern and the album is far too long, each individual piece is an outstanding Krautrock jam of heady sounds and exploratory colour all its own, and to have them compiled in the one place makes it a very attractive release. If you're a massive EO fan and not bothered by the fact that parts of the album mine similar ground to `Volume 10', `Misophonia' and `Würzburg Cairo 2015', then `EOXXV' will make a huge impression on you and make for yet another first-rate modern Krautrock work from one of the best heavy psych bands going around today.

Four and a half stars.

 Würzburg Cairo 2015 by ELECTRIC ORANGE album cover Live, 2017
3.98 | 9 ratings

BUY
Würzburg Cairo 2015
Electric Orange Krautrock

Review by Aussie-Byrd-Brother
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

4 stars German band Electric Orange have been around in some form for twenty five years now, founded by Dirk Jan Müller, a multi-instrumentalist who primarily handles keyboards (and also recently started a well-received Berlin School-influenced prog-electronic side-project Cosmic Ground). Over their early years, alongside frequent contributor Dirk Bittner, the group was mostly occupied by guests and/or a rotating door of varied musicians, but a settled line-up of the band eventually found their calling in heavy Krautrock-flavoured ambient jams on their most recent works. To commemorate their anniversary, Dirk and the group have delivered three very different and worthy works this year, one of them being `Würzburg Cairo 2015', a live document that showcases their set of trippy, atmospheric and frequently minimalistic jams from the 8th Psychedelic Network Festival of two years ago.

Fifteen-minute opener `Behind The Wall Of Sheep' (yes, you read that right!) sets much of the template that several stretches of the performance cover - behind Georg Monheim's rumbling incessant drums, Dirk's keyboards lightly coat the background in the most subtle of ways with pristine electronic caresses, Tom Rückwald's bass grumbles with purpose and Dirk Bittner's squalling feedback-laced distorted guitars reverberate into infinity. Traces of the improvisation remind of the legendary early Pink Floyd live performances in their more howling moments, and the piece moves between noisier builds and serene come-downs like so many of the classic Krautrock works.

Over a plodding beat, the guitars of `Fluff' move between victorious dreaminess and fierce defiant contemplations, Dirk's bleeding keyboard violations chug in and out of stormy drum tantrums throughout `Perpetuum Mobiliar', and `A Tuna Sunrise' drifts with shimmering electric piano tendrils and shambling acoustic guitars before culminating in a blissful Mellotron lift. `Supptruppen' is eleven minutes of haunting and mysterious drowsy guitar splinters cutting through murky ambient drones, and `Auslauf' is a shorter Mellotron-flecked guitar maelstrom that wouldn't have sounded out of place on the early Tangerine Dream albums. `Ducktango' is an early A.M hours drifting darkly jazzy saunter with slithering thick bass and groaning trumpet cries, and `Samba Ohrleck' is an equally stormy and chilled psychedelic shimmer with maniacal spoken-word rantings.

Equal parts dreamlike wander and nightmarish intensity, the near seventeen-minute closer `Mischwesen' is a relentless percussion-driven masterclass of hypnotic power and carefully executed build. Slow to unfold, meandering bass ruminations, droning trumpet wafts and maddening incessant drumming build into a barely restrained storm, Dirk adding a thick layer of brooding electronic washes, ghostly Mellotron choirs and a touch of early Klaus Schulze to his frantically delirious synth soloing.

Any listeners who have witnessed the band grow into the dynamic and mesmerizing Krautrock band that they are today over their last few studio albums will greatly appreciate this comparable and superb live account. While perhaps the band might be overdue for a new live DVD/Bluray, their first since `Live at the Psychedelic Network Festival 2007' a decade ago, `Würzburg Cairo 2015' is available on both CD and a lavish double LP on Sunhair Records, and it makes for a very fine way to celebrate the first twenty-five years of the group - here's to the next quarter century!

Four stars.

 EOXXV by ELECTRIC ORANGE album cover Studio Album, 2017
3.60 | 15 ratings

BUY
EOXXV
Electric Orange Krautrock

Review by Rivertree
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator / Band Submissions

3 stars Gosh, how time flies! Meanwhile we are noticing the band's 25th anniversary! In the light of this event they have decided to release a double CD (on Fleisch) respectively tripple LP (via Adansonia). A good reason for a short retrospective at first. Originally initiated more as an experimental solo project, keyboarder Dirk Jan Müller started in 1992 recording and releasing songs. The album 'Cyberdelic' (1996) then manifested the begin of a very fruitful collaboration with Dirk Bittner, and the progress towards a real band. Both will represent the stable and congenial core furthermore. Josef Ahns (guitar, flute) then would follow as a steady member for some years, until, while continuing with the highly acclaimed 'Morbus' album in 2007, Tom Rückwald (bass) decided to enter the crew.

Since 2008 the current line up will be completed due to Georg Monheim. Deep respect to the previous drummers, but with his unique percussion style he definitely managed to add a special note to the band's sound. Musically ELECTRIC ORANGE are standing for a modernized interpretation of the 'good old' krautrock spirit. While combining some main ingredients, which are classic space rock, tribal percussions, hypnotic rhythms as well as ambient progressive electronics. This based on a proper amount of improvisation and experimentalism by using a lot of exceptional instruments. Well, the murky front cover solely will come into effect actually regarding the vinyl version, I would say. Since 'Misophonia' at least relatively dark-coloured visuals are dominating, probably aimed at complementing with their somewhat doomy melancholic soundscapes.

Content-wise it appears that some leftovers from previous sessions are given, I assume. The first CD is comprised of three tracks, recorded early 2013, hence originally to be designed for 'Volume 10' most likely. Where hereby Gnosis solely appears on the compact disc version with Tom using an acoustic bass! Continuum is a really gripping affair, mirrors the global EO sound and spirit at its best. Groovy and floating parts are constantly alternating, you won't have any damn clue in which direction this is going to flow. Bass, drums, keyboard and guitar are swirling around with fantastic interaction. Second CD starts with two further 'Misophonia' partitions, recorded in 2016 where IV does not really meet my taste due to its depressive atmosphere overall. Additionally two excerpts appear, which are relatively new, recorded in January 2017 precisely defined.

Very convincing according to my taste. Faint and Residuum yet again are offering a wonderful meandering and spacey execution over the course of nearly 40 minutes. Provided with the option to really tune out for some time. The bass playing sounds rather different here. A lonely dog is barking towards the end, probably a mysterious sign pointing to the next album which will follow? 'EOXXV' is a considerable achievement, a good album comprised of extended and rather loose jams. Newbies shouldn't necessarily start with this one. Die-hard ELECTRIC ORANGE fans will get their money's worth though in any case, as the band once again confirms a very unique atmosphere throughout.

Thanks to Rivertree for the artist addition. and to rivertree for the last updates

Copyright Prog Archives, All rights reserved. | Legal Notice | Privacy Policy | Advertise | RSS + syndications

Other sites in the MAC network: JazzMusicArchives.com — jazz music reviews and archives | MetalMusicArchives.com — metal music reviews and archives

Donate monthly and keep PA fast-loading and ad-free forever.