PURGATORIO

Tangerine Dream

Progressive Electronic

3.57 | 54 ratings

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Easy Livin
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator / Retired Admin

Nothing to laugh about, this is serious

"Purgatorio" is the second part of Tangerine Dream's three part interpretation of Dante's "La Divina Commedia". This part of the story deals with mankind's purging of the evils which have beset him, through a series of circular ascents.

Unlike the other two parts of the trilogy which were recorded live, this double CD set, running to over 130 minutes, is a studio recording. Once again (as with "Inferno"), the piece is primarily in the form of an oratorio, with seven guest female vocalists. These singers are a mixture of altos and sopranos, all with beautiful, classically trained voices.

Things start off in surprisingly upbeat fashion after the introductory overture, with the trance like "Chasing the bad seed", complete with English lyrics sung by Jayne Klimek. Klimek's vocal style is the most pop orientated of the singers.

The language of the album varies but this only serves to enhance its beauty. Tangerine Dream, who remain essentially the father and son team of Edgar and Jerome Froese, provide the keyboards orchestration throughout.

If the delightful "Inferno" had one minor shortcoming, it was perhaps the single paced nature of the piece. "Purgatorio" addresses that emphatically. The tracks here, which once again are simply to be used as locators since this can only be heard as a complete composition, offer a refreshing diversity of pace and mood. The familiar synthesiser atmospheres of the Tangs can be heard on sections such as "Sun son's seal" but these are mere intermezzo's to further enhance the piece.

In all, this set is more satisfying that "Inferno", due to the slightly greater diversity. The classical overtones of the album will not be to everyone's taste, and neither will the lengthy female vocal recitals. For me though, this sits at the top table of Tangerine Dream albums.

Easy Livin | 4/5 | 2007-4-10

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