ÉQUINOXE

"Equinox" is a step forward for J.-M. Jarre's musical proposal after the success he achieved with his top-selling previous album "Oxygene". He doesn't exactly break new grounds with "Equinox", but what he does is, more properly, manage to articulate his massive synth-based ideology on a more solid focus. Keeping the intelligence to create captivating ambiences and catchy synthesized adornments, Jarre's refreshed interest in building well-crafted electronic orchestrations allows him to deliver and portray a bigger sense of ordainment, and therefore, put a major emphasis on the basic melodic lines and their complementation with the programmed harmonies and ethereal synth layers; Jarre also takes special care at using percussive undertones in the programmed arpeggios and setting particular ambiences for some specific passages. The sound production feels also a tad stronger, which is quite appropriate for the nature of this album's repertoire. Parts I & II show this trend quite openly, and so do Parts IV & VII, which IMHO are the most powerful numbers in the album. The exquisite motifs comprised in both Parts IV & VII reach an almost epic stance, due to the constant display of energy and the subtle use of the re-elaborations that keep on coming along: the strong presence of the Solina String definitely helps to build an orchestral feel that seems to be floating all over the electronic textures and effects. Part V was the single, and it's no wonder, since it's quite catchy and it emanates a similar vibe to that of 'Oxygene Part IV'; Part VI is basically a minimalistic sequenced chord progression a- la "Radio-Activity"-era Kraftwerk that founds a linkage between Parts V & VII. Finally, Part VIII brings occasional memories from a bohemian club in Paris (a section that later would be called 'Band in the Rain') before a bombastic reprise of Part V's main motif emerges and closes down the album. In short, I find "Equinox" entertaining and excellent, and definitely, it is worth of Jarre's fame as a keyboard-based pop music innovator that he fairly gained in the late 70s.