Search - Roger Eno :: Between Tides

Mixed bag of classic gems of neo-impressionism, his best CD

finnao | USA | 04/19/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Unfortunately, while being one of his very best outings, this CD is getting increasingly hard to find. If you don't own it, you should and if you only own one copy, you need a second for the day when your first gets too scuffed from frequent use to play smoothly! Even though the moods swing from Ennio Morriconi-esque (as with Dust at Dawn and Ringingglow) to painfully beautiful minimalist strings supported by a delicate piano framework as in "autumn", a seven minute-plus piece that is so original and so beatiful its style and approach has actually been ripped off a few times by movie composers.The works on this album seem to fall into two slots: The minimalist and the orchestral. The minimalist work such as "Prelude for St. Joan" and 'Autumn" rely on fragile strings to advance what at first seems to be either fragmentary melodies or subliminal melodies. As the piece continues, these themes are fully developed and accompanied by subtle hints of counter-melodies and descants. Some people might not like his frequent use of the perfect chord, but it works well since Eno doesn't force the pieces to progress in the traditional manner. In Autumn, which adds a lovely base of a piano played with a tender, slip-note style... the effect is overwhelmingly sad but beautiful. Eno is always at his best when he strips down the instrumentation and eschews the more New-Agey glides he often relys upon.The very first cut "Dust at Dawn" sounds as if it was lifted directly from some lost Sergio Leone film and Morricone soundtrack.. it's that lovely. Using a fairly traditional orchestration, this piece really does evoke a movie of the mind, as does "Ringingglow". The other pieces not mentioned swing back and forth between the minimalist strings and the more expansive approach of the above mentioned cuts. Overall, the CD is a nice balance of both styles but sometimes I make mix tapes where I cut out one or the other and add similar pieces from Enos other works to avoid ruinging the mood.The string pieces alone should qualify Eno as a major talent of the Neo-Expressionist mode, but he moves between so many styles that there is never an entire CDs worth of such pieces to treasure. While this might be maddening in another, lesser talented composer, it is actually a plus with Eno since all his styles have merit. BETWEEN TIDES is a CD \you will want to have in you permanent collection"

How can a lovely cd like this be out of print

Joey J. Ward | Grants Pass, Or. | 03/04/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As a former owner of a new age music store I have listen to thousands of new age music cds over the last 17 years. 50 per cent of them are really bad and another 25 per cent are ok! Then there are the good ones, of the good ones there are the great ones. These are the ones that are called music. BETWEEN TIDES by Roger Eno is one of these cds. It was sad when this cd went out of print in the early 90's. I use to sell alot of them in the store. I use to tell the customers that this cd will open up your heart. A sad cd but sweet. Its the one cd that I play and will never give it up because its a part of me.
So perhaps a Robert Haig Coxon cd titled " The Silent Path " is a good second choice. It came out in 1995 and was my best seller of all time at the store. It opens the heart too. Tim Story cds " The Perfect Flaw " or "Beguiled" are nice. Prehaps BETWEEN TIDES will be reprinted some day soon. If you find a copy give it a try. If you don't like I will buy it !"

Beautiful and bittersweet melodies

Doug Allen | Del Mar, CA United States | 06/18/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Roger Eno has a way of creating very simple, yet haunting and captivating melodies. This is one of my all time favorite new age cd's. There is nothing else like it in my library. I agree totally that this is heart music. This one deserves to be re-released."