Search - Tangerine Dream :: Madcap's Flaming Duty

40 Years And Still Relevant!

Imsimplyhere | 09/27/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Having been a long-time TD fan (25+ years), discovering lyrics was initially disconcerting (in particular having listed to "Tyger" many years ago) and I opened this CD up with little in the way of expectations. I was also leery of a CD that was to be dedicated to Pink Floyd's Syd Barret, not quite sure what direction the disc would take musically. I love Floyd, but with Syd, it's all up for grabs. Imagine my surprise that, along with excellent sounds, the lyrical content was actually quite refreshing. This CD contains really good songs, built around selection number 7, Lake Of Pontchartrain, which manages to expand TD's horizons, yet maintain the same feelings of old. The best song on the album, number 5, A Dream of Death, is an amazing song that shows TD has not lost a step. I think the important thing here, concerning this CD, is that after 40 years, TD is still concerned with their long-term fans, but just might have opened the door to a more mainstream audience, which would open up wonderful music to a brand new generation. This is most definately a "must-have" for any collection."

I fought it, but the album simply won me over

R. Legendre | New Orleans, LA | 12/02/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I ordered Madcap's Flaming Promo, a promotional "first look" CD before Flaming Duty was released and I must say that I was not impressed. In fact, I was pretty disappointed. I was never very fond of TD music with lyrics, although '87s Tyger was decent and the fourth track of "Metaphor" titled "Earthling's Reality" (which is actually a slightly different version of "Burning Babe's Reality Song", the final track on Flaming Duty) is also quite good. Nevertheless, I avoided this latest release.



Time went on and I read the reviews for Flaming Duty, listened to sample tracks on TD's official website, and watched some video clips of some of Flaming Duty's songs on YouTube. My interest began to pique.



I finally broke down and got myself a copy and listened to it through and through. Despite my difficulties with lyrics in TD songs, I found this album to be one of the better releases from TD in the past few years.



The music is pure Tangerine Dream, no doubt about it, and Chris Hausl's vocals are quite soothing and fit in well with TD's style. I relished every note from Edgar's guitar work and the melodies are just plain spectacular. I am especially fond of track 2, "Shape My Sin"; an extremely passionate ode to desire and obsession (at least, that what I took away from it).



On Tyger, it sounded to me like the band was trying to FORCE the lyrics to fit the music, but I did not find that to be true here on Flaming Duty.



All in all, I am glad that I added this CD to my collection. I will definitely listen to Flaming Duty on a regular basis and try my best not to judge the band's music before I give it a complete and objective listening to.



Tangerine Dream are mixing it up and morphing their style. This is not the TD we know from the '70s and '80s, but they are still creating uniquely great music that will stand the test of time.



Dream on, true believers.....dream on.



"

A Shining Diamond In The Field Of Art

Mr. Richard D. Coreno | Berea, Ohio USA | 12/06/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is one ambitious project which demonstrates how the art of poetry and art of music can merge into a fresh, splendid package.



There is a special elegance that the music by Edgar Froese and Thorsten Quaeschning bring to the poems from the 17th & 18th century, with the lyric adaptation by Bianca F. Acquaye. The vocals by Chris Hausl are outstanding, with One Hour Of Madness the best selection.



Within art, there is a constant continuum which will remain timeless. By merging two major elements, Tangerine Dream places the legacy of Syd Barrett in its proper historical perspective, while producing their own masterpiece of sound."