"Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
"[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM
All good choices mentioned so far. I'll add:
Zero Time - T.O.N.T.O.'s Expanding Head Band (not counting the synthesized vocals on side 1)
Cosmic Furnace - Roger Powell (been so long, don't think it has vocals)
Then there's a bunch by older jazz guys doing Moog demo-type albums like Dick Hyman, Raymond Scott, etc.
Lou
Looking forward to my day in court.
Synergy: Electronic Realizations For Rock Orchestra (already mentioned)
Jan Hammer- The First Seven Days
"Normal is just the average of extremes" - Gary Lessor
Rather than repeat I'll just add a couple that I personally love:
Klaus Schulze - Timewind
Ash Ra - New Age of Earth
... and a couple of relatively obscure dark horses I like:
Galactic Explorers - Epitaph for Venus
Didier Bocquet - Voyage Cerebral
No particular order, and I had a tough time making it up to five.
Flamen Dialis - Symptome Dei
Tomita - Snowflakes are dancing
Terry Riley - A Rainbow in Curved Air
Jean Michel Jarre - Oxygene
Besombes/Rizet - Pôle
Igor Wakhevitch - Hathor
Popol Vuh - Im den Gärten Pharaos
Silver Apples - début
White Noise - Electric Storm
Roger Powell - Cosmic Furnace
Wendy Carlos - Sonic Seasonings
Galactic Explorers - Epitaph for Venus
Didier Bocquet - Voyage Cerebral (or Eclipse)
TD - Phaedra
Moondog - New sound of an Old Instrument. (not sure this qualifies, but close enough)
Klaus Schulze - Timewind
Heldon- Electronic Guerrilla
Flamen Dialis comes really close, methink
Last edited by Trane; 03-12-2018 at 12:27 PM.
my music collection increased tenfolds when I switched from drug-addicts to complete nutcases.
If you're actually reading this then chances are you already have my last album but if NOT and you're curious:
https://battema.bandcamp.com/
Also, Ephemeral Sun: it's a thing and we like making things that might be your thing: https://ephemeralsun.bandcamp.com
Jasun Martz' The Pillory comes dangerously close, although there's an additional orchestra and a choir as well. Absolutely one of the albums which clearly displays the obvious limitations of the mellotron, as it wears extremely thin only few minutes in. Far better is Lars Pedersen's (again: When) Gynt, on which he plays intendedly havoc and deconstructs Grieg's Peer Gynt through samples, cutups and colossal amounts of mellotron - the latter utilized in a most unconventional/untraditional fashion.
"Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
"[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM
DO7SzsSVAAA-H8M.jpg
https://www.musicbrut.com/the-pillory-reviews
Jason will be happy to send you an autographed copy. I got one, but much as SS has indicated it fails to live up to the hype IMO.
... but there's so much hype I might have to re-visit. Haven't listened in years.
More winners. My fave of the Cinema lot was Michael Hoenig's Xcept One. That one and Miracle Mile are two of my favorite "all digital synths" albums.
I was trying to be respectful of LP and not type up a yuge post. But I'd just as soon throw Shape Shift or Surface To Air in there.
With the many Mellotron tapes that nobody ever uses, and the possibility of overdubbing and cutting and editing in the studio, it surprises me that “Mellotron solo” albums aren’t a thing. I mean, look at what Francis Monkman did with an ARP Odyssey on Darryl Way’s “Concerto for Electric Violin”!
The funny thing is that it'd might have worked were it not for the massive use of that mechanical old box. The more 'expressionist' passages with the choir are sometimes outrageously powerful and evoke the likes of David Bedford (his timbral compositions like Star's End) or even Sam Hayden.
I need to revisit Martz as well.
"Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
"[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM
I listened to samples online. I don't think so.
Yeah, LOTS of orchestra & choir if memory serves. I'm relistening to it right now. It never struck me as a "Mellotron solo" album. Still doesn't. It always reminded me more of Centipede's "Septober Energy."Originally Posted by Scrotum Scissor
Is there even Mellotron anywhere on this? I'm listening to the YT video and not hearing any.Originally Posted by Scrotum Scissor
There are isolated parts where several mellotrons are dubbed and make out the only instrument present, albeit later on in the piece. But there are also digital samples of mellotrons in several places throughout, and the mellotron applied as soundsource for timbres and noises not normally heard from the instrument at all. But you're right in that it's hardly anything near a 'tron solo' record as such.
"Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
"[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM
Don't know of it's 'prog' as such but Mike Dickson has done a couple of classical reworking on Mellotron.
http://www.mikedickson.org.uk/mellotronworks/
Limiting to one per artist, otherwise Bo would get 3 selections:
Bo Hansson - Sagan Om Ringen
Anthony Phillips - 1984
Tangerine Dream - Phaedra
Kit & Coco - In Time
Tomita - Snowflakes Are Dancing
I almost always go for guitar dominated instrumental prog so it's hard to come up with five. So I'll give you two from PE members that get a lot of play in the Johnson house.
Fred Schendel's Do Not See Me Rabbit is a fine and almost pastoral album
https://trurl.bandcamp.com/album/do-not-see-me-rabbit
John Battema's In This Hour is yet another descent into darkness by that sad bastard. I've played the hell out of this.
https://battema.bandcamp.com/
Last edited by Jerjo; 03-12-2018 at 08:33 PM.
I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down.'- Bob Newhart
Lalle Larsson is worth checking out.
If you're actually reading this then chances are you already have my last album but if NOT and you're curious:
https://battema.bandcamp.com/
Also, Ephemeral Sun: it's a thing and we like making things that might be your thing: https://ephemeralsun.bandcamp.com
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