Tyranny of Beauty

Tangerine Dream: Gerald Gradwool (acoustic & electric guitars); Mark Hornby (acoustic, electric 12-string & slide guitars, E-bow); Jerome Froese (guitar, keyboards, drums, percussion); Edgar Froese (guitar, 12-string guitar, keyboards, drums); Linda Spa (soprano & alto saxophones, English horn).
Engineers: Edgar Froese, Jerome Froese, Christian Gstettner.
Recorded at Eastgate Studios, Vienna, Austria in July & September 1994. Includes liner notes by Edgar Froese.
TYRANNY OF BEAUTY was nominated for a 1996 Grammy Award for Best New Age Album.
Recording information: Eastgate Studios, Vienna (07/1994-09/1994).
Photographer: Monica Froese.
Tyranny of Beauty is one of Tangerine Dream's best CDs of the early and mid-'90s. That's not saying a lot. The group's albums from that period -- and even back into the late '80s -- are relatively weak. And, to be sure, this disc has its weaknesses. However, they are overshadowed by its strengths, and the disc earns high praise. The TD lineup for this CD is Edgar Froese, Linda Spa, and Jerome Froese. Mark Horn and Gerald Gradwohl contribute various guitar performances. Those performances are the keys to this disc's merit. Gradwohl's lead guitar spots play off and to Edgar Froese's lead guitar. The sparring adds clout to the atmospheres. The atmospheres, in turn, build upon each other and create a grand soundscape. The strongest track is "Stratosfear 1995," a redesign of the Virgin era standard. This CD is a return to the basics with polish and tact. It is essential Berlin school electronica. ~ Jim Brenholts