Tangram 2008 in Bloomington, MN

It's a very rare occurrence when a band can take a classic album and literally remake it. It happens from time to time, but with the possible exception of
Van Morrison
's live version of
Astral Weeks
, it seldom works. Enter
Tangerine Dream
and
Tangram 2008
.
Tangram
was the last album -- released in 1980 -- that really showcased
Edgar Froese
Christopher Franke
in their true form --
Peter Baumann
had left after 1976's brilliant
Stratosfear
-- though it was a new direction. The idea behind this was, of course,
Froese
's and the result is mixed at best. While it follows the original
's sequence, there is a distraction right from the jump: an insistent, single-pulse rhythm track that does not come from one of their trademark sequencers, but from a pre-programmed drum machine. Adding orchestral elements to fill out the sound takes away the original album's sense of the unexpected and the listener's anticipation. What was once a rich listening experience has become merely a pleasant one. This is not offensive, and it is worth hearing a time or two. If you are a diehard who feels that
can do no wrong, you already know you need this. But
feels more like a misfire than an extension of a classic recording. ~ Thom Jurek