{"id":104382,"date":"2019-01-14T11:10:37","date_gmt":"2019-01-14T17:10:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.synthtopia.com\/?p=104382"},"modified":"2019-01-14T11:56:20","modified_gmt":"2019-01-14T17:56:20","slug":"new-electronic-releases-on-vinyl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.synthtopia.com\/content\/2019\/01\/14\/new-electronic-releases-on-vinyl\/","title":{"rendered":"New Electronic Releases On Vinyl"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"The vinyl LP is back.<\/p>\n

And – along with the renaissance of the indie music store, LP’s returning to booksellers and Technics introducing a new version of its SL-1200 turntable – has come a firehose of new and reissued electronic music releases on vinyl.<\/p>\n

Tangerine Dream<\/strong>‘s Thief<\/strong> soundtrack is considered by many to be one of their finest. It features the group’s Franke, Froese, Schmoelling lineup at their peak, along with a track by composer Craig Safan.<\/p>\n

Director Michael Mann<\/strong> has a talent for pairing stylized visuals with music, and Thief<\/strong> masterfully sets a noirish crime thriller to Tangerine Dream’s driving electronic score.<\/p>\n

By the time Tangerine Dream scored Thief<\/strong>, they had moved away from the more improvisational space rock of their 70’s peak and were embracing the use of drum machines and more conventional song structures. Their use of highly percussive ‘ratcheted’ synth sequences, along with the prominence of Froese’s electric guitar, give the tracks a propulsive energy that help make the score a standout among their many soundtracks. And Diamond Diary<\/em> – with its ebb and flow of electronic rhythms and metal power chords – is one of the highlights of their career.<\/p>\n

Tangerine Dream’s Thief<\/strong> soundtrack was originally released in the vinyl era – and it sounds great on vinyl. A recent Audio Fidelity reissue (Amazon<\/a>) doesn’t feature any extras, but is a classy 180 g virgin vinyl pressing. Our copy is completely free of surface noise and it has become our preferred media for listening to this classic soundtrack.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Horse Head Bookends<\/strong> is the latest full-length record from Gel-Sol<\/strong> (Andrew Reichel).<\/p>\n

It’s a gorgeous physical release – 140 gram vinyl, plus 5 inserts of custom printed 12″x12″ artwork, by Gel- Sol, to illustrate the individual tracks. The record jacket is die-cut, so any of the psychedelic collages can display through the frame.<\/p>\n

The LP’s illustrations and design recall the heyday of vinyl releases, when the best LPs were truly physical counterparts to the music.<\/p>\n

The music of Horse Head Bookends<\/strong> is hard to categorize, because, like the collage illustrations, the music freely combines elements of many genres. It layers the improvisational feel of classic space rock with plunderphonic-style sampling and funky dub grooves.<\/p>\n

Reichel’s label describes the release as ‘Paracosmic’. It’s an apt description, because, with Horse Head Bookends<\/strong>, Gel-Sol creates a complete, detailed imaginary cosmic world.<\/p>\n

Horse Head Bookends<\/strong> is available via Bandcamp<\/a>. You can preview it below:<\/p>\n