50th Anniversary of Edgar Froese's Epsilon in Malaysian Pale
For our third of four anniversary shows for the week, it’s a deep dive into Epsilon in Malaysian Pale, the second solo album by Tangerine Dream founder Edgar Froese. Edgar piloted that electronic group until he sadly left the planet in 2015. He recorded Epsilon between making Tangerine Dream’s Rubycon and Ricochet albums, both released in the same year. It featured two sidelong tracks; one, dominated by synthesizers and the other almost exclusively the Mellotron. That’s the instrument created in the 1960s that played orchestral instruments and choral sounds through tapes that were triggered by a keyboard. It was the sound of King Crimson’s In The Court of the Crimson King and much of the Moody Blues late 60s albums. Both pieces were close to 17 minutes long with the title track sending you into the mist-shrouded tropical forests in Malaysia and out on ocean waves for “Maroubra Bay”. Froese tapped into that mysterious sound that the mellotron had, with instruments played as if heard through a smoke haze. It’s a masterpiece of electronic music and a showcase for the Mellotron. We’ll hear both sides of this epic work on its 50th anniversary. Join John Diliberto on Echoes in Malaysian Pale. https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0B1NZYB19/echoes0a0-20