Rubycon is the sixth studio album by German electronic music group Tangerine Dream. It was released in 1975.[1] It is widely regarded as one of their best albums. Rubycon further develops the Berlin School sequencer-based sound they ushered in with the title track from Phaedra.
| Rubycon | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 21 March 1975 | |||
| Recorded | January 1975, The Manor, Shipton-on-Cherwell | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 34:53 | |||
| Label | Virgin | |||
| Producer | Tangerine Dream | |||
| Tangerine Dream chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Audio sample | ||||
Rubycon: Part 1" | ||||
Although not quite matching the sales figures for Phaedra, Rubycon reached number 10 in a 14-week run, their highest-charting album in the UK.[2]
Music edit
The album consists of two long tracks, each just over 17 minutes long. "Rubycon, Part One", the A-side of the LP, "ebbs and flows through tense washes of echo and Mellotron choirs, as primitive sequencer lines bubble to the surface”.[3] The B-side, "Rubycon, Part Two", "opens in a wonderfully haunted way" before "the synthesizer arpeggios return to drive things along". [3]
Critical reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| Head Heritage | positive[4] |
From contemporary reviews, Chris Salewicz of the NME wrote that "a touch more electronically sophisticated than Phaedra [...] perhaps, and the technological massed choir that floods out of the speakers a couple of minutes into Part Two indicates a considerable degree of carefully wired panache." Salewicz summarized the group as being "so thoroughly frustrating because there's nothing you come across which you find you can actively dislike. On the other hand there really does appear to be little there for the moment which warrants more than a luke-warm vague affection that, broken down, would seem close to some nebulous sympathy."[5]
Tom Moon includes Rubycon in his 2008 book 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die, saying: "This voyaging vision of sound, ever-unfolding and not quite ever arriving, has been imitated endlessly since 1975. But somehow its admirers haven’t quite captured the openness and faraway grandeur of Tangerine Dream."[6]
In his 1997 book Digital Gothic: A Critical Discography of Tangerine Dream, music journalist Paul Stump praises the album, noting: “Rubycon is simply a refinement of its predecessor—but to an acme of excellence, and demonstrates a mastery of primitive technology breathtaking in its audacity, tenacity and sheer artistic vision. It is probably the best album the band have made…” [7]
Tour edit
After the album was released, Christopher Franke's Moog synthesizer was damaged in transit during a tour and Franke himself was nearly killed by an electrical shock.[8]
Track listing edit
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Rubycon, Part I" | 17:18 |
| 2. | "Rubycon, Part II" | 17:35 |
A new CD version was issued in 2019 re-mastered from the original master tapes. It contained the bonus track "Rubycon (extended introduction)" mixed by Steven Wilson. This track was previously unreleased.
Personnel edit
- Edgar Froese - mellotron, guitar and VCS 3 synthesizer on "Rubycon, Part One" ; organ, mellotron, guitar, gong and VCS 3 synththesizer on "Rubycon, Part Two"
- Christopher Franke - double Moog synthesizer, Synthi A, organ, modified Elka organ and prepared piano on "Rubycon, Part One" ; double Moog synthesizer, gong, Synthi A, and organ on "Rubycon, Part Two"
- Peter Baumann - organ, EMS Synthi A, electric piano (Fender Rhodes) and prepared piano on "Rubycon, Part One" ; electric piano (Fender Rhodes), organ, EMS Synthi A, voice and ARP 2600 on "Rubycon, Part Two"
Production credits
- Monique Froese – photography
- Mick Glossop – engineer
- Roland Paulick – technical assistance
Charts edit
| Chart (1976) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[9] | 95 |
| UK Albums Chart | 10 |
Single edit
A single titled Extracts From "Rubycon" was released in March 1975.[10]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Extracts From "Rubycon"" | 3:07 |
| 2. | "Extracts From "Rubycon"" | 3:09 |
Both tracks of this single were included as part of the compilation The Virgin Years 1974–1978 in 2011.
References edit
- ^ Berling, Michael (29 September 2016). "Rubycon". Voices in the Net.
- ^ "Tangerine Dream". Official Charts.
- ^ a b c Swan, Glenn. Rubycon at AllMusic
- ^ "Julian Cope Presents Head Heritage | Unsung | Reviews | Tangerine Dream – Rubycon". February 2010.
- ^ Salewicz, Chris (5 April 1975). "Tangerine Dream: Rubycon and Alpha Centauri". NME. Retrieved 8 December 2021 – via Rock's Backpages.
- ^ Moon, Tom (2008). 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die: A Listener's Life List. New York: Workman Publishing Company. p. 762. ISBN 978-0761139638.
- ^ Stump, Paul (1997). Digital Gothic: A Critical Discography of Tangerine Dream. Trowbridge: SAF Publishing Ltd. p. 67. ISBN 0946719187.
- ^ Prendergast, Mark (1994). "Tangerine Dream: Changing Use of Technology, Part 1: 1967-1977". Sound On Sound. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015.
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 304. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ Berling, Michael (29 September 2016). "Extracts From "Rubycon"". Voices in the Net.