Tangerine Dream – The Bootleg Box Vol. 2 (Esoteric Reactive/Cherry Red Records, 2023)
Fans of Berlin-school electronic music will be able to experience the masterfully crafted currents of sound generated by Tangerine Dream at their prime. The meticulously remastered 7 CD clamshell boxed set titled “The Bootleg Box Vol. 2,” grabs your attention from the very first second. The collection features a handpicked selection of deeply mesmerizing recordings from five unforgettable concerts between November 1976 and June 1983.
It is important to note that what sets Tangerine Dream apart is their ability to improvise, making each performance distinct and one-of-a-kind. These rare recordings, previously unavailable for many years, are a testament to the band’s unprecedented brilliance. After all, what you get is, in essence, seven albums that differ considerably from the studio albums the band made at the time.
The Nottingham and Washington concerts, recorded in November 1976 and April 1977, respectively, present the iconic trio of Edgar Froese, Chris Franke, and Peter Baumann. The latter concert, part of a US tour that spawned the live album ‘Encore,’ was broadcasted live on FM radio.
In 1978, Tangerine Dream experimented with a new lineup, featuring Froese and Franke joined by Steve Jolliffe and Klaus Krieger at the Hamburg concert.
Equally important, the trio of Froese, Franke, and Johannes Schmoelling took the stage in October 1981 for the Newcastle City Hall concert, which was part of the tour to promote the album ‘Exit.’ In 1983, this same lineup performed a moving memorial concert in Frankfurt for the late German film director Rainer Fassbinder.