FOREIGN SPACES: Phaeton

Foreign Spaces

Phaeton

© 2000 SynGate Records

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A fine blend of three-quarters classic Tangerine Dream with one-quarter progressive rock.

tracks

1 Phaeton I - Planet
2 Blue Stream
3 Moonless
4 Silver Glider
5 Phaeton II - Lifeforms
6 Spheric Architectures
7 Artificial Encounter
8 White Sunset
9 Phaeton III - Utopia

notes

Germany is a country that has always been directly related to avant-garde and electronic music thanks to groups and musicians like Popol Vuh, Tangerine Dream, Kraftkwerk or Klaus Schulze. However, most people think of this electronic style as something that belongs to the seventies. A terrible mistake! It still exists nowadays and it is as interesting and revolutionary as it was 25 years ago. A proof of this is Foreign Spaces, a band that should be taken seriously in the world of electronic music. Although they are not the most innovative band (their style is mainly based on a more classic sound), they are indeed an excellent heir to the classic German bands in the electronic tradition.

Foreign Spaces is a trio that includes Georg Reiter, Lothar Lubitz and Christian Feher on keyboards and electronic percussion. Phaeton is their fourth album, after UFO Breakfast (1995), Being Creature (1996) and Dark Star (1997). It is an interesting collection of instrumental works that were recorded between 1998 and 2000.

The sound created by Foreign Spaces reminds of the classic Tangerine Dream (Ricochet, Stratosfear) and also includes some electronic percussion more in the style of Kraftwerk on pieces like "Blue Stream". The use of digital and analog synthesisers provides this band with a blend of sonorities that come from different time periods (analog for the seventies and digital for the eighties and nineties). Contrary to other electronic bands, their style is not ambient, thanks to the use of rhythm changes and varied moods.

Pieces like "Phaeton I-Planet" (17:39) and "Phaeton II-Lifeforms" (21:19) are two of the most impressive parts of the album, both of them full of different atmospheres and keyboard ambiences. The length of these tracks only confirms how impressive electronic music can be. The use of minimalism is not part of Foreign Spaces' music. However, "White Sunset" is the exception, given that it is actually a nice track in the style of Klaus Schulze. Put special interest in pieces like "Moonless" and "Spheric Architecture", two delicate themes with excellent musical arrangements. The album closes with "Phaeton III-Utopia", a majestic song of great beauty.

Another important detail that I have to mention is the artwork: the cover is excellent, its images do fit perfectly with electronic music. Moreover, the album includes a poster with the whole artwork. Great point!

To sum it up, it is important to say that the music of Foreign Spaces is refined electronic music with a seventies feeling. Their last album, Phaeton, is an interesting album that will certainly please most fans of electronic music. If you are interested in this musical genre, get it, you will find it a quality purchase.

progVisions (Mexico)
Enrique Gómez, December 2000

reviews

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  • Three-quarters classic Tangerine Dream with one-quarter prog rock influence
    author: Groove Unlimited (nl)

    This is a strong showing by three German gents, who skillfully blend about three-quarters classic Tangerine Dream with about one-quarter prog rock influence thrown in for good measure. At the heart of the CD are two long synth-driven passages, "Phaeton I" and "Phaeton II." Each has a variety of twists and turns, and although it is largely familiar territory from those who came before, it is well done. A very TD-like sequence and playful synth lead line opens "Phaeton I - Planet" for a few minutes, then some obligatory big synth chords come in for a bit, followed by a very nice, laid-back, dreamy passage. It is the mixture of these different themes, flowing smoothly into one another, which make this a step above the cookie-cutter approach of some Teutonic enthusiasts. Though the sounds and musical ideas aren't the most original, they are combined in interesting and pleasurable ways. The music is generally very positive and upbeat. Sandwiched between the lengthy parts of the title track are several shorter ones. "Blue Stream" seems a bit over the top, although some will no doubt enjoy its melodramatic, majestic flavour. "Moonless" is much more subtle, yielding better results. Playful melodies bounce off light sequencing and electronics. "Silver Glider" again heads into somewhat histrionic territory, but with classic synth chords that I just can't resist, even though it will come across as total cliché to some. Next comes "Phaeton II - Lifeforms," the 20-plus minute centerpiece. Long, low washes of synth pads make a beautiful beginning, giving way to a much more freeform style like classic Yes or other 70s prog. Lots of different things happening here, which you'll either like a lot or find a bit of a muddled mess. I found it a largely effective combination of Berlin school and progressive rock. This is complex, deliberate music, not the long improvisational style of some in the genre. A sort of reprise of "Phaeton I" makes an appearance to finish off this track. Four shorter tracks round things out, ranging from the playful "Spheric Architecture" to the light, airy "Artificial Encounter." The low key, ever-so-slightly darker "White Sunset" makes for a nice change of pace before "Phaeton III - Utopia" ends things in more traditional synth style. Phil Derby, 2000

  • In fact, this is rather serious spacey electronic music,
    author: The Axiom Of Choice (nl)

    Summary With three other titles under their belt, this the .... fourth with recordings from 1998-2000. The music The album opens with Phaeton I - Planet. Over seventeen minutes of Tangerine Dream oriented electronic music (and in a good way) with plenty of high. Lots of repetition in the melody lines, giving the music is a rather relaxed feel. The sound does get fuller and fuller, but continues to be rather spacey. The end sounds a bit sad in a way notwithstanding the long high sounds on the keyboards. Kind of a wailing effect. Blue Stream has a bit of everything. It opens well with strong loop and over that lots of variation. The track has both some mellow, some screamy and some triumphant aspects. After a dreamy but percussive opening Moonless has quiet subdued sequencing and again a lot fof high in the music. The music has something of desert music, but the melodies are bit boring. Lighter and more optimistic is Silver Glider. The melody is okay, but it is based on this one single theme. On the other hand, the long Phaeton II - Lifeforms has plenty of those, strung together as so many hams. Actually this track is really fragmentary, some themes are okay, some are not which is a shame. The bad themes always win. Again nice melodies on Spheric Architecture, but the sound of the album is by now familiar. Little is added to it. Or maybe the guitar like opening to Articifical Encounter, which has some melodic aspects of Twelfht Night's Creepshow (must be accidental). A bit bouncy this one. After the spooky White Sunset we conclude with the strong Phaeton III - Utopia has a strong melody, is concise and is really a electronic composition. Conclusion Although the level of Tangerine Dream is never obtained, there is nothing really simple or easy about the music of Foreign Spaces. In fact, this is rather serious spacey electronic music, not original anything, but certainly not bad either. Compared to Imagination-Pictures-Music this album is much more consistent, although the high points of IPM I think I liked better. What I did and do lack in the music is a bit emotion. The triggered drums and the choice of sounds make the music come over quite cold. Jurriaan Hage, July 2001

  • For people who use to listen to Vangelis, Mike Oldfield or similar music
    author: Galaxyjoe (denmark)

    This album begins with a symphonic and well orchestrated long track: Phaeton I - Planet. This track has a big sound universe with nice sequencers and fantastic stereo surround effects. The other eight tracks on this CD are all quite melodic and have the same beautiful and big universe as the first track. For people who use to listen to Vangelis, Mike Oldfield or similar music it would be a "must have" CD. Some of the tracks reminds me a little bit of the symphonic rock of Marillion, Emerson,Lake + Palmer and Pink Floyd. But it is all managed in a quite personal style. Foreign Spaces have developed a very original music style through the years in the field of synth music. Some of the tracks are in the ambient style but it never becomes techno as the band´s music never will become commercial style. Foreign Spaces will not get in compromise with style and music. They use a freestyle which contains different styles in the electronic music but not techno and trance. Rey, May 2001

  • Foreign Space do have a recognisable style
    author: Sequences No 24 (uk)

    This is the fourth Foreign Spaces release but their first on Invisible Shadows. Once again the band, consisting of Georg Reiter, Lothar Lubitz and Christian Feher, have a heavily sequencer-based style which, by hint of some impressive production work, manages to sound quite epic with just a hint of mystery creeping in, as if what we perceive as real were looked at through a distorting mirror, tipping reality off it's axis, a feeling that is further emphasised by the excellent sci-fi style cover artwork. All of which means that their is a very definate individual slant to the band's music, something that is obvious on the 17 minute opener 'Phaeton I - Planet' which also boasts an unusual psychedelic / symphonic feel, thanks to some complex and ever changing leadlines and regimented percussion that appear throughout. The shorter tracks, such as 'Blue Stream' and 'Silver Glider' reprise this style, albeit in a more structured, less freestyle manner. 'Moonless' and 'White Sunset' demonstrate that the band are also capable of producing cosmic rnusic as good as anybody, both being a rich tapestry of lush but serene sounds. While this album manages to stay very much in the established European styles, Foreign Space do have a recognisable style and hopefully their association with Thorsten Kuhn's rising label will help raise their profile accordingly Carl Jenkinson, 2000

  • Foreign Spaces bring a distinctly progressive edge to the electronic field
    author: New Horizons (uk)

    Foreign Spaces first came into existence, back in 1979, after Georg Riter came across a an old synthesiser during a rehearsal session and became fascinated by the possibilities of such an instrument. He quickly decided to form his own band and began playing his own style of electronic music with a variety of friends until, in 1994, he formed a stable writing partnership with Christian Feher. Together they released three albums; 'UFO Breakfast' (1995), 'Being Creature' (1996) and 'Dark Star' (1997). A further member, Lothar Lubitz, joined the duo in 1999 - just in time for this album, the band's fourth, 'Phaeton'. The music here is largely sequencer based, using a wide variety of different models of keyboard, while the resulting sound is both complex and at the same time restful. Although the band are sometimes compared to Tangerine Dream, I find that Foreign Spaces exhibit a style that is very much of their own making and, interestingly, they have managed to bring a distinctly progressive edge to the electronic field, which really puts them in a class of their own. At a time when there are many bands climbing onto the electronic bandwagon, Foreign Spaces work hard to ensure that quality not quantity is a major goal. This goes a long way towards explaining why there has been a three year gap between 'Phaeton' and their previous release. Having written enough material to fill two CD's, they have endeavoured to hone the music down to more manageable proportions and, with judicious and careful editing of what was to be included, they have certainly managed to produce a top quality product. Science fiction has proven to be a frequent source of inspiration in this arena, and this album is no exception. While each of the band's previous albums has had an underlying story, this project has proved the most ambitious to date looking, as it does, at different aspects of an as yet 'undiscovered' tenth planet in our own solar system. The very nature of this album means that I am not going to attempt to tackle the tracks individually as it would be very hard to meaningfully describe each one in turn. The main body of the album is taken up with the tracks 'Phaeton I' and 'Phaeton II' (which run for 17'39" and 21'19" respectively). The overall feel of these tracks is strong and majestic and, while there is a tendency in both of them to use repetitive themes to provide the underlying heartbeat, the foreground sound is constantly moving and evolving, keeping the overall feel of the music fresh and bright. This constant change and development keeps the listener constantly on guard for whatever may be coming next. The remaining tracks however are far more than simple bridging pieces and are rich in detail and also full of atmosphere. There is rich variety to be found within them, sometimes the music comes across as being heavily symphonic, while at other times the band show themselves to be masters of space rock or at producing simple ambient pieces. In terms of the pace of the tracks we witness further evidence of variety as we constantly thread our way through upbeat fast moving sections to slow dreamy sequences that have an almost narcotic quality. All in all this is a fine album for anyone who has ever enjoyed listening to keyboard based instrumental music and, for those who have never really given electronic music a chance before, let me say that this could prove to be an excellent point at which to dive in and test the water. This album really does run through a whole range of styles and with the combination of strong playing and superb production is well worth checking out. Simon, 28th January 2001

  • Foreign Spaces presented some of the most sublime and infectious EM
    author: Synth Music Direct (uk)

    Never a dull moment when a new CD from Foreign Spaces arrives. Characterised by inconsistency, their previous offerings have when it all "came together" presented some of the most sublime and infectious EM to be found anywhere. Witness the incredible closing 5 minutes of 'Dark Star Part 1', a piece I still revisit with anticipation and awe. So now we have 'Phaeton', and though only 3 letters away from TD's classic album this is nothing like that style, in fact one of the characteristics of FS is that they sound like no other band on the scene today. The opener 'Phaeton I - Planet' typifies their unique style, with gripping sequences adorned with overtly melodic lines which dominate the mix. After an extensive 7 minute rhythmic section the track takes a breather with a pleasing ambient pastiche. Hit the 10 mark and the track then presents its full repertoire of melodic sequencing and a beautiful lead line picked out on their trademark searing synth vox. It mutates, ebbs and flows for the remainder of the piece presenting different angles on the same theme. It's the 4th time I've heard this piece, and true to form suddenly this has clicked - it's yet again another FS "classic moment" with the most infectious melodies. 'Blue Stream' glides in on a wave of classic sequencing then another impressive theme starts up which makes all the right statements. The piece is punctuated by those slightly quirky falling note interludes, which again are so characteristic, before again setting off on its soaring flight. If I could make any criticism it's that I'd like FS to let the track flow slightly more. Such is their enthusiasm to cram in the variation and entertainment it can be a little counter- productive at times, but even so by any benchmark this is a fine piece. 'Moonless' consists of a syncopating sequence and a relatively understated main theme, while 'Silver Glider' opens with massed synth chords before yet another superbly constructed theme hits home. This is quality. 'Phaeton II - Lifeforms', the longest piece at 21:19, follows and its size and position make it very much the pivotal track of the album. Ambient resonance and effects introduce the section before crashing percussives really get the ears flapping. The complexity of construction is fascinating as theme upon theme emerges only to be usurped by another. At 3 mins a more rhythmic section takes over and listen out for the detailed inflexion of the sequence notes, very clever and it really keeps you wondering what's going to spring out of the mix next. Again the only comment I'd make is that, initially, the stop/start nature does take some getting used to but familiarity makes it sit more comfortably. Fade at 6 minutes (yes, were only at 6 mins - what the next 15 mins bring God only knows!) to a more sedated section which eventually morphs into weird effects, then an arpeggiating sequence breaks through and swings from speaker to speaker. And amazingly it just gets better and better, with the closing themes a melodic delight. 'Spheric Architecture' features the most sublime motif to open and close the piece, sandwiching a meandering theme which has its own merits. The whole piece is underpinned by a choppy yet delicate sequence which briefly breaks through from time to time. 'Artificial Encounter' adopts a more laid back stance, with the ubiquitous flutey synth accompanied by more fine cameo synth roles. 'White Sunset' is a beautiful atmospheric piece, and just listen to the wonderful textures which FS create here. Instantly recognisable and immensely pleasing, this (the shortest piece at 3.44) is much more than the obligatory "space filler". Finally we are presented with the third part of the title track, subtitled 'Utopia'. Harpsichord sequencing gives it a slightly formal air, but the strong melody and fleeting drum beat offsets this with more contemporary leanings. A strong finish. You already get the idea that this is a fine album - it's probably the most consistent FS outing to date. Fans of their melodically rhythmic and very individual style will find that it has been worth the wait. (GG) Graham Getty, June 2000

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