X [Revisited] [Digipak]

Performer: Klaus Schulze
Producer: Klaus Schulze
Distributor: Ryko Distribution

Notes: Personnel: Klaus Schulze (Mellotron, synthesizer, ARP synthesizer, mini-Moog synthesizer, Moog synthesizer, cymbals, tom tom); Wolfgang Tiepold (cello); Harald Grosskopf (drums). Recording information: Frankfurt, Germany (01/1978-??/1978). One of the definitive albums of the electronic music pioneer's career. Each track on X or "Ten" (since it's Schulze's 10th release ) is titled after a famous German personality, but it's the provocative electronic music behind the names that makes this one of his best albums. On this two-CD set, Schulze's sequencer is joined by electric guitar and drums, that pleasingly bring an earthy, simple feel to his pastiches. Still captivating and alluring with his multi-keyboard entourage, the tracks each exhibit a personality all their own. "Friedrich Nietzsche" is the most vibrant of all six, harboring a complex but attractive aura. A true pioneer at his craft, Schulze's X is one of the more definitive albums of his career. Each track on X (or "Ten," since it's Klaus Schulze's tenth release) is titled after famous German personalities, but it's the provocative electronic music within the names that makes this one of his best albums. On this two-CD set, Schulze's sequencer is joined by electric guitar and drums, which pleasingly bring an earthy, simplistic feel into his pastiches. With Schulze still captivating and alluring with his multi-keyboard entourage, each track exhibits a personality all its own. "Friedrich Nietzsche" is the most vibrant of all six, harboring a complex but attractive aura. The 24 minutes of this synthesized voyage involve imaginative sculpturing using both the Moog and Mellotron. Extreme washes of sturdy tones and pulses make up this wonderfully crafted track, one of Schulze's best. In the same manner, the rest of the album is pure electronic bombardment. With 12 different types of sequencers and synthesizers molded, merged, and fused together, the musical landscape created is overwhelming. On both the 29-minute "Ludwig II Von Bayern" and the equally lengthy "Heinrich Von Kleist," a foreign atmosphere is bred through the multitude of variable electronics, both of the guitar and keyboard type. As each track begins to take shape, the music is dissected and laid out, but not before it forms lasting images and intricately conveys a mood. Klaus Schulze is a true pioneer at his craft, and X is one of the more definitive albums of his career, since its length and instrumental combinations make for a multifaceted electronic piece. [The 2005 reissue featured the bonus track "Objet d'Louis."] ~ Mike DeGagne

Klaus Schulze is the living essence of electronic music, having both practically invented it in the 1970s, and embodying many of its signifiers: Teutonic, intellectual, and highly experimental. A founding member of the influential electronic group Tangerine Dream, Schulz left after one album to pursue other avenues of expression, first with Kraut-rockers Ash Ra Tempel and then as a prolific and enduring solo artist. His explorations in synthesizer rock have yielded several classic albums and have influenced the New Age and Trance genres.

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