Having been a long-time TD fan (25+ years), discovering lyrics was initially disconcerting (in particular having listed to "Tyger" many years ago) and I opened this CD up with little in the way of expectations. I was also leery of a CD that was to be dedicated to Pink Floyd's Syd Barret, not quite sure what direction the disc would take musically. I love Floyd, but with Syd, it's all up for grabs. Imagine my surprise that, along with excellent sounds, the lyrical content was actually quite refreshing. This CD contains really good songs, built around selection number 7, Lake Of Pontchartrain, which manages to expand TD's horizons, yet maintain the same feelings of old. The best song on the album, number 5, A Dream of Death, is an amazing song that shows TD has not lost a step. I think the important thing here, concerning this CD, is that after 40 years, TD is still concerned with their long-term fans, but just might have opened the door to a more mainstream audience, which would open up wonderful music to a brand new generation. This is most definately a "must-have" for any collection.

Mindblowing, mystical, romantic, and brilliant. Can't stop playing it. Been a big fan since 1981... this one is one of my favourites ever and is easily the best TD album with vocals.... easily.

I am not surprised to see reviews ranging from 3-5 for this album. As more reviews come in, I expect to see a few 1's from the die-hard fans. However, in my humble opinion, this is the best TD release since the early 80's and contains my new all time favorite track (Burning Babes Reality Song). This song was previously released as Earthlings Reality on Metaphor with keyboards from Edgar and Thorsten and vocals from Chris. I think this new singer is absolutely great and could easily fit into any group. I do admit something that helps boost my score and that is that I have the DVD/CD version of this which contains videos for the whole album...some just performance and some combination of performance and artistic. If noone else has seen the video, it is nice to see the group perform as there is a lot of guitar, cello, violin and analog drums. Even Thorsten sings on a couple of tracks.

I really hope people give this a chance. I don't like every TD album and certainly not everything they do with vocals but this is a 5 star gem easily.

This is one ambitious project which demonstrates how the art of poetry and art of music can merge into a fresh, splendid package.

There is a special elegance that the music by Edgar Froese and Thorsten Quaeschning bring to the poems from the 17th & 18th century, with the lyric adaptation by Bianca F. Acquaye. The vocals by Chris Hausl are outstanding, with One Hour Of Madness the best selection.

Within art, there is a constant continuum which will remain timeless. By merging two major elements, Tangerine Dream places the legacy of Syd Barrett in its proper historical perspective, while producing their own masterpiece of sound.

I bought this album right at the height of my newfound love of Tangerine Dream. I bought "Focre Majeure" on a whim, seeing it in a local used CD store. I had heard of TD because of their ambient leanings. Within the span of a few months I ordered and listened to most of their classic albums and has started looking into their most recent material to get a feel for what their newer stuff would sound like. The newest TD album I'd listened to was Tyranny of Beauty (of which, I am no small fan).

I'd be lying if I said I was instantly blown away. The songs all have the same pace, and the CD runs a bit long, so it can be a bit fatiguing and I felt the before I had gotten through the first couple of tracks. I cant really explain how or why the album grew on me the way it did, though. It took a while but all of the song structures started to make sense to me, whereas on first few listens there seemed to be a lack of direction, or any sensible melody to most of the pieces.

This changed though, and some of the tracks that I found the most difficult to begin with have now become my favorite bits. "Hear the Voice" and "Mad Song" are two such examples. I've never heard melodies like these, they soar and meander in much the same way that we know TD's synths have always done. The album grew on me more than nearly any other album I own. It has now become on of my very favorite TD albums. It's in good company with "Exit" and "Ricochet", although sounding like neither of those albums, it is, to me, as indispensable as those.

A very rewarding album.