About 35 years ago I purchased this album new from a local store. I enjoyed it, filed, and pretty much that was the end of my Earthstar story until the CDRWL days. And it's only been in the last two years that I filled in the remaining three albums, which I've dutifully reported on here at UMR. So it's ironic that French Skyline is the last of those for me to discuss.
Earthstar is more or less the working band name for one Craig Wuest... ...I still consider it one of the best electronic albums from the US (though recorded in Germany and France). Of course, having Klaus Schulze produce the album probably helped immensely. It's a powerful album in the Berlin School style.
---3/21/24
In hearing this album for the first time in 16 years, the Schulze effect is very prominent on the suite known as 'Latin Sirens Face the Wall'. It could very well be an archival release from the Timewind sessions. It's really the only piece in Wuest's oeuvre that isn't highly original. The title suite is more diverse recalling their debut Salterbarty Tales, and is what makes this album special like the others.
Ownership: 1979 Sky (LP); 2023 Made in Germany (5xCD). Details can be found on the Salterbarty entry.1990 (acquired); 2008; 3/21/24 (review)
---11/28/10
I didn't know what to expect on this rare debut by Earthstar. Would it be the Berlin School tour-de-force of French Skyline or more towards the classically oriented electronic sounds of Atomkraft? Nein, Danke!(?) The opening track had me drooling, with processed fuzz guitar mixed in with the electronics. A definite French vibe pervades similar to what Phillippe Besombes was doing with the Pole label. The next two tracks highlight piano and harpsichord respectively, and are definite proto new age songs. Following this, we are taken back to the otherworldly sounds of the first song, though this time there's oboe buried in the mix. Perhaps the best use of the instrument I've heard in an electronic setting.
Side 2 opens with a lengthy near side-long composition that at times is sublime and combines the best elements of the 1st and 4th songs on Side 1, and also adds a bit of sequencing. The album closes on a quieter note, but still fits squarely in the cosmic music realm. I was more than pleasantly surprised by the quality of this album.
---6/10/23
I digested that one pretty well on initial impact. It possesses this murky and mysterious feel that only the French seemed to capture. It's all over the place like Humans Only, an album I've only discovered recently. It's not quite as focused though, and some of the new age bits drag on a bit. Long album clocking in at 57:35. In obtaining this LP, I thought it might result in being my favorite by Earthstar, but that title now goes to Humans Only, though this still finds itself in second place among a killer quartet of albums.
Ownership: 1978 Moontower (LP). Includes what looks like a lyric insert, though the album is entirely instrumental; 2023 Made in Germany (5xCD) Titled: Collected Works. Fat box jewel case. This package includes all four of their released studio albums plus one bonus album that was unreleased until now. Unfortunately they appear to be from vinyl rather than master tapes. The copy used for French Skyline wasn't the best either. Superior liner notes from band member Dennis Rea provide context to the history of Earthstar. I found myself relating to all of this as if I grew up with them in Utica, New York. I was in faraway Dallas, and arrived to the same musical conclusion a few years later, but much of their background was similar to my own (minus the psychedelics I hasten to add).
I recently went on about Craig Wuest and his project Earthstar on the Humans Only album - one of the best personal discoveries of the last few years for me. He most certainly marched to his own drummer, though at times it's very apparent that Klaus Schulze was the field marshal. Earthstar recorded four albums, each very different from the other. Salterbarty Tales had an odd progressive rock meets New Age bent. French Skyline went all-in Berlin School, and Humans Only closed off the era with one of the most inventive electronic albums I've ever heard. But what of the 3rd, which is the subject of this post? This album also calls upon the Schulze influence, but in this case his more classically oriented works. Atomkraft? Nein, Danke! is a more somber and moody affair. More of a deep trance type listen with obvious chamber qualities such as piano and violin. This may not read very exciting, but in the hands of Wuest, the music comes to life in multiple ways. And as usual he brings along a lot of musicians to add variety and color. A true talent that is sadly forgotten today.Ownership: 1981 Sky (LP); 2023 Made in Germany (5xCD)
8/26/22 (acquired / review)
Utica, New York's finest electronic musician, Craig Wuest, had always marched to a different drummer. Earthstar's debut Salterbarty Tales has elements of the French progressive electronic masters. Somewhere along the line he befriended a one Klaus Schulze who produced his first album for the Sky label, French Skyline. Though despite the name and his debut's predilection, the album definitely fits well within the Berlin School. Their 3rd album is one I obviously need to revisit, and will refrain from comment until then.
Which gets us to Humans Only. With that title and a modern cover, I just presumed all these years this was a typical 80s throwaway electronic album, or perhaps an NDW influenced work. As I've been reliving the X Wave years, I threw this in with another purchase. No one talks it up and the grades are consistently in last place for the group. Pssst... I have a tip for you underground heads out there: This is their best album. Huh? At least as I hear it today. I think sometimes we have a pre-conceived notion that late era releases from the 80s are uniformly worse than their 70s predecessors. More often than not, that premise remains true. But sometimes...
...you get Humans Only. Earthstar here are a four piece with a cast of thousands helping out. Hard to say what Wuest was thinking when he composed this album, but he's reaching deep in the early to mid 70s here. Opener 'Rainbow Dome' and 3rd track 'Indian Dances' are upbeat, sunny, and positive pieces reflecting the mood of the era, similar to Ashra in that way. But the music recalls Mike Oldfield's Ommadawn more than anything. The second track 'Don't You Ever Wonder?' is stunning, with some beautiful song passages. And 'One Flew Over the Bridge' isn't that far behind. Side 1 is super. A feel-good underground proggy electronic album.
Then we get to side 2. Now it takes a turn for the weird. 'TV Funk' has funky rhythm guitar with Lisa Gerrard styled vocals channeling the music of SPK. What? Yea, read that one again. This leads to 'Tip Toe Funk' which doesn't have an ounce of funk. But what it does have is hardcore Krautrock, with minimalist electronics, dark atmospheres, percussion, eerie voices, and psychedelic guitar interludes. It's jaw dropping, more in the contrast of tone to the rest of the album, than evaluating it by itself. The album is backloaded with both mellotron and Birotron, the latter not something you will hear much.
You just never know where your next new brilliant album will come from.
Ownership: 1982 Sky (LP); 2023 Made in Germany (5xCD)2/24/22 (acquired / review); 5/1/24
2/24/22 (new entry)
Sounds amazing. As all your reviews do. Can't wait to hear it!
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