As if the sound is breaking through your speakers, Alpha Centauri begins its journey. Crackling and swirling synthesizers seize control of your stereo. Like a call to psychedelic arms, the first track "Sunrise in the Third System" marches on with its organ. The mixing of the three tracks found on Alpha Centauri leaves something to be desired, in that the tracks are not mixed the way they would be today with each track endlessly flowing into the next like a stream. Nonetheless, when one is not paying too close attention to such details, the album seems to flow quite smoothly. The sound is not of the highest standards either, as should be expected, this being a 1971 release of "space music." Tangerine Dream's style of "space music" had not yet been refined and revolutionized as it was a couple of releases later with Phaedra and Rubycon. Regardless, for those interested in a wilder and more reckless ride on the "space music" autobahn, Alpha Centauri should satisfy the need. ~ Michael G. Breece, Rovi
The hard rock group Alpha Centauri came together in 1971, in the unlikely place of Greeley, CO. It was a three-piece band in those first years, consisting of drummer Randy Thompson, keyboardist and singer Jess Redmon, and singer and guitarist Kurt Smith. In 1975, Garth Hannum joined, bringing his skills as both a singer and bassist. Alpha Centauri toured across the United States the next couple of years, opening for numerous big rock acts. By 1977, Alpha Centauri turned its attention toward Canada. That same year, the band finally released a debut album. The self-titled offering was recorded under the Salt Records label. The next year there was a television special and a number of live performances, but no sophomore album was completed for waiting fans. After those peak years of 1977 and 1978, things just never took off again for Alpha Centauri. By 1983 the guys cut out the lights and went home. The band's one and only album was re-released in 1996. ~ Charlotte Dillon, Rovi
Alpha Centauri (1971) is an album by the Germanelectronic music group Tangerine Dream.[3] The music on this album is quite different from Tangerine Dream’s first album Electronic Meditation, because of a heavier reliance on keyboards and electronic technology, although they still mostly remain in the background: the dominant instruments on the album are organ and flute. The shift in instrumentation still resulted in an atmosphere dubbed by Edgar Froese himself as Kosmische musik.
This album sold 20,000 copies in their native Germany, nearly four times as many as their later classic Phaedra.
A nowadays extremely rare single "Ultima Thule" was released in the same year. Side 1 employs the same guitar riff as "Fly ...", but the single was at the time otherwise an unconnected release. Re-releases of Alpha Centauri in the 2000s have however included either or both parts of Ultima Thule as bonus tracks.
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