New Album Influences: Ommadawn

While this album is classic Mike Oldfield; (before his own foray into electronic music), the music still made it's way into my brain for Earth and Exile. I think it may have been a subconscious reaction to pair up Oldfield with Jean Michel Jarre; during his..."involvement" with Werner Erhard's est therapy... Oldfield made a disparaging remark towards Jarre, calling his music "shit." I hate when my favorite musicians try to pit fans against each other, so I'm making them play nice here.

Anyway, the particular piece is Ommadawn, which features an intense section of Afro-Celt rhythms, ominous Celtic chanting, and Oldfield's unique guitar. The section was to suggest musically a violent "re-birth" of sorts, while on Earth and Exile it's more of a "last stand" before exile. I've merged Oldfield's climatic emergence meets Jarre's keyboard attack in a "Wagnerian" battle for the soul of Terra Fractal...

New Album Influences: Jean Michel Jarre

Today's influence on Earth and Exile: Jean Michel Jarre. I grew up listening to Equinoxe. Literally, I can remember being four years old and seeing my mom's 8-track in the car, in the house, everywhere. She had the cover with the one guy with the binoculars, imagine my surprise on seeing the whole album cover years later with the same figure repeated. It's only recently that I've been exposed to the more popular Oxygene. Equinoxe is, as a result, my preferred album, though I do think it's not just the fact that I grew up with it, but that it's also a more realized album musically. But both are an influence, and getting their due today. Here are a couple of versions from a Youtube poster, Gattobus, who recreates them quite nicely. (Check him out, he even does Blade Runner.)