h e a t h e r

This is a HUGE recording. Mostly Moog, organ, and Turkish and African percussion, Florian Fricke has managed to carve out gigantic sound sculptures as massive as Egyptian pyramids. "In Den..." is composed of three major parts: the sound effects of lapping water, Moog synthesizers, and Turkish percussion. The best way I can describe it is like rowing down a river and being surrounded by alien masses of sound that tower over you. I never have yet heard synthesizers sound quite so simultaneously beautiful, exotic, alien and massive. While the synths have the aura of alien, the Turkish percussion and lapping water effects bring it back to Earth. The second track "Vuh" is equally if not more fascinating. The main instrument here is church organ as played by Fricke in some cathedral in Germany. While "In Den" is ethereal and abstract, "Vuh" is absolutely trance-like. The whole composition is basically one massive organ chord that is held through the entire piece; it modulates slightly throughout but remains, at the core, the same chord. The chord itself is absolutely huge, because it takes advantage of the full powerful range of the organ from ultra low rumbles to high-pitched regal highs. The repetitive percussion adds to the effect, and some occasional tiny Moog melodies float out of the hypnotic vortex of monstrous sound and then disintegrate almost unnoticeably. This does have a very hypnotizing effect; I have listened to this many, times and find it amazing that I get lost in it rather than getting bored. I can wholeheartedly recommend this for any prog rock fan with a taste for exotic sounds. People who enjoy something like Magma's Köhntarkösz (the studio version, more so than the live version) or Tangerine Dream's Zeit should appreciate it. Also, for those that avoid this type of music: this is really exciting and colorful, especially considering the more repetitive and ambient/electronic style it is working within. Check it out when you have 40 minutes of free time. One of my personal favorite recordings. review by Heather Mackenzie — 1-20-01 —

j o e

One could say that this second installment in the Popol Vuh discog strikes a happy medium between the amorphous Moog 'n' percussion canvass of Affenstunde and, well, structure of some preliminary kind. Of course, 'happy medium' suggests notions of compromise, and call it whatever else you want, but In den Gärten Pharaos is most definitely not that. The opening, title track emits a certain Joseph Conrad feel: water splashes; primordial percussion, often sounding far off in the distance, beating sporadically but always intensely; and Fricke's whistling keyboards. One can't help but think of traveling up the river to meet with Kurtz, though with the cavernous reverb, perhaps this river is somewhere underground. The final five minutes of the piece are the most captivating, the river finally spilling into a pool of sensual Fender Rhodes and Trülszch's percussion dancing along to it. "Vuh," the second side of this album, is dominated by majestic pipe organ drones, spectral traces of vocals, and multilayered streams of cymbal crashes and other percussion. While one would otherwise probably not have many clues to this based on the remainder of the Popul Vuh discography, "Vuh" reveals somewhat of a musical kinship to Klaus Schulze (who provides some of the liner notes in memoriam to Fricke on the latest reissue of this album, SPV 085-70112 CD). For example, compare this with his mammoth Irrlicht. Included at the end of the reissue are two bonus tracks entitled "Kha-White Structures," each segment hovering in at around 10 minutes. These are pretty much for the curious, with the second piece having moments that sound like an unattended alarm being set off, unfortunately becoming grating before not too long. Like Affenstunde, In den Gärten Pharaos is still pretty much one of a kind in this band's discography. I feel it is an improvement over its predecessor, taking the same instrumentation but imbuing it with a greater sense of shape, the picture becoming less fuzzy, more and more in focus. It is also more experimental than the albums that would follow, but all the same maintains the listener's interest. However, after this one, Fricke ultimately decided that the Moog and the electric format did not provide him with what he wanted. With the next album, Hosianna Mantra, he would unveil a radical recasting of his music in acoustic robes. review by Joe McGlinchey — 5-26-06 —

b r a n d o n

Along with Affenstunde, In Den Gärten Pharaos stands alone in Popol Vuh's enormous discography, but it just might be my favorite of them all. All long keyboard tones and flowing percussion, In Den Gärten Pharaos looks skyward much like contemporaneous Tangerine Dream, but with a much different objective. Rather than reaching for distant planets and galaxies a la Zeit or Phaedra, the two sidelong compositions that comprise this album reach for a less corporeal target: a higher being. In this way Florian Fricke and Popol Vuh's music remains constant — always centered around a deep spirituality — even as their tools and methods changed drastically through their long history. The title track is a quiet, eerie night in an intimate chapel. Long, mysterious Moog tones are grounded by sparse organic sound effects and what is credited as "Turkish percussion" in the liners: subtly shifting, subdued hand drumming. Two-thirds of the way through, the alien Moog gives way to a beautiful, understated melody on electric piano, and the journey is complete. "Vuh," on the other hand, takes us from the intimate chapel to a cavernous, imposing cathedral. Fricke's massive organ sound dispenses with the personal spirituality found in the previous track in favor of a greater sense of grandeur. Extended organ drones are underlaid by ebbing and flowing cymbals that prevent the track from feeling entirely static. Truly a piece that can make a listener feel small, "Vuh" is in many ways the more compelling of In Den Gärten Pharaos' two compositions, but I prefer the less distant approach of the title track. Florian Fricke spent his musical career trying to express his spirituality through his music, but I would argue that this, one of his earliest efforts, is where he succeeded most convincingly. review by Brandon Wu — 9-20-05 —