Invisible Connections
Encyclopedia
Invisible Connections is a 1985 album by electronic
/new age
musician Vangelis
.
.
Despite this, it can very loosely be said to belong to a trilogy of his '80s albums, the other two being Soil Festivities
from 1984, and Mask from the same year as Invisible Connections.
These all feature a willingness of the artist, at this time, to experiment with not only music itself, but his own album release-patterns, as the content differs so markedly from the style he was known for, up to this point. In fact, it may be that he was deliberately, and consciously, returning to a style he began in 1978, when he released Beaubourg
, an album which is as experimental as Invisible Connections.
Though Hypothesis
, released in 1978, but recorded in 1971 is also considered to be another "experimental" album, it was a release which Vangelis did not sanction, and, besides, it was musically geared towards jazz fusion
rather than the minimalist
style of the albums, above.
Track 2 : Similar in style to the first movement of the first track, this is very minimalist and free-form, featuring, mostly, treated acoustics and reverberations.
Track 3 : An evolution of the second track, it mixes acoustics with electronics, producing an almost purely ambient, dark soundscape.
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
/new age
New Age music
New Age music is music of various styles intended to create artistic inspiration, relaxation, and optimism. It is used by listeners for yoga, massage, meditation, and reading as a method of stress management or to create a peaceful atmosphere in their home or other environments, and is often...
musician Vangelis
Vangelis
Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou is a Greek composer of electronic, progressive, ambient, jazz, pop rock and orchestral music, under the artist name Vangelis...
.
Track listing
All songs written by VangelisVangelis
Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou is a Greek composer of electronic, progressive, ambient, jazz, pop rock and orchestral music, under the artist name Vangelis...
.
- "Invisible Connections" – 18:30
- "Atom Blaster" – 7:50
- "Thermo Vision" – 13:19
Overview
One of his most obscure albums, Invisible Connections is quite different from the majority of Vangelis's work. It has been compared to minimalist experimental music.Despite this, it can very loosely be said to belong to a trilogy of his '80s albums, the other two being Soil Festivities
Soil Festivities (album)
Soil Festivities is a 1984 album by the Greek artist Vangelis.- Track listing :All songs written by Vangelis.# "Movement 1" – 18:20# "Movement 2" – 6:20# "Movement 3" – 6:06# "Movement 4" – 9:54# "Movement 5" – 7:20-Overview:...
from 1984, and Mask from the same year as Invisible Connections.
These all feature a willingness of the artist, at this time, to experiment with not only music itself, but his own album release-patterns, as the content differs so markedly from the style he was known for, up to this point. In fact, it may be that he was deliberately, and consciously, returning to a style he began in 1978, when he released Beaubourg
Beaubourg (album)
Beaubourg is a 1978 album by the Greek artist Vangelis. It is entirely synthesizer-based and highly experimental; together with Hypothesis it is often considered to be one of Vangelis' least accessible works...
, an album which is as experimental as Invisible Connections.
Though Hypothesis
Hypothesis (album)
Hypothesis is a 1978 album by the Greek artist Vangelis. In May 1971 Vangelis had played several sessions in London's Marquee Studios, joined for some of them by violinist Michel Ripoche, bass guitarist Brian Odgers and drummer Tony Oxley, the rhythm section of the famous Extrapolation recording...
, released in 1978, but recorded in 1971 is also considered to be another "experimental" album, it was a release which Vangelis did not sanction, and, besides, it was musically geared towards jazz fusion
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
rather than the minimalist
Minimalism
Minimalism describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is set out to expose the essence, essentials or identity of a subject through eliminating all non-essential forms, features or concepts...
style of the albums, above.
The music
Track 1 : The first movement, up to 08:35, is a collection of ominious, echo-laden, heavily-treated acoustic sounds; piano, cymbals, and percussion. Highly free-form, in the sense that there is no rhythm or structure (as such), it has an extremely unsettling aura even though it could be classified as being essentially ambient in nature. The second movement, taking up the rest of the track, is more "structured", with the introduction of electronics creating a more classical Vangelis sound, albeit still experimental.Track 2 : Similar in style to the first movement of the first track, this is very minimalist and free-form, featuring, mostly, treated acoustics and reverberations.
Track 3 : An evolution of the second track, it mixes acoustics with electronics, producing an almost purely ambient, dark soundscape.
"Non-professional" reviews
- 'Vangelis Movements' review (Negative)
- 'ProgArchives' review
- 'Vangelis Collector' review (Positive)
- 'Vangelis Collector', Disc Kiosk versions (Positive)
Alternate releases
- LP:
- Deutsche Grammophon VAN 10 (Canada), 1985
- Deutsche Grammophon 415 196-1 (W Germany), 1985
- CD:
- Polydor POCG-3547 (Japan), 1996, different cover
- Disc Kiosk (CD On Demand) EAN:5050801009806, Cat No: 80100980, 2006
- The Japanese release retitled the album to "Meis?", which translates, in English, to "Meditation".