Jean Michel Jarre: Hong Kong

The French electronic musician Jean Michel Jarre, who rose to fame in the 1970's following his releases of Oxygene, reviewed here, and Equinoxe, reviewed here, among his performance credits owns the title of the first western musician to be allowed to perform in the People's Republic of China. Later in his career, during March 1994, Jarre performed in Hong Kong, subsequently releasing a live album documenting the performance.

Jean Michel Jarre: Hong Kong

The 1994 tour celebrated the recent release of Jarre's 'Chronologie' album. Unsurprisingly therefore, five of the eighteen tracks on the album are from the 'Chronologie' release, with 'Chronologie Part 2' being the first musical track on the album after 'Countdown' which records the audience and a countdown to the show's opening. The album is commendable for its warm sound and highly exciting feel musically, quickly seen from the start.

Later in the album comes 'Souvenir De Chine' and 'Oxygene 4,' which are both to be expected among a typical performance from the artist. One of the interesting curios of the album is 'Digisequencer' which is not found on any studio album by Jarre. The performance of 'Les Chantes Magnetiques Part 2' which features on this album is also of merit, showing Jarre's exuberance quite audibly.

Unfortunately, this album has neglected to receive critical acclaim, a great shame considering that this is one of Jarre's finest live albums that captures very well the excitement of a live electronica performance from the comfort of your living room.  

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Global Communication: '76:14'

While many readers may be unfamiliar with Global Communication, an ambient duo based in the UK, their debut album, simply entitled '76:14,' has received wide-spread critical acclaim. Frankly, for anyone with a Penchant for ambient music or downtempo soothing electronica, it's clear to see why this album received such praise.

The album begins with the brooding synthetic introduction portrayed by the first track, 4:02. This continues to build until a climactic conclusion at which point the haunting grand father clock crossfades in from the next track, '14:31.' The true strength of the album becomes clear from having listened to very little of the material on offer: Global Communication have an uncanny ability to give ambient music great interest for the attentive listener through their arrangements and choice of material.

The dysphoric introduction to the third track, '2:25' slowly evolves to incorporate a heavy beat which given the ambient beginnings to the album initially seems out of place, but it integrated well into the piece and contrasts well with the next track which seems to even draw inspiration weakly from Enigma and similar acts through it's use of a faux-New Age vibe which is also seen more overtly later in '5:23,' whose sequencer based synthetic rhythms and filtered white noise draw an instant comparison to 'Love on a Real Train' by Tangerine Dream.

This album is unashamedely a great ambient work, all the more due to the variety afforded the the expert use of material. The album takes the listener on a musical journey and serves as a brilliant musical backdrop to the daily grind. When one considers that this album was made in 1994, it's longevity and sustained relevance is a great credit to the English duo.

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