Picture Music cover

Picture Music

Released

Schulze’s fourth album was actually recorded before its predecessor, 1974’s Blackdance, but held back. It consists of two side-long tracks, with a 33-minute bonus track added to CD reissues. The first, “Totem,” is a Tangerine Dream-esque journey through deep space, with some electronic pulses to create rhythm but an overall feeling of timelessness and floating. The second, “Mental Door,” is much more active and even hard-charging; some of Schulze’s playing verges on rock organ à la Jon Lord of Deep Purple, and he also sits down behind the drums (his original instrument), slamming out a mechanistic beat that boosts the energy level even higher.

Phil Freeman

Suggestions
Karma cover

Karma

Pharoah Sanders
Medusae cover

Medusae

Nicole Mitchell, Fabio Paolizzo
Sketches and Ballads cover

Sketches and Ballads

Various Artists, Full Blast
Sun of Goldfinger cover

Sun of Goldfinger

Ches Smith, David Torn, Tim Berne
Under the Sun cover

Under the Sun

Human Arts Ensemble
The Elements cover

The Elements

Joe Henderson, Alice Coltrane
Electric Byrd cover

Electric Byrd

Donald Byrd