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Led by keyboardist and composer Florian Fricke, Popol Vuh are one of the
most unique-sounding bands in the history of progressive rock. To be fair,
only a part of their output could be regarded as "rock", rather a lot of
their work could be seen as pioneering in such genres as electronic, ethnic
or New Age music. They have an extensive and somewhat confusing back
catalogue, with a legion of studio albums, soundtracks, compilations and
re-releases which don't always match the original versions. Furthermore,
same tracks can appear on different albums under different titles (either
in English or German) and sometimes different versions of the same song
appear on different albums. What follows is a brief introduction to the
bulk of their output, roughly in chronological order:
Affenstunde and In den Gärten Pharaos -- Ambient and almost
free-form music, basically just Fricke experimenting with a Moog synthesizer backed
by some ethnic percussion. Reminds of Alpha Centauri / Zeit era
Tangerine Dream. The gloomy organ, cymbal
clashing and eerie voice on "Vuh" (In den Gärten Pharaos) also bring to
mind Pink Floyd's "A Saucerful of
Secrets". Both are quite abstract works and not really representative of
the band's main output. Note: one CD version of Affenstunde actually
features the whole first half of In den Gärten Pharaos, while another
includes the entire Die Nacht der Seele album.
Hosianna Mantra -- Exit synthesizer, enter Conny Veidt on electric and
acoustic guitars and Djong Yun on vocals. Fricke's piano paints lush,
melodic sound scapes which are filled out by Veidt's echoing, spooky
electric guitar lines and Yun's dreamy, whispering vocals, singing Biblical
texts. This delicious musical cake is further sweetened with some tamboura,
violin and beautiful oboe. A marvellous album of dreamy, mystical music
with a subtle menacing undertone, Hosianna Mantra provides the blueprint
for the next few Popol Vuh albums.
Seligpreisung -- Daniel Fichelscher of
Amon Düül II enters the fold to
provide percussion and more electric guitar. The melodiousness of Hosianna
Mantra is sustained, but the still sparingly used drums give the music
some rock feel, evident especially on the only instrumental track "Tanz der
Chassidim". Fricke is the lead vocalist this time, giving a rather
murmuring performance which doesn't diminish the power of the music,
though.
Einsjäger & Siebenjäger and Das Hohelied Salomos -- Performed by the core
of Fricke, Fichelscher and Yun, these albums are perhaps the band's
strongest overall records and certainly the most accesible to an "average"
progressive rock listener. Fichelscher's spirited, cymbal-splashing
drumming and biting yet soulful guitar work combine with Fricke's melodic,
slightly jazz-influenced piano patterns to create music that is dynamic but
ethereal, busy but peaceful. This is best represented by the 19-minute epic
"Einsjäger & Siebenjäger". There are also some quieter solo piano or guitar
pieces. Both albums are excellent.
Letzte Tage, Letzte Nächte -- This is the closest Popol Vuh have come to
conventional psychedelic rock. Darker and heavier than the previous two
albums, the album is dominated by Fichelscher's guitars and drums, and his
compositions "Dort ist der Weg" and the title track are strong rock songs
reminding of some of Amon Düül 's works.
Fricke's songs show stronger Indian
and Arabic influence, especially in the chanting of "Haram Dei Ra". The
song "Kyrie" is not the same composition as the identically-titled track on
Hosianna Mantra. Vocals come courtesy of Renate Knaup
(Amon Düül II) and
they have somewhat more strength and bite than Yun's.
Aguirre -- The soundtrack to the movie "Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes", first of
the many soundtracks Popol Vuh made for director Werner Herzog. At least
two different CD versions exist, neither of which seems to match the
original LP release exactly (apparently somebody misplaced the master
tapes). However, all versions contain the track "Lacrimé de Rei" (or just
"Aguirre" on the CD versions), a six and a half minute masterpiece of
haunting Mellotron choirs and mysterious synthesizer
melodies. Both CD versions contain the three-part song "Spirit of Peace", 20 minutes of
peaceful and low-key piano playing, which was not on the original LP. The
rest of the first CD version actually consists of the whole of In den
Gärten Pharaos, while the second version (the second Spalax or ZYX)
restores most of the LP tracks, many of which are alternative versions of
songs already released on studio albums. Another excellent album.
Yoga -- Two long Indian ragas composed by Fricke but performed by Indian
musicians. Percussive, very repetitive and devoid of usual melodic qualities. Mainly for
completists.
Coeur de Verre (aka Herz Aus Glas, aka Heart of Glass, aka Singet,
Denn der Gesang Vertreibt die Wölfe). Another soundtrack for Werner
Herzog, this album also shows strong Indian influence, largely thanks to Al
Gromer's shimmering sitar, but is a much more interesting work. Songs like
"Das Lied von den Hohen Bergen" and "Blätter aus dem Buch der Kühnheit"
succesfully combine Indian and rock sounds to create some of Popol Vuh's
brightest and most joyful songs. Others, like "Hüter der Schwelle", are
darker, with crashing drums and guitars in the style of Letzte Tage,
Letzte Nächte. A great album.
Brüder des Schattens, Söhne des Lichts. This album is more low-key and
instrumental. The title track is another strong piece, opening with a
Gothic section full of moody choirs, atmospheric piano and gentle
woodwinds, and then bursting out with a hyperextended acoustic guitar jam,
spiced with droning sitar and sparkling piano; nothing very complex, just
hypnotically captivating. The other three songs are sparser piano or guitar
pieces, still influenced by Indian music, often quite gloomy. Most of the
music on this album was also used in the Herzog movie "Nosferatu, Phantom
der Nacht" which has its own soundtrack release. None of the songs from
Brüder are duplicated as such on Nosferatu (aka On the Way to a Little
Way), though pieces of them appear in a remixed form among some abstract
synth explorations, sitar pieces and the dark, droning choral repetition of
"Mantra".
Die Nacht der Seele: Tantric Songs -- A more minimalistic music, many
tracks featuring just growling, sepulchral bass voices and a little
percussion. Other tracks feature the same warm, Indian-influenced sound
evident on the previous studio album, among them one of Popol Vuh's most
beautiful songs "Engel der Luft". A subdued and uneven album.
Sei Still, Wisse Ich Bin -- This album features a heavy choral sound on
just about every track. The music consists of ritualistic chanting
supported by guitar and piano ostinatos, very atmospheric and often quite
gloomy but songs like "Wehe Khorazin" and "Im Garten der Gemeinschaft" are
compelling. Chris Karrer of Amon Düül II
contributes some sax. A lot of this music is also on the soundtrack album Fitzcarraldo.
Agape, Agape -- This one is a mixed bag. The title track is another ritual
chant like on the previous album, elsewhere you get some more
guitar-oriented stuff and one abstract and meandering piece that harks back
to the band's early days. Pretty bad sound quality, at least on the Spalax
CD re-release.
Spirit of Peace -- Three songs out of four are just chanting supported by
light piano and guitar in the same style as Sei Still, Wisse Ich Bin, but
altogether less powerful. "We Know About the Need" is chilling, but at 17
minute "Take the Tention High" is just too long, lacking any real dynamics
and development. The title track is the Part Two of Fricke's 20-minute solo
piano piece.
Cobra Verde -- Another Herzog soundtrack, credited as "composed by Florian
Fricke, performed by Popol Vuh". Features Fricke, Fichelscher and Knaup and
one of the band's best choral pieces "Der Tod des Cobra Verde", as well as
some interesting electronic pieces like "Eine Andere Welt". Quiet and
low-key, but the band's best release during the 80's.
In the Garden of Pharaos - Aguirre and Tantric Songs - Hosianna Mantra --
These are repackagings by the American label Celestial Harmonies. The
titles are in English, but the music is exactly the same as on the original
studio albums. The former release is identical to the first CD version of
Aguirre, while the latter contains the whole Hosianna Mantra album,
about half of Die Nacht der Seele and two songs from Brüder des
Schattens, Söhne des Lichts (including the title track).
Best of -- A compilation of soundtrack material plus a couple of songs from
Agape, Agape and Spirit of Peace. A good selection of songs but many of
them are heavily abridged.
Florian Fricke -- A compilation drawing mainly from late 70's - early 80's
albums, again with some different titles for familiar songs. A rather
limited scope of this compilation diminishes its value.
For You and Me -- A strong comeback album after some years of inactivity.
The polished production and tasteful synth work by the new collaborator
Guido Hieronymus give the record a cleaner, New Agey sound, but Fricke's
piano work is still prominent and beautiful while Fichelscher's somewhat
more processed guitar swirls around and Knaup's singing is as powerful as
ever. Many of the songs are based on folk music from places as far apart as
Ireland, Nepal and Africa. There is also a classy remake of "Letzte Tage -
Letzte Nächte", retitled "When Love Is Calling You".
Sing, for Song Drives Away the Wolves -- A compilation of songs from
Seligpreisung, Einsjäger and Coeur de Verre, some of them remixed and
partially re-recorded with additional instrumentation. This is mainly extra
percussion or some digital textures and actually improves the originals. A
good selection of Popol Vuh's best songs, including the complete (and
unmodified) version of "Einsjäger & Siebenjäger", though under a different
title.
City Raga and Shepherd's Symphony -- Oh how the mighty have fallen...
Unfortunately Fricke decided to go for a "modern" sound, hence these albums
are full of overbearing trance and dance styled drum loops, ethnic samples
and bland synthesizer textures. A few interesting moments on both albums,
but the wonderful melodiousness of their heydays is but a memory.
Messa di Orfeo. Recorded live as part of an "audio-video-light-installation",
this extremely low-key album consists of shimmering or rolling synthesizer drones, choir
parts subdued almost to the point of subliminal, sounds of nature and repetitive
Italian-language recitations of poetry about the unity of all things. Apart from the
cooing vocal of the languorous opening track "Deep in the Ocean of Love", most of the
music seems mainly intended to evoke sombre and sunny moods or to illustrate the
natural cycles depicted in the booklet. It evokes the ritualistic and mystical spirit of
Popol Vuh's prime much better than its immediate predecessors but can feel
lacking in true musical substance at times. -- Kai Karmanheimo
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Bill Pohl - live in concert with The Underground Railroad, January 13, 2001.
Poisoned Electrick Head - Billy, Bri and Phil. This isn't the whole band.
Pollen - I don't have a band photo, but here's the cover art from their one album
Poor Genetic Material - (not in photo order) Philipp Jaehne (keyboards),
Stefan Glomb (guitars), Philip Griffiths (vocals), Dennis Sturm (bass) and
Ludwig Benedek (drums)
Porcupine Tree - Steven Wilson (guitar), Chris Maitland (drums), Colin Edwin (bass),
Richard Barbieri (keyboards)
Roger Powell in front of his MOTM Modular synthesizer
PFM in 1970
Presence - Sergio Casamassima (guitars), Sophya Baccini (vocals) and Enrico Iglio (drums)
Present - Daniel Denis, Réginald Trigaux, Roger Trigaux, Alain Rochette,
Guy Segers