Listmania!
My favorites in space rock
By an Amazon.com customer
ErplandErpland by Ozric Tentacles
Buy new: $11.98 / Used from: $6.89
Jurassic ShiftJurassic Shift by Ozric Tentacles
Buy used from: $5.91
It seems that those who have that opinion that "you only need one or two Ozrics albums and you've heard them all" would have this album listed as well as the one above as their favorites.
The Floor's Too Far AwayThe Floor's Too Far Away by Ozric Tentacles
Buy new: $17.98 / Used from: $8.99
And for those who don't have that opinion, I have to say this is one of their finest of recent years. They still continue to deliver the goods, as far as I'm concerned, if even they've been thought of as Ed and Brandi's show since 2004.
Kingdom ComeKingdom Come by Kingdom Come
Buy used from: $33.04
And even Arthur Brown, as you know from his 1968 hit with the Crazy World of Arthur Brown, "Fire" had made a fantastic space rock album in 1973 with Journey, his final album with his next band, Kingdom Come. Great Mellotron, ARP 2600 synth, spacy sound effects (from a theramin), but no Hammond organ (but don't let that scare you off). Proves Arthur can float just fine on more than just "Fire"!
Parallel WorldParallel World by Far East Family Band
Kitaro is well-known by everyone (and you either like his music or you don't) and Far East Family Band is essentially forgotten, a footnote in Kitaro's career. Too bad, they created some great space rock albums, and this, their final with Kitaro is by far their best. Produced by Klaus Schulze, the music has a strong Schulze amd Floyd feel, great spacy synths and some Mellotron.
OceanOcean by Eloy
Buy new: $22.99 / Used from: $9.00
How did this album outsell Genesis and Yes in their home country (Germany)? Way over the top spacy progressive rock loaded with spacy synthesizers and a story about Atlantis.
Silent Cries and Mighty EchoesSilent Cries and Mighty Echoes by Eloy
Buy new: $19.99 / Used from: $11.28
Strange how this album also did very well in Germany, given this is from 1979 when prog rock was pretty much reached a dead end. They still continued making great, over-the-top prog rock.
PlanetsPlanets by Eloy
Buy new: $21.99 / Used from: $9.99
OK, so I felt their previous album, Colours (excellent as it is) was a bit less spacy (and more metal-like in places), but then they created a spacier album with Planets. Appropriate enough given the concept. Hard to believe this band made it into the '80s and continued to make great music!
YouYou by Gong
Buy new: $11.99 / Used from: $9.39
You probably wouldn't have Ozric Tentacles were it not for this album (Ozrics often performed "Master Builder" early in their career, as their 1986 cassette Live Ethereal Cereal demonstrates). Too bad Gong couldn't go any further in this direction, but that's what happens when several key members left after this album.
Fish RisingFish Rising by Steve Hillage
Buy new: $11.98 / Used from: $9.05
You really can't argue with an album by a Gong member having various Gong members helping out.
XitintodayXitintoday by Nik Turner
Buy used from: $24.46
Be careful that you buy the album with this cover and not the one just called "Sphynx" off the Cleopatra label. This is the 1978 original. Ex-Hawkwind member records flute in the Great Pyramid and go to the studio with Gong members helping out. The results? Space rock with a strong Egyptian bent!
Ash Ra TempelAsh Ra Tempel by Ash Ra Tempel
Simply a classic, as far as I'm concerned. Klaus Schulze appears on this album (he just left Tangerine Dream to join this group, then quickly left this one for a solo career). Here he just plays drums, leaving the rest of the work to Manuel Gottsching and Hartmut Enke.
Seven UpSeven Up by Ash Ra Tempel
Buy new: $36.98 / Used from: $33.98
It's really hard to argue a Krautrock album with the Timothy Leary involvement. You either dig this album or you don't. First half consists of bluesy numbers with trippy passages in between, and the second half is more typical classic Ash Ra Tempel, plus a re-work of a piece from Schwingungen.
Rain Falls in GreyRain Falls in Grey by Radio Massacre International
Buy new: $18.98 / Used from: $24.97
Usually a retro-electronic act (similar to mid '70s Tangerine Dream), the group went the space rock route (in dedication to Syd Barrett) on this truly killer CD! Sequencers have been greatly reduced for a much more space rock approach. Sounds like Pink Floyd meets Ash Ra Tempel.
PollenPollen
Buy new: $21.99
Great French space symphonic prog. Rather experimental in places.
The Strands Of The FutureThe Strands Of The Future by Pulsar
Buy new: $21.99 / Used from: $12.95
Certainly one of the highlights of French prog.
HalloweenHalloween
Buy new: $21.99 / Used from: $15.00
Same goes here, although this one has a stronger Romantic feel.
Space RitualSpace Ritual by Hawkwind
Buy new: $34.98 / Used from: $27.31
Highly regarded as one of Hawkwind's high points. Live album performing material from their second and third album, plus material not found anywhere else (like "Orgone Accumulator").
Warrior on the Edge of TimeWarrior on the Edge of Time by Hawkwind
Like their previous album (Hall of the Mountain Grill), a more sophisticated and polished Hawkwind, no doubt helped by Simon House (who joined for their previous album) including violin and Mellotron.
Crystal MachineCrystal Machine by Tim Blake
Buy used from: $59.99
OK, maybe more electronic than rock, but included here thanks to the Gong connection. Like the electronics of You? Imagine You with just Blake's synth work and nothing else, with one Tangerine Dream-like piece.
Blake's New JerusalemBlake's New Jerusalem by Tim Blake
And Blake this time around created a proper studio album with vocals and guitars on top of his usual collection of great spacy electronics.
Sky Moves SidewaysSky Moves Sideways by Porcupine Tree
Buy new: $17.98 / Used from: $12.52
It's my opinion that PT pretty much went the "modern rock" direction with Stupid Dream. Before that, they were a great space rock group, and this 1995 release demonstrates this!
SignifySignify by Porcupine Tree
Buy new: $17.98 / Used from: $11.49
This was their final studio album before Stupid Dream and proving they still continued making great space rock, one of their defining moments, and one of the greats of the '90s as far as I'm concerned.
Tanz der LemmingeTanz der Lemminge by Amon Duul II
Buy new: $17.98 / Used from: $13.52
Arguably I felt Yeti and Wolf City were better albums, but this one still is regarded as a classic, in my book. This is ADII at their spaciest, check out "The Marilyn Monroe Memorial Church"!
ZeitZeit by Tangerine Dream
We all know them best as an electronic act, but this is before they went electronic, as this double album of space experiments demonstrates. Given its forbidding nature, not everyone will like it, you either like it or you don't, but if you do (me included), you'll be taking many space journeys with this album!
Journey to the Centre of the EyeJourney to the Centre of the Eye by Nektar
Buy used from: $20.06
Great debut by this British prog band residing in Germany. Great space rock with a sci-fi theme.
Cosmic JokersCosmic Jokers by Cosmic Jokers
Buy used from: $17.50
Hard to argue with an album that has members of Ash Ra Tempel (Schulze, Gottsching) and Wallenstein. Keeps in the tradition of the best of Ash Ra Tempel. It's too bad these recordings were released without anyone's knowledge, which lead to lawsuits and an end to Rolf U. Kaiser's career.
Galactic SupermarketGalactic Supermarket by The Cosmic Jokers
Buy used from: $39.98
If you like their self-entitled release, you won't be disappointed by this second installment. More rock-oriented than before, still retaining that Ash Ra Tempel/Schulze sound. Totally essential spacy Krautrock, as far as I'm concerned!
A Meditation MassA Meditation Mass by Yatha Sidhra
Buy new: $18.98 / Used from: $47.50
German group that only managed one album. Imagine a laid-back Ash Ra Tempel with ethnic influences, and this is what you get!
New Geocentric World of Acid Mothers TempleNew Geocentric World of Acid Mothers Temple by Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O.
Buy used from: $4.00
Wow! A newer Japanese band that captures the glory days of psychedelic and space rock. They have a ton of CDs out, and this is a nice one to have, pretty diverse, from noisy jams to ethnic-influenced psychedelia and everything in between!