TD, helmed by Froese for the last 47 years, were a huge influence on my musical education. Like many, I picked up on them once they'd signed with Virgin in 1974 and the three albums which followed - Phaedra, Rubycon and Ricochet -were classics. I then got into the earlier, more experimental / less electronic albums, and stuck with them 'til about the mid 80s when, after Baumann and then Franke left, they became increasingly bland.
I met Froese a few times, the first occasion being in Berlin in January 1980 - an interview for my fanzine, Neumusik. In those days it was so easy. His address and phone number were on the back of an album sleeve so I just rang him up a day ahead, and made my way to his studio on Schwabische Strasse where he politely replied to my dumb questions.
We met two or three times more in London, the last time being in the mid-90s, by which time the group was just him, his son Jerome and Linda Spa, but the group was a shadow of its former self.
There are a staggering 100+ albums under the TD name, of which as many as 10 could be considered vital, plus another 20 solo albums, though only the first half a dozen of these were really any good, the rest being mostly re-recordings.
Still, the last 30 years aside, Froese was an undeniable influence on many electronic musicians. This afternoon, I played my two favourites of his, Epsilon in Malaysian Pale and Stuntman, in his honour.
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