Electronica, Vol. 1: The Time Machine
by Jean Michel Jarre
  • Record Label: RCA
  • Release Date: Oct 16, 2015
Metascore
63

Generally favorable reviews - based on 5 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 5
  3. Negative: 0 out of 5
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  1. Mojo
    Oct 19, 2015
    80
    All in all, this is an unqualified triumph. [Nov 2015, p.86]
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  2. The Guardian
    Oct 19, 2015
    80
    By and large, the new age retro-futurism that characterised Jarre’s earlier work is replaced by a focus on accessible modern pop.
  3. Uncut
    Oct 19, 2015
    60
    Jarre's own pastel-shaded musical signature sometimes gets lost in the crowd. [Nov 2015, p.77]
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  5. Under The Radar
    Nov 12, 2015
    40
    Despite its proliferation of modern day input, Electronica 1 sounds dated. [Nov-Dec 2015, p.71]
  6. Pitchfork
    Oct 19, 2015
    40
    Unless you approach Electronica 1 as a collection of unrelated songs designed to be cherry-picked for playlists--and given the generic title, maybe that's the point--there's little to hold it together.

User Reviews

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User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 12 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 12
  3. Negative: 2 out of 12
  1. winmaciek
    May 9, 2016
    10
    Absolutely great album. It's like a box of Swiss chocolates. They're all both similar and very different. And very pleasant to listen to. MyAbsolutely great album. It's like a box of Swiss chocolates. They're all both similar and very different. And very pleasant to listen to. My favorite album of 2015.… Full Review »
  2. rosuna
    Dec 19, 2015
    10
    This is the album of a master in electronic music.
    The tracks are very different, so this album is a collection of collaborations. Jarre    This is the album of a master in electronic music.
    The tracks are very different, so this album is a collection of collaborations. Jarre explains he wished to blend the DNA of different musicians sharing a passion for electronic music. Every track is a marvel, but you have to pay attention to them separately. Vince Clarke's Automatic 1 & 2 have the typical Jarre's melody, exciting and dynamic. Those pieces are very complex in the arrangements and is a pleasure to follow all the details. Close Your Eyes, with Air, is a sophisticated game, using many different instruments. It sounds like Air, it sounds like Jarre, and it is a demonstration of creativity, inspiration and craft. Laurie Anderson's Rely on Me is intelligent, elegant and imaginative, maybe the best collaboration between Jarre and Anderson to date. Gesaffelstein's Conquistador and Massive Attack's Watching You are dark tracks, and a perfect blend of Jarre's pioneering music (Jarre did tracks like these decades ago) and the vanguard electronic music of our days. The best track is Zero Gravity, with Tangerine Dream. It reminds me Jarre's Arpegiator, but incorporating a touching melody. Carpenter's A Question of Blood is an excellent example of how Jarre modifies the trajectory of the invited musicians. Compare this track with those of Carpenter's Lost Themes album. And I stop here. I have commented only half of this album. You should look at it not like a conceptual unified album, but like a coffer full of refulgent different jewels.    … Full Review »
  3. Thenewone
    Jul 30, 2018
    9
    8 years after the ambiguous Téo & Téa released back in 2007, I personally like T&T album, but of course it's far to be one of the best albums8 years after the ambiguous Téo & Téa released back in 2007, I personally like T&T album, but of course it's far to be one of the best albums of JMJ.

    Electronica, Vol 1: The Time Machine it's a very diversified album, you have to listen the album patiently track by track, and maybe listen the album 2,3 or as many times as necessary to not have an unfair prejudice.

    I take a patiently listening, and at the end i really enjoy almost the all tracks, the album takes back the Electronica, of T&T, and improves in all good aspects.

    The album it's so good, that is difficult to point the best tracks, but i gonna try.

    Suns Have Gone, Stardust, Immortals, Glory, The Time Machine, Close Your Eyes, A Question of Blood & Automatic Part 2

    Grade: A-    … Full Review »
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