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Question: Tr3s Lunas II :: Total Votes:17 Poll choices Votes Statistics Snow Cavern Flight 5  [29.41%] Sprites 1  [5.88%] Solar System 4  [23.53%] Requiem of the Sky 0  [0.00%] Moonlight Stroll 2  [11.76%] Thou Art in Heaven II 0  [0.00%] The Origin 1  [5.88%] Landing 1  [5.88%] Rebirth Tunnel 1  [5.88%] Other - please list 2  [11.76%] Guests cannot vote

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trcanberra Group: Members Posts: 349 Joined: Jan. 2008 Posted: April 20 2008, 01:28 Hey, I know it is not an "official" album - but some great music here.  I picked Solar System - but hard to choose. Back to top

Dirk Star Group: Members Posts: 1331 Joined: Sep. 2007 Posted: April 20 2008, 08:02 Yes it is hard to choose,I`ve gone for moonlight stroll myself.Of the one`s not listed I really like the lunar jam/joy ride section and the journey.Although I can see why you missed some of those more transitional/revisted theme sections out. Back to top

raven4x4x Group: Members Posts: 1535 Joined: Jan. 2002 Posted: April 20 2008, 09:41 Solar System, easily. The build-up throughout the track is tremendous. That guitar at the end, wow... It truely is one of my very favourite Oldfield moments. -------------- Thank-you for helping us help you help us all. Back to top

Bassman Group: Members Posts: 548 Joined: Feb. 2008 Posted: April 20 2008, 23:40 I love "Solar System"- it puts a nice spin on elements from "No Man's Land" with really nice piano towards the end, but I went with "Moonlight Stroll".  Short, sweet, to the point, and a very romantic sound to it. Back to top

nightspore Group: Members Posts: 4770 Joined: Mar. 2008 Posted: May 06 2008, 12:05 I like "The Journey". I actually much prefer "Tres Lunas II" to "Tres Lunas"; "Tres Lunas" actually has no piece that I like, which is unusual. (It has a terrific cover illustration, though). Does anyone else prefer "Tres Lunas II" to the original? Back to top

Sweetpea Group: Members Posts: 1476 Joined: April 2007 Posted: June 24 2008, 00:56 Quote (nightspore @ May 06 2008, 12:05) Does anyone else prefer "Tres Lunas II" to the original? Well, I certainly would have liked for some of what's on Tr3s Lunas II to have been included on Tr3s Lunas, but there's plenty on the original that I love. I think my fave on TLII is "Solar System". I'm quite attached to the last two minutes of "The Journey", though. -------------- "I'm no physicist, but technically couldn't Mike both be with the horse and be flying through space at the same time? (On account of the earth's orbit around the Sun and all that). So it seems he never had to make the choice after all. I bet he's kicking himself now." - clotty Back to top

Alan D Group: Members Posts: 3670 Joined: Aug. 2004 Posted: June 24 2008, 05:08 Quote (Sweetpea @ June 24 2008, 05:56) Well, I certainly would have liked for some of what's on Tr3s Lunas II to have been included on Tr3s Lunas, but there's plenty on the original that I love. The only thing I'd change about the original TL would be to dump 'To Be Free', which always jars, because it has nothing to do with the overall Tres Lunas/MusicVR concept. Other than that, I wouldn't touch a thing. (Well, except to reissue it as a 4CD set, containing TL, TLII, Return to the Origin, and a copy of the (now free) computer program, accompanied by an appropriate beautifully illustrated glossy booklet of course). I haven't voted in the poll yet. Still pondering. Back to top

arron11196 Group: Members Posts: 826 Joined: April 2005 Posted: June 24 2008, 05:41 I agree with you Bassman, but I had to pick Snow Cavern Flight - Ringscape just makes me cringe in comparison. This is raw, feeling, great! -------------- Arron J Eagling Everyone's interpretation is different, and everyone has a right to that opinion. There is no "right" one, I am adding this post to communicate my thoughts to share them with like-minded souls who will be able to comment in good nature. (insert the last 5 mins of Crises here) Back to top

nightspore Group: Members Posts: 4770 Joined: Mar. 2008 Posted: June 24 2008, 07:59 Quote (Alan D @ June 24 2008, 05:08) Quote (Sweetpea @ June 24 2008, 05:56) Well, I certainly would have liked for some of what's on Tr3s Lunas II to have been included on Tr3s Lunas, but there's plenty on the original that I love. The only thing I'd change about the original TL would be to dump 'To Be Free', which always jars, because it has nothing to do with the overall Tres Lunas/MusicVR concept. Other than that, I wouldn't touch a thing. (Well, except to reissue it as a 4CD set, containing TL, TLII, Return to the Origin, and a copy of the (now free) computer program, accompanied by an appropriate beautifully illustrated glossy booklet of course). I haven't voted in the poll yet. Still pondering. My comments are predicated on the fact that I haven't yet played the Tr3s Lunas game, although I certainly intend to do so when I've completed the 24 medal quest in Maestro, and also sampled some of its more exotic delights (such as working out how to gain entry to the crab's legs, and also managing to hitch a ride on the acrobat in the main hall). I certainly am puzzled whyTr3s Lunas and Tr3s Lunas II are so wildly different in style. I'm more familiar with TL2 now than when I posted my earlier comment, and I now think "Moonlight Stroll" and "Rebirth Tube" are the stand-out pieces. TL itself seems to have nothing to compare in emotional intensity with these pieces; instead each piece is bedeviled by a repetitive and intrusive percussion/drum track that spoils any kind of mood from developing. Also, none of the pieces sounds at all "spacey", the way those on TL2 do. (I prefer TL2 to Return to the Origin; I find there are too many of the whispered interjections pertaining to the Earth Spirit.) Perhaps Alan can explain his response to TL (the record), in the same way as some of us have been trying to help him with Amarok Back to top

Alan D Group: Members Posts: 3670 Joined: Aug. 2004 Posted: June 24 2008, 10:55 OK, well first things first: the poll. I've just listened to TLII again, wondering specifically which track to single out, and settled on a final three (though on a different day, it might be different). In every case, my choice is not merely a musical one. Images from the game, and wonderful moments with friends online, are so deeply burned into my psyche, now, that I'll never be able to separate them from the music. Also, Tr3s Lunas (as I've maintained for years) is a composite work of art, not just a piece of music. Snow Cavern Flight What a wonderful thing this is. Exquisite guitar playing, infused with memories of that haunting flight through the moonlight and then along the snow tunnel, with the music fitting so perfectly the beating of the owl's wings. I doubt if there was ever an online game where we didn't say, at some point, 'Let's go and visit Snowy, and meet at the snowman'. Redwings Again, the plangent guitar takes me straight back to the flight through the twilight with the firebeings, to the island. Once there, you could watch the moon and the daliphant from the bridge, and dream of maybe one day going there. And then one day, we did - and what's more, we found a way of getting this music to play at will, instead of just during the firebeings' flight, so we could fly across the ocean to the daliphant (symbol of the unattainable) with this lovely firebeings music accompanying us. Solar System The tunes that Brandon built into this piece constitute the real 'music of the spheres' - they are the tunes that each planet plays when you visit it, in the game. Then the last section is the most glorious of all - the music that accompanies the return to Tr3s Lunas, carried by the burning rose (my avatar). And as you arrive home, borne along by that tremendous music, you see a great fountain of roses rising to greet you, and you can fly into that fountain and hover, surrounded by a multitude of flowers, while the music celebrates your homecoming. So which one? I have to choose. Here goes: SOLAR SYSTEM. Because playing Tr3s Lunas and listening to its music is like coming home to a place that I never even knew was home until I found it. Back to top

Alan D Group: Members Posts: 3670 Joined: Aug. 2004 Posted: June 24 2008, 11:13 Quote (nightspore @ June 24 2008, 12:59) (I prefer TL2 to Return to the Origin; I find there are too many of the whispered interjections pertaining to the Earth Spirit.) Return to the Origin would make little sense if you don't know the game, I think - and certainly I can see why the whisperings might seem intrusive. However, steeped in the game as I am, they don't seem the least intrusive to me, and as with all things Tr3sLunastic, I can't isolate the music from the whole experience. Return to the Origin is a delightful way of revisiting the game in imagination, with each section (including the whisperings) conjuring up an imagined visual image. Quote Perhaps Alan can explain his response to TL (the record), in the same way as some of us have been trying to help him with Amarok I don't think I can explain it, but I can describe it. I bought Tres Lunas on its release, and at that time I didn't have a computer that the game would work on. So I listened to the music with no knowledge of the game, and found it vaguely disappointing. At some point later I had some computer trouble and had to change to a new motherboard and processor, and suddenly the game would work. I was disappointed that I couldn't get it to work online at that stage, but the game itself was playable, and I fell completely in love with it. That encouraged me to return to the original album - and I found to my surprise that my reaction to it was completely transformed. All the music now had a context, so a lot of it was instantly recognisable, and brought along with it a multitude of associated imagined images. Yet the music was not the same as that heard in the game, so the experience of listening to it added a new dimension to the whole mvr experience. I would say, then - wait and see what happens when you try the game. If the game doesn't get under your skin, then I think the TL album will continue to disappoint you. But if you grow to love the game, then you may find the TL album becomes a new and refreshing way of extending the TL MVR experience. But above all, I'd say yet again that Music VR is a composite art form. If you absorb it as a whole, it's capable of generating the most wonderfully enriching audio/visual experiences. If you split it into bits, accepting some bits and rejecting others, you rob it of most of its power. It's a superb example of Ruskin's 'Law of Help', where all the constituent parts of a great work of art are there not only for their own sake, but also to 'help' all the other parts. Back to top

olracUK Group: Members Posts: 1683 Joined: June 2003 Posted: June 24 2008, 17:07 Tres Lunas Mvr - the sum is greater than the whole. TL the original album has an air of incompleteness, which is probably why it hardly ever does well in "favourite album" polls. TL2 as remixed by Brandon has a feeling of a journey, of completeness. Because it is a journey, through the game. But the only true place to hear the music is alongside the visuals, when you can control and manipulate that journey. Favourtie section/mix? Hmm...  I love the nafness and fun of Mike's Ibiza Joyride, Snow Cavern is so beautiful and so well fitted to it's flight with the owl, Nope, I can't decide. Excuse me, just going to play with the Dolphins now   -------------- The answer is 42 - but what is the question? Back to top

nightspore Group: Members Posts: 4770 Joined: Mar. 2008 Posted: June 24 2008, 20:41 Quote (Alan D @ June 24 2008, 11:13) But above all, I'd say yet again that Music VR is a composite art form. If you absorb it as a whole, it's capable of generating the most wonderfully enriching audio/visual experiences. If you split it into bits, accepting some bits and rejecting others, you rob it of most of its power. Again, I accept that. On the other hand, Mike as artist saw fit to release TL as a stand-alone record, and hence it must be susceptible to criticism as such. The peculiar thing is that even though I haven't yet played the game, the music on TL2 already easily suggests the kind of imagery you describe, Alan, whereas TL doesn't. So why wasn't the TL2 music released instead of TL? I suspect that Mike wanted to create an easy-listening album, realised he had the music to hand, and so arranged it into the collection we know as TL. As it stands, TL suggests more a group of friends relaxing with drinks after a game of tennis rather than some colourful space odyssey. I wonder what Sir M thinks of the record? I imagine it's not one of his favourites! Back to top

Sir Mustapha Group: Musicians Posts: 2802 Joined: April 2003 Posted: June 24 2008, 22:10 You gotta feel proud when your opinion is explicitly requested. Well, indeed, Tr3s Lunas is not one of my favourites, but it's not in my "black list". I'd rank it as an "ok" album, spoiled a bit by the cheesier sounds and Thou Art in Heaven - I hate, hate, hate that track. But what's odd is that I can't stand Tr3s Lunas II. I've tried listening to it more than once. but I just can't make it. I haven't played the game, but I'm not the guy who'd enjoy music better if it was followed by visuals: either the music works or it doesn't. It's the exact same around: great music isn't enough to make a game good. If the game is bad, it's bad, regardless of the music. And as far as game music goes, the two Little Big Adventure games have a far, far better soundtrack. But the actual Tr3s Lunas has some really nice tracks, like Turtle Island and Fire Fly. And To Be Free is neat. -------------- Check out http://ferniecanto.com.br for all my music, including my latest albums: Don't Stay in the City, Making Amends and Builders of Worlds. Also check my Bandcamp page: http://ferniecanto.bandcamp.com Back to top

nightspore Group: Members Posts: 4770 Joined: Mar. 2008 Posted: June 24 2008, 23:22 That was a quick reply... It's easy to spot the people who are in the southern hemisphere! I think "Turtle Island" is the strongest piece on TL, but it cries out for a far more imaginative arrangement. And the real bugbear with all the TL pieces is the very, very conventional rhythm/percussion backing track: it's impossible for the pieces to attain any kind of emotional punch when the percussion line is creating, formally, an insistent levelling effect saying "same, same, same; average, average, average". I agree with Alan that "To Be Free" needs to be jettisoned. My reason however is that I find the words embarrassingly awkard. Better words could have turned it into a rather nice piece (again in my opinion). That the TL2 pieces create in you an intense reaction, Sir M, speaks in their favour, even if the reaction is a negative one (just as the strength of Amarok leads to its polarizing of listeners; I can't imagine anyone saying they "quite like" Amarok) . Compare this with your "don't mind" reaction to TL, which, likewise, is in keeping with the "average" feel of the music. Back to top

Sweetpea Group: Members Posts: 1476 Joined: April 2007 Posted: June 25 2008, 01:48 Quote (nightspore @ June 24 2008, 23:22) ...the real bugbear with all the TL pieces is the very, very conventional rhythm/percussion backing track: it's impossible for the pieces to attain any kind of emotional punch when the percussion line is creating, formally, an insistent levelling effect... It's no secret that I adore Tr3s Lunas and listen to it often. I agree, nightspore, that there's no real emotional "punch", but that's not necessarily what I look for in relaxation music (I believe this was marketed as "Chill Out"?). That said, "Daydream" has made me teary-eyed on more than one occasion. As for TL's rhythmicity, I see it as maintaining a consistent level of engagement. Certainly, the tunes are a major factor of my enjoyment, but the persistent rhythm has its special allure. Others have likened TL to porn music and, while I find that description rather limiting, I can understand it since I think the music has a subtle (or, perhaps, not so subtle?) eroticism - a quality that's not present in TLII. -------------- "I'm no physicist, but technically couldn't Mike both be with the horse and be flying through space at the same time? (On account of the earth's orbit around the Sun and all that). So it seems he never had to make the choice after all. I bet he's kicking himself now." - clotty Back to top

Sweetpea Group: Members Posts: 1476 Joined: April 2007 Posted: June 25 2008, 02:49 Quote (Alan D @ June 24 2008, 05:08) ...reissue it as a 4CD set, containing TL, TLII, Return to the Origin, and a copy of the (now free) computer program, accompanied by an appropriate beautifully illustrated glossy booklet of course... If we're going to fantasize, how about releasing Tr3s Lunas as a full Holodeck program?? I'd just delete the ant cave bit, in that case. *shudder* -------------- "I'm no physicist, but technically couldn't Mike both be with the horse and be flying through space at the same time? (On account of the earth's orbit around the Sun and all that). So it seems he never had to make the choice after all. I bet he's kicking himself now." - clotty Back to top

Dirk Star Group: Members Posts: 1331 Joined: Sep. 2007 Posted: June 25 2008, 03:42 [quote=Sweetpea,June 25 2008, 06:48][/quote] Quote but the persistent rhythm has its special allure. Certainly agree with that.Imo the track Viper has such a "special allure" to it,that I find it very easy to become lost in those undulating rhythms and simplistic chord patterns.As far as emotional punch goes I would`nt say it was knockout exactly.But it`s certainly a persistant little character that I feel no desire to fight it`s hold on me.Kinda` simple,but sly and crafty at the same time.You`ve got to watch out for those sorts.They have a way of sneaking up on you sometimes when you`re least expecting it. Back to top

3Wheeler Group: Members Posts: 828 Joined: Aug. 2007 Posted: June 25 2008, 03:42 I had a Good Blast of Tres Lunas bout 5 months Back.. As you do sometimes with certain records... I never play occasionally.. always hook on to a album for a week or so... Good thing with Trs Lunas   Trs Lunas 11   you got plenty of material to play around with..... i play  trs lunas with   1st Steps promoted to Tk1  and Ringscape included  as tk 8  .  Seems to work fine.... Brandons   Trs Lunas 11  is cool     ... hard to pick a fav as its more a total piece  .. will muse on it  and vote later.. -------------- We're Flying Aeroflot, We've Got Reservations. Back to top

Alan D Group: Members Posts: 3670 Joined: Aug. 2004 Posted: June 25 2008, 04:35 Quote (nightspore @ June 25 2008, 01:41) The peculiar thing is that even though I haven't yet played the game, the music on TL2 already easily suggests the kind of imagery you describe, Alan, whereas TL doesn't. I'm repeating myself, but I think it's worth repeating: my early, non-game-playing response to Tr3sLunas the album was very much like yours. I thought it was bland and mostly uninteresting. When I returned to the Tr3sLunas album once I'd become hooked by the game, I was very surprised by the change in my response to it. It was like meeting a bunch of old friends, all wearing unexpectedly different clothes, but wreathed in smiles. You're right of course, that the audio album can be criticised separately without reference to the game, if you insist on doing that - but he did make it clear that it was not the whole story, by including the game CD (playable as a free demo, so you could try it and see if it worked on your computer) along with the audio album in a double-CD case. That's a pretty big signal, don't you think? Obviously he couldn't make people play the game if they didn't want to play it, but I think his artistic intentions were very obvious. Back to top

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