{"title":"Tim Blake","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTimothy 'Tim' Blake is a renowned synthesizer and keyboard player who gained fame through his involvement with Gong and Hawkwind. He is highly regarded for his solo projects and was one of the pioneers in bringing electronic instruments into live performances. His Crystal Machine project introduced laser lighting to concerts, revolutionizing the world of light shows. Despite not receiving full recognition from mainstream media, his influence on musicians like Steve Hillage and Jean Phillipe Rykiel is immense.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAfter leaving Gong in 1975, Tim embarked on a successful solo career under the name Crystal Machine. Collaborating with long-time partner Patrice Warrener, he transformed the concept of light shows by incorporating laser lights and giant image projections as early as 1976. Tim's contributions to electronic and rock music have left an indelible mark since the late '70s, resulting in an extensive discography including seven solo albums.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDespite a serious car accident in 2004, Tim remains actively involved in touring and recording with Hawkwind. He showcases his talent on theremin and 'Virtual Lead Guitar'. Additionally, he continues to collaborate with Patrice on illuminating buildings using their innovative CHROMOLITHE POLYCHROMIC ILLUMINATION SYSTEM. Notable projects include illuminating York Minster, Arche De Triumph, Lyon, among others. Periodically performing Crystal Machine, Tim's most recent spectacular performance was in 2006 alongside Jean Phillipe Ry\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"crystal-presence","title":"Crystal Presence - The Albums 1977 - 1991","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTim Blake\u003c\/strong\u003e first came to prominence as a member of Gong where his synthesizer experimentation was demonstrated on \u003cem\u003eFlying Teapot\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eAngel's Egg\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eYou\u003c\/em\u003e. He later joined Hawkwind from 1979 – 1980 and from November 2007.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAfter departing Gong in 1975, he teamed up with French lighting designer Patrice Warrener to form Crystal Machine, pioneering the use of lasers and synthesizers in a live setting. Blake's debut album, \u003cem\u003eCrystal Machine\u003c\/em\u003e, was originally released in 1977 on the French experimental label Egg and featured two pieces recorded live in the UK and in France.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis work was followed by arguably his finest work, \u003cem\u003eBlake's New Jerusalem\u003c\/em\u003e, in 1978. Unlike his previous work, the album featured songs and the lengthy title track would dominate the album's second side. \u003cem\u003eBlake's New Jerusalem\u003c\/em\u003e also saw the guest appearance of Jean-Philippe Rykiel on mini-moog.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHe briefly joined Hawkwind before returning to France and moving away from music. Tim returned to the music scene with the album \u003cem\u003eMagick\u003c\/em\u003e in 1991, recorded at his home studio in a windmill in Brittany in one evening. This collection of the first three albums recorded by Tim Blake confirms his status as a true pioneer of ambient electronica.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Esoteric Recordings","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50396924150091,"sku":"2169728","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Tim-Blake-Crystal-Presence-Cover-LRG_7ef8c634_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726486624"},{"product_id":"lighthouse-an-anthology-1973-2012","title":"Lighthouse: An Anthology 1973 - 2012","description":"\u003cp\u003eNew re-mastered 3CD and DVD clamshell boxed set anthology celebrating the career of celebrated synthesiser and electronic ambient music pioneer Tim Blake. He first came to prominence as a member of Gong where his synthesiser experimentation and mastery was demonstrated on albums such as \"Flying Teapot\", \"Angel's Egg\" and \"You\". He would also join Hawkwind from 1979 - 1980 and from November 2007. After departing Gong in 1975 he teamed up with French lighting designer Patrice Warrener to form Crystal Machine, pioneering the use of lasers and synthesisers in a live setting.Blake's debut album, \"Crystal Machine\", was originally released in 1977 on the French experimental label Egg and featured two pieces recorded live in the UK and in France. This work was followed by arguably his finest work, \"Blake's New Jerusalem\" in 1978. Unlike his previous work, the album featured songs and the lengthy title-track would dominate the album's second side. \"New Jerusalem\" also featured the guest appearance of Jean-Philippe Rykiel on mini-moog. Tim Blake would later perform both \"Lighthouse\" and \"New Jerusalem\" as a member of Hawkwind when he joined the band the following year. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Esoteric Recordings","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50436354801995,"sku":"1051567","price":25.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/0d7aa166-c704-4e47-9dbd-d02578efbd9d_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726916036"},{"product_id":"crystal-machine","title":"Crystal Machine","description":"\u003cp\u003eNewly re-mastered edition of the classic 1977 ambient masterpiece \u003cem\u003eCrystal Machine\u003c\/em\u003e by \u003cstrong\u003eTim Blake\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTim first came to prominence as a member of Gong where his synthesizer experimentation and mastery was demonstrated on albums such as \u003cem\u003eFlying Teapot\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eAngel's Egg\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eYou\u003c\/em\u003e. He would also join Hawkwind from 1979 to 1980 and from November 2007.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAfter departing Gong in 1975, he teamed up with French lighting designer Patrice Warrener to form Crystal Machine, pioneering the use of lasers and synthesizers in a live setting.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBlake's debut album, \u003cem\u003eCrystal Machine\u003c\/em\u003e, was originally released in 1977 on the French experimental label Egg. Now regarded as a truly pioneering work, this edition of \u003cem\u003eCrystal Machine\u003c\/em\u003e has been newly remastered and includes three bonus tracks.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eSurf\u003c\/em\u003e was recorded in 1976 at Chateau d'Herouville studios in France and issued as a very rare single under the pseudonym Saratoga Space Messengers. The reissue also includes both sides of the rare Spanish single \u003cem\u003eSynthese Intemporel\u003c\/em\u003e as bonus tracks.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Esoteric Recordings","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50448575824203,"sku":"1080002","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/3012d9a2-dcba-4870-9c25-269330361e15_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727093376"},{"product_id":"crystal-machine-black-vinyl","title":"Crystal Machine (Black Vinyl)","description":"\u003cp\u003eBritish synthesizer wizard Tim Blake became a mainstay of the adventurous musical Gong collective in the mid-1970s and joined legendary rockers Hawkwind by the end of the decade. In between, he recorded a number of experimental solo albums, of which the first, \u003ci\u003eCrystal Machine\u003c\/i\u003e, was the most innovative and ambitious. An album taken from epic live performances staged at the Seasalter festival in 1976 and at Paris’ Palace Theatre in 1977, the disc had four extended synthesizer suites and a locked fragment at the end, all featuring Blake on various futuristic keyboards, including an EMS Synthis A, a Minimoog, and an Elka Rhapsody, as well as an EMS Frequency Shifter, an MXR Flanger, and a Sony TC Tape Deck Echo, performing in tandem with a Spectra Physics 164 Argon Laser and a Crystal Machine Projector, operated by Patrice Warrener for maximum trippy-ness. The result is an innovative masterpiece of ambient electronica with a touch of jazz-funk, as heard most noticeably on \u003ci\u003eMetro Logice\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eLast Ride Of The Boogie Child\u003c\/i\u003e. This is a deep dive into all that is possible in the realm of the synthesizer, repeated listening revealing the hefty skill woven in layers of dexterous playing.\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Trading Places","offers":[{"title":"Black | LP","offer_id":50453194113355,"sku":"1107179","price":17.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/93f41776-a9ce-4bf9-9a3f-d96c24710d0b_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727169318"},{"product_id":"giant-6","title":"Giant","description":"\u003cp\u003eTim Hill's sophomore album, \u003ci\u003eGiant\u003c\/i\u003e, is the result of an upgraded approach to music following his simple and honest attempt at a first record. Having driven down the 605 to Long Beach, and set up shop at Jonny Bell's Jazzcats Studio, Hill played all of the instruments himself, with the exception of two outside players one for pedal steel and one for violin. The product is a record steeped in affection for artists like Randy Newman, Warren Zevon, and Neil Young, but reimagined through the lens of the modern cultural melting pot that Hill lives in. The first single, Calico, is an ode to the festival of the same name put on by the Allah-Las in Point Reyes, CA. It's a simple anthem for youthfulness and young love.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Innovative Leisure","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50454316417355,"sku":"2006724","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50454323069259,"sku":"2006725","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Giant_866267a2_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727182775"},{"product_id":"tim-keys-late-night-poetry-programme","title":"Tim Keys Late Night Poetry Programme","description":"\u003cp\u003eFor Record Store Day 2020, Demon Records presents Tim Key’s \u003ci\u003eLate Night Poetry Programme\u003c\/i\u003e, on vinyl for the very first time. After a critically acclaimed solo show and appearances in Peep Show and Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa, the Edinburgh Comedy Award-winning comic-poet Tim Key returned to BBC Radio 4 for a fourth series of his poetry programme.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn each episode, Tim Key presents a selection of poems with musical accompaniment from Tom Basden. The cast also includes Sally Philips, Simon Armstrong and Katy Wix. The complete series is presented on two 180 Gram ‘Pressed Fig’ coloured LPs, housed in a gatefold sleeve alongside a letter-pressed poem insert signed by Tim.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Demon","offers":[{"title":"Red | LP | x2","offer_id":50481314726219,"sku":"1089189","price":19.16,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/79a6bf8b-1af2-41b4-9885-9be9cd72a690_thumbnail_4096.png?v=1727537303"},{"product_id":"crystal-machine-blue-vinyl","title":"Crystal Machine (Blue Vinyl)","description":"\u003cp\u003eClassic 1977 ambient masterpiece \u003ci\u003eCrystal Machine\u003c\/i\u003e by Tim Blake. Tim first came to prominence as a member of Gong where his synthesiser experimentation and mastery was demonstrated on albums such as \u003ci\u003eFlying Teapot, Angel's Egg\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eYou\u003c\/i\u003e. He would also join Hawkwind from 1979 1980 and from November 2007. After departing Gong in 1975 he teamed up with French lighting designer Patrice Warrener to form Crystal Machine, pioneering the use of lasers and synthesisers in a live setting. Blake's debut album, \u003ci\u003eCrystal Machine\u003c\/i\u003e, was originally released in 1977 on the French experimental label Egg.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"LMLR","offers":[{"title":"Blue | LP","offer_id":50969720619339,"sku":"1088167","price":29.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/66330e88-7109-4f8a-bdc5-1645e2618f39_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1734055604"},{"product_id":"shades-of-green","title":"Shades of Green","description":"\u003cp\u003eAll the shades of green. Plants. Water. The absolute necessities of life. Music, too, is an absolute necessity. To capture both color and sound in a bottle to put atop a piano like a houseplant. A clock. A fern. Synesthesia. This music is meant for that. To close your eyes and see green. To drown in the color of piano. A melancholic covey that pulls hard on the heart strings musically and lyrically, brushed over with a plethora of improvisation in smooth watercolors. With Tim Hill’s new trajectory, we are offered a fresh neuron sprawl, branching beyond lyrics in interrupted pieces of sound. He takes our reptilian brains and welds them to our unborn futures, placing us inside of his droplet. Here, we're forced to reflect out, something singular multiplies, nature brings her face in, something shifts, our speed changes, the Self refracts and what's left jumps on sustained lines that eventually arch into meditation milk. It becomes a karmic cleanse of the amygdala, a launch from normal feeling life. Tim takes the risk, committing to diving deeper into his own bottomless pool of art, gifting us with sensory treats that dilate our old perimeters. It's sky as theatre, handing out everything but answers to questions. And where do we go? Where starlight mingles. Where minds never land. A seasoned musician in all forms, Tim Hill has toured the world as a keyboardist, guitarist, saxophonist, and drummer, with a long time stint with LA group the Allah Las, and well known acts such as Nick Waterhouse, Curtis Harding, PAINT, and others.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Innovative Leisure","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":51062256238923,"sku":"2238309","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Shades_of_Green_afd69fd6_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1736355371"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/collections\/test_28f0d8cc_thumbnail_4096_7845e141-958b-470d-843f-5557f5472727.jpg?v=1726486603","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/de\/collections\/tim-blake.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}