Ommadawn - Mike Oldfield (1975)

If you know Mike Oldfield for one thing it’s the track from his debut album that was used to great effect in a movie you’re probably aware of.

If you follow him further, he’s done a lot of work. His 70s music is probably best described as new age, but there’s a definite prog rock influence to it (it got on my list off a YT video of “25 Perfect Prog Albums” I don’t necessarily endorse the quality of the dude’s YT skills, but he’s clearly a knowledgable source on the subject).

Part one and part two each take up a side of the record. See, there used to be limitations on how much music you could release because you could only fit about 25 minutes on a side of vinyl. A crankier old man than I might suggest that this caused more quality control than a lot of modern, sprawling 80 minute mega-releases demonstrate, but hey, I’m certainly not that guy.

The style stays pretty consistent throughout, but tempo and intensity of the percussion shift often and the melody veers from synths to guitars to mostly-wordless vocals. It’s a very pleasant sounding and engaging piece of music, not really minimalist but not really over the top, either.