Uploaded August 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
When guitarist Steve Rothery of Marillion and keyboardist Thorsten Quaeschning of Tangerine Dream first met on the Cruise to the Edge festival in 2014, neither imagined they’d spend the next decade slowly crafting an album together. Yet, after sporadic sessions and a pandemic, the debut album, "Gentō", from their collaborative project — called Bioscope — is finally complete.
Thorsten recalls how casually it began: “We met before a Marillion concert in Berlin… maybe think about making some music together without saying it’s an album. Some months later, I had some solo shows in London and Nottingham, and I took the opportunity to record a session in the Marillion studio… Last year in December, we had the kind of crystallized version of what could have been an album, because there was no plan. But after all the years just recording music, it was obvious that this should be an album.”
The addition of drummer Alex Reeves from Elbow sealed the deal. “This was the last part of the album… Now we have, after six years, and less than two months together in one room, an album.”
For Rothery, the project’s spark was instant: “It was obvious, really, from the first few notes that it was like when two worlds collide. There was a really interesting melting pot of ideas… all this music is born out of improvisation, and you can only do that if you feel inspired by what you’re hearing from the other person.”
Quaeschning admits there were creative challenges: “I had to leave Steve enough room for his guitar… Steve’s melodies sometimes fulfill the function of a singer inside the music. That’s not so common for my work, and it was a challenge… Sometimes the music tells you which way it should be treated — not ego, not forcing something on top of it. Just letting it breathe.”
The cinematic feel of Bioscope emerged naturally. Rothery explains: “I was doing some research about the early days of cinema and came across Bioscope… It just felt like the right kind of thing. Once you name a track, it almost tells you what it wants to be. With a track like "Kaleidoscope", it takes form — everything coalesces — and eventually it’s alive.”
Instrumental music, says Quaeschning, is about imagery: “It’s like creating pictures in the listener’s head… the soundtrack of a life situation. None of this was about thinking of a specific movie, but it might lead us to soundtrack work at some point.”
Despite their separate commitments to Marillion and Tangerine Dream, both see Bioscope as an ongoing project.
“There are no reasons to stop at that point,” Quaeschning says. “Steve’s melodies are so unbelievable… This is the first time I’m using the words ‘hook’ and ‘melody’ in a good way in my life.”
Rothery agrees that the collaboration worked because of mutual trust and flexibility: “We did edit some parts and change some parts, but neither of us was at all precious about that. We just wanted to make the best album we could make… We agreed all the time, which is virtually unheard of when you have a creative partnership.”
The album balances immediacy and depth, from the up-tempo "Kaleidoscope" to sprawling pieces like "Vanishing Point" and the title track. Rothery insists there was “no plan” — only a careful ordering of the final sequence to make the listening experience flow.
Looking ahead, the duo will take Bioscope on the road in December with Reeves on drums and guitarist Dave Foster. “I would hope we could do more shows next year,” Rothery says. “Toronto is one of my favorite cities, so I’d love to get back.”
For both musicians, the key to longevity is creating new music rather than becoming a legacy act. As Rothery puts it, “There’s nothing like creating something new… It’s not playing the greatest hits — it’s still creating interesting and valid work.” Quaeschning adds, “The idea is to move on… to avoid turning your band into a musical museum. It’s the goal, but also the risk.”
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#SteveRothery #Interview #Marillion #TangerineDream #ThorstenQuaeschning #ProgressiveRock #ProgRock #Bioscope #RodrigoAltaf #SonicPerspectives @earMUSICofficial @marillionofficial @TangerineDreamMusic
When guitarist Steve Rothery of Marillion and keyboardist Thorsten Quaeschning of Tangerine Dream first met on the Cruise to the Edge festival in 2014, neither imagined they’d spend the next decade slowly crafting an album together. Yet, after sporadic sessions and a pandemic, the debut album, "Gentō", from their collaborative project — called Bioscope — is finally complete.
Thorsten recalls how casually it began: “We met before a Marillion concert in Berlin… maybe think about making some music together without saying it’s an album. Some months later, I had some solo shows in London and Nottingham, and I took the opportunity to record a session in the Marillion studio… Last year in December, we had the kind of crystallized version of what could have been an album, because there was no plan. But after all the years just recording music, it was obvious that this should be an album.”
The addition of drummer Alex Reeves from Elbow sealed the deal. “This was the last part of the album… Now we have, after six years, and less than two months together in one room, an album.”
For Rothery, the project’s spark was instant: “It was obvious, really, from the first few notes that it was like when two worlds collide. There was a really interesting melting pot of ideas… all this music is born out of improvisation, and you can only do that if you feel inspired by what you’re hearing from the other person.”
Quaeschning admits there were creative challenges: “I had to leave Steve enough room for his guitar… Steve’s melodies sometimes fulfill the function of a singer inside the music. That’s not so common for my work, and it was a challenge… Sometimes the music tells you which way it should be treated — not ego, not forcing something on top of it. Just letting it breathe.”
The cinematic feel of Bioscope emerged naturally. Rothery explains: “I was doing some research about the early days of cinema and came across Bioscope… It just felt like the right kind of thing. Once you name a track, it almost tells you what it wants to be. With a track like "Kaleidoscope", it takes form — everything coalesces — and eventually it’s alive.”
Instrumental music, says Quaeschning, is about imagery: “It’s like creating pictures in the listener’s head… the soundtrack of a life situation. None of this was about thinking of a specific movie, but it might lead us to soundtrack work at some point.”
Despite their separate commitments to Marillion and Tangerine Dream, both see Bioscope as an ongoing project.
“There are no reasons to stop at that point,” Quaeschning says. “Steve’s melodies are so unbelievable… This is the first time I’m using the words ‘hook’ and ‘melody’ in a good way in my life.”
Rothery agrees that the collaboration worked because of mutual trust and flexibility: “We did edit some parts and change some parts, but neither of us was at all precious about that. We just wanted to make the best album we could make… We agreed all the time, which is virtually unheard of when you have a creative partnership.”
The album balances immediacy and depth, from the up-tempo "Kaleidoscope" to sprawling pieces like "Vanishing Point" and the title track. Rothery insists there was “no plan” — only a careful ordering of the final sequence to make the listening experience flow.
Looking ahead, the duo will take Bioscope on the road in December with Reeves on drums and guitarist Dave Foster. “I would hope we could do more shows next year,” Rothery says. “Toronto is one of my favorite cities, so I’d love to get back.”
For both musicians, the key to longevity is creating new music rather than becoming a legacy act. As Rothery puts it, “There’s nothing like creating something new… It’s not playing the greatest hits — it’s still creating interesting and valid work.” Quaeschning adds, “The idea is to move on… to avoid turning your band into a musical museum. It’s the goal, but also the risk.”
WEBSITE: sonicperspectives.com
FACEBOOK: fb.me/sonicperspectives
FLIPBOARD: bit.ly/Flip-SP
PODCASTS ON ITUNES: bit.ly/SonicPerspectives
PODCASTS ON IHEART RADIO: bit.ly/SPiHeart
#SteveRothery #Interview #Marillion #TangerineDream #ThorstenQuaeschning #ProgressiveRock #ProgRock #Bioscope #RodrigoAltaf #SonicPerspectives @earMUSICofficial @marillionofficial @TangerineDreamMusic
