“Timothy Leary!” — That was “Sternenmädchen” Gille Lettmann’s almost breathed closing words on the 1974 album Gilles Zeitschiff, Vol. 1. That same year, the Cosmic Crew Gille, Dieter Dierks, Jürgen Dollase, Harald Großkopf, and Mythos recorded Vol. 2, but it never came to a release at that time — let’s say: due to circumstances. Until now. Almost 50 years after its recording, Zeitschiff 2 can finally take off. Gilles conjures up Leary’s spirit here as well, comets and stars whizz through space on fluorescent ray trails — the Cosmic Couriers live up to their name. But unlike Vol. 1, everything here is of one piece. The careful remastering ensures compact sound, and where the “Queen of Sunshine” still outshone everything else on the first disc, a tidying hand ensures clarity in Zeitschiff 2. This hand belongs to the Italian pianist and conductor Roberto Cacciapaglia. The Quadro album Sonanze, produced by Rolf-Ulrich Kaiser, was his ticket into the magic circle of cosmic magicians. Even if it wasn’t called that at the time, Sonanze was an early approach to a genre we now call “ambient.” One can guess what potential Rolf heard in Roberto’s music. Dieter and Rolf knew how to integrate Roberto’s expertise. Zeitschiff 2 has become a fluently composed, effectively arranged work that radiates warmth and cosmic calm without lacking tension. A work that brings back to life the spirit of space rock of the early seventies and shows us today on which tracks the Cosmic Couriers already walked back then. Gilles Zeitschiff 2 is more than just a sequel. And also, more than a premiere: it is a discovery. Carefully transferred and remastered from the original analog master tapes by HaGü Schmitz at Dierks Studios in Pulheim-Stommeln in 2022.