Never heard any of that music in my life except Tangerine Dream. They play TG on the Soundscape channel on my cable TV. That was all I listened to for a while when my son was brand new b/c it’s so so sooooooothing.
Some of my fave krautrock:
Agitation Free
Amon Duul II
Eno & Cluster
Brainticket
Annexus Quam
Faust
Can
Cluster
Guru Guru
Klaus Schultz
Ash Ra Temple
Popol Vuh
Neu!
Harmonia
Tangerine Dream
Love me some krautrock.
Lots of great stuff there, I haven’t heard any Agitation Free, Brainticket or Annexus Quam. What are the ones to start with for them?
Kraut rock always seems to make for a great palate cleanser after more aggressive forms of music.
No expert on the genre, but I enjoy the breadth there is between the psychedelia of some of the earlier Amon Duul II and the sound Kraftwerk later pioneered in the mid 70s.
Recently found the first Guru Guru album and it makes me want to hear more. First listen strikes me as improvisational noise, but there’s definite structure to it. Anyone have any insight on the rest of their 70s work?
Can can’t be recommended enough. “Tago Mago” and “Future Days” are tops for me but I’m also in the minority for liking a lot of cuts from their second period. Just stay away from the “reunion” album they recorded with their first vocalist.
I’ve never actually listened to later era CAN outside of the “I Want More” single (which I quite like and I was first made aware of the song due our friend Chris’ Fini Tribe cover). Is there one later era CAN you’d recommend over others?
I only have Guru Guru album “UFO”. I think that’s their first. It’s not one of my favorite Kraut albums so I haven’t explored their other material. A good friend of mine with great music tastes assures me that “UFO” will eventually click for me, so I keep it on hand waiting for that day.
“I Want More” is great and maybe the most memorable song in their whole catalog. If you’ve got a minute see if you can find footage of them performing it on TV from '77 (also seen on the Can DVD). The rest of the album doesn’t hit like that song but is distinct enough to keep my interest most of the way through, so it edges out the successive albums by a margin. The last two (not including Rite Time hah) have some great and focused ideas but don’t come together as very thorough albums.
I only have Guru Guru album “UFO”. I think that’s their first. It’s not one of my favorite Kraut albums so I haven’t explored their other material…
I recently compiled my ‘100 Favourite Albums Of All Time Blah Blah Blah’ list for an overseas buddy and ‘UFO’ came in at number 12. Absolutely love that album to pieces. My college room-mate eventually got hooked on it I was listening to it so often - and he was into British punk!!
Peligro name dropped a few excellent bands in his post and I definitely recommend those bands to all members of this forum. Brainticket and Agitation Free have to be heard to be believed. ‘Cottonwood Hill’ by Brainticket and ‘Malesch’ by Agitation Free are required listening - without or without the use of ‘pharmaceuticals’.
Another great album - although a little more difficult - is ‘Phallus Dei’ by Amon Duul II. Some nice creepy atmospherics there.
There must have been something in the German water around 1970 for some much great music to have been made by so many diverse bands.
There must have been something in the German water around 1970 for some much great music to have been made by so many diverse bands.
Seriously it is mind boggling how much good music came out of Germany over the course of 5 years. So much of the peak kraut stuff is all '69-'74.
I’ve been really getting into Amon Duul II’s “Yeti” but “Phallus Dei” has yet to hit me. I’m sure it will given time.
Been listening to Moebius & Plank on my bike ride home tonight. Great innocent and farty electronic music with no pretension.
Just listening to “Celestial Ocean” by Brainticket - Jesus Christ this is a fucked up and brilliant album!
I’m really enjoying eMusic right now, they got a 50 Downloads for $20 deal going on right now and I’ve dropped a $100 scored a ton of krautrock. Back in the day $100 would have bought 4-5 import CDs.
Been listening to heaps of Popul Vuh and Cluster over the weekend.
The weather is really cold and shitty, so I’ve been rugged up, drinking hot chocolate and pouring through the collection.
The first Popul Vuh album is require listening for stormy days I can assure you…and all along it’s been hiding at the back of the rack here with me forgetting it and all…
Also digging the Jean Herve Peron (Faust) & Andrew Liles (Nurse With Wound) collaboration ‘Fini’. Really bizarre stuff.
whats the general consensus on German Oak
I just found out this great BBC documentary:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3B89-69icyc&feature=player_embedded
And you can check a little video I made for you of a Faust concert I went last year.
Popul Vuh’s In Den Garten Pharaos is great music for walking in the snow.
My girlfriend’s been really into Faust lately.
All my issues with cleopatra go out the door when I saw the really nice brainticket boxed set at amoeba! Really nicely put together with a bunch of side material I didn’t know about! Anyone else get?
Yeah, might pick that up. It’s pretty cheap over at amazon.
The first Brainticket album will blow your head off your shoulders and then kick it away when you try and pick it up off the floor. Then it will laugh at you and call you a sissy pants and steal your girlfriend out from under you.
It’s THAT good.
Know what I mean?
But kraftwerks the mix is a fav of mine
I LOVE that album.
I don’t follow any of the hoity toity crap any of you guys are into, but, with respect to German stuff . . .
I like U.F.O.
I like Scorpians.
I like Einsturzende Neubauten.
I like Kraftwerk.
I like beer.
I don’t follow any of the hoity toity crap any of you guys are into, but, with respect to German stuff . . .
Have a listen to these samples - you will not be disappointed…
I’ll give a listen later. Thanks!
Seems about time for my semi-annual revival of this thread. Been listening to a lot of Cosmic Jokers lately especially the self titled album and Galactic Supermarket. I’d never listened to Supermarket more than a time or two before so I’m well blown away by howmfucking right on it is. The album starts practically mid piece and just grow from there. If you like Brainticket you should dig this album, it’s more Cottonwood Hill than any other album I’ve heard.
Great story about the recording of these sessions. A corrupt record producer got a bunch of musicians together for a big acid party. The supergroup did some jams that were (unknown to them) recorded and then mixed and remixed and released wiout the members having any recollection of having made the music nor any recompense.
I’m more into “Berliner School” synth music (Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze…) than Kraut… But my favorite are definitely :
- Neu! (+ LA Dusseldorf, Harmonia…)
- Sergius Golowin (his only album “Lord krishna Von Goloka” sounds like nothing else… Maybe some Current 93…)
and I HATE AMon Duul, oh lord, I can’t stand this band.
Harmonia is my favorite kraut band still, though Popol Vuh and brainticket are close. I go both ways on Amon Dul, I prefer the early freak folk stuff but really do enjoy Yeti, especially the track “sandoz in the rain” which was my entry drug to the band.
Klaus plays on the Cosmic Jokers stuff and you might dig it based on what you mentioned liking. That Golowin album is really far out too, man! I love that one.