More Clever Bastards

Kraftwerk - Exceller 8

A subtle change in direction now. I have dabbled with a little Kraftwerk in the past, but have been keen to avoid touching the main back catelogue as so much of it is still available - though I am concerned that many of the current digital remasters (even on vinyl) have ruined their original sound, and we should all seek out the original releases. Here is a 1975 British compilation which evidences their transition from experimental rock and noise (with Dinger and Rother etc) into fine early analogue electronica. Many of the tracks are edited versions from the originals, plus tracks like Klingklang and Ruckzuck are long lost classics, widely ignored by those who focus on the EMI years. After some delicate deep cleaning, this rip has come out very well.

Ripped from a vinyl album released on Vertigo Records (6360 629) in 1975 to high quality lossless flac audio.

A1. Ruckzuck
A2. Autobahn
A3. Tongebirge
A4. Kristallo
B1. Kometenmelodie II
B2. Klingklang
B3. Vom Himmel Hoch
B4. Stratovarius

Strato Various

What was likely to be the earliest live soundboard recording of Kraftwerk appeared on German radio in 1971, and since then the bootleggers have had a field day with it. Lovers of the innovative electronic Kratftwerk may likely struggle with this, but here's where it began in earnest. The first two albums are still available to buy, if you look in the right places, so they won't be appearing here. This recording for me, says more about where they were creatively, featuring Klaus Dinger on drums and Michael Rother on guitar, both of whom were to form Neu!. Play Loud.

Ripped from a CDR bootleg to high quality lossless FLAC audio of a live performance by Kraftwerk recorded from the mixing desk at the Gondel Kino in Bremen, Germany on June 25th 1971. The track titles are not confirmed as most are not listed on this disc. The names have been sought from other bootlegs of the same gig, so may  likely contain errors, especially as there is a lot of jamming onstage.

1. Heavy Metal Kids
2. Stratovarius
3. Ruckzuck
4. Von Himmel Hoch
5. Rucktoss Gondliere

Float Your Boat

Organisation - Tone Float

Firstly, this isn't from an original vinyl (if it was I could likely retire on it), but a bootleg vinyl pressed in the eighties. There are tell tale signs, such as the RCA logo and the band's name missing from the front cover, and the lack of information on the label. If you listen really closely, you can still hear the original vinyl crackle at the beginning and during the fades of some tracks. After the recent Neu! post, I thought now would be a good time to dig out some early Kraftwerk related music. I will never profess to being an expert on all things kraut, and only have a vague understanding of the progression from the earliest (post-classical) German experimental music through to krautrock and the influence it was to have on industrial music, post-punk, electronica and beyond. Those chaps at Mutant Sounds do sterling work digging deep into the origins of non-popular music.

Classically trained musicians Florian Schneider and Ralf Hütter formed what was the basis of Kraftwerk in 1968. Mixing jazz, rhythm and rock experimentation,  the band performed as Organisation initially at art galleries and universities in Germany. The line up was Fred Monicks on drums, Butch Hauf on bass, Basil Hammoudi on percussion, Florian Schneider on flute and violin and Ralf Hütter on organ. They had already begun to perform and record under the name Kraftwerk just after Tone Float had been recorded, but RCA had been keen for them to have a band name more appropriate to the English market, since the album was to be issued only in the UK, so the name Organisation was used.

The first Kraftwerk album was being recorded as Tone Float was released, but the Organisation LP failed to sell in any quantity, as a result original copies can go for a small fortune. 

Ripped from a vinyl LP released on an un-named label (SF 81111) to high quality lossless FLAC audio.
A1. Tone Float
B1. Milk Rock
B2. Silver Forest
B3. Rhythm Salad
B4. Noitasinagro