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Krautrock must haves
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Lascivia
Lascivia
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Re: Krautrock must haves
Dec 14, 2003, 22:31
For a while, I've been planning to make a web essay detailing eleven albums that would give a reasonably comprehensive overview of the krautrock scene. You already have most of these, I'm sure:

1. Can - Tago Mago
The archetypical krautrock album. Also spans from the ultra-experimental to their stereotypical mantric stuff and on to ethnic-influenced realms as well.

2. Faust - The Faust Tapes
The best realization of their collage esthetic and a really disorienting experience the first few times one spins it.

3. Neu! - Neu!
The later albums are more single mindedly motorik, while their debut spans many more realms and seems to even have a thematic focus.

4. Cluster - Cluster II
Many might prefer their later albums, as do I, but this allows one to hear the real industrial side of krautrock, mostly abstract electronics but with one track ("nabitte") hinting at their clanking Kluster roots. The Neu!-ish "im süden" is the standout.

5. Harmonia - Musik von Harmonia
The ultimate in motorik trance, with some tracks sounding like Plastikman several decades in advance. The constructions resemble modern electronica but the timbres draw from the crunchy guitar and studio manipulations of the era. Very kosmische.

6. Tangerine Dream - Atem
The ultimate kosmische work. It's by far the best produced from their experimental period, with unbelievable sonics. It also has hints of the VCS3 iterations of later TD.

7. Ash Ra Tempel - Ash Ra Tempel
Free rock that's not as obviously blues-based as their later work, with thundering tom-tom propulsion from Klaus Schulze and engineering from Conrad Plank helping to alienate the instruments to the extent that one wonders often where the sounds are coming from.

8. Guru Guru - UFO
A stand in for the influence of the prevalent European free jazz on krautrock and also the really weird shit (Anima, Limbus 4) that Ohr often put out at the beginning.

9. Xhol Caravan - Electrip
Though Plank produced "Motherfuckers GMBH & Co, KG", their debut "Electrip" is much more coherent. This stands in for the many, many jazz-fusion bands on the kraut scene.

10. Popol Vuh - Hosianna Mantra
A controversial choice, as a lot of people find this album's prettiness offputting, but there is a darkness in the background to much of this, especially the unbelievable "Kyrie". Only the oboe-laden opening of side two stays completely in major scale consonance. I chose this over "Letzte Tage - Letzte Nächte" as a better representative of the ethnic side of krautrock. However, if the prettiness sounds too iffy, try "Letzte Tage".

11. Amon Düül II - Yeti
The commune side of krautrock (especially "Sandoz in the Rain", a glimpse at what the original Amon Düül sounded like on "Paradieswärts Düül"). One of my favorite albums, ever.
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Krautrock must haves (Stevo)		 Replies:
Other krautrock musts. (Lascivia)
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