Kraftwerk

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Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk live in Stockholm in 2004
Kraftwerk live in Stockholm in 2004
Background information
Origin Düsseldorf, Germany
Genre(s) Avant-garde
Electronic
Synthpop
Krautrock
Years active 1970–present
Label(s) Kling Klang
EMI
Astralwerks (US)
Associated acts Organisation
Neu!
Karl Bartos
Wolfgang Flür
Website Official Web Site
Members
Ralf Hütter
Florian Schneider
Fritz Hilpert
Henning Schmitz
Stefan Pfaffe (2008 touring member)

Kraftwerk (pronounced [ˈkʁaftvɛɐk], German for "power plant" or "power station") is an influential electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany.

The Kraftwerk sound combines driving, repetitive rhythms with catchy melodies; mainly following a Western classical style of harmony, in a minimalistic and strictly electronic arrangement. Their simplified lyrics are frequently sung through a vocoder or generated by computer-speech software. In the mid to late 1970s and the early 1980s, Kraftwerk's distinctive sound was revolutionary for its time, and it has had a lasting impact across nearly all genres of modern popular music.[1][2][3][4][5]

Contents

[edit] History

Kraftwerk was founded in 1970 by Florian Schneider (flutes, synthesizers, electro-violin) and Ralf Hütter (electronic organ, synthesizers). The two had met as students at the Düsseldorf Conservatory in the late 1960s, participating in the German experimental music scene of the time, which the British music press dubbed "Krautrock".

The duo had originally performed together in a quintet known as Organisation. This ensemble released one album, titled Tone Float for RCA Records in the UK. The unit split shortly thereafter. The two began setting up their own private studio in a rented loft in Düsseldorf, which later became known as Kling Klang. Early Kraftwerk line-ups from 1970–1974 fluctuated, as Hütter and Schneider worked with around a half-dozen other musicians over the course of recording three albums and sporadic live appearances; most notably guitarist Michael Rother and drummer Klaus Dinger, who left to form Neu! The input, expertise, and influence of producer/engineer Konrad "Conny" Plank was significant as well. Plank worked with many other leading German acts, including members of Can, Neu!, Cluster and Harmonia. As a result of his work with Kraftwerk, Plank's studio near Köln became one of the most sought-after studios in the late 1970s. Plank produced the first four Kraftwerk albums, but ceased working with the band after the commercial success of "Autobahn", apparently over a dispute about contracts. Painter and graphic artist Emil Schult became a regular collaborator with the band starting in 1973, playing bass guitar and electro-violin. Schult then went on to design artwork in addition to writing lyrics and accompanying the group on tour.

What is generally regarded as the classic Kraftwerk line-up was formed in 1975, for the Autobahn tour. During this time, the band was presented as a quartet, with Hütter and Schneider joined by Wolfgang Flür and Karl Bartos as electronic percussionists. This quartet would be the band's public persona for its renowned output of the latter 1970s and early 1980s. Flür had joined the band in 1973, in preparation for a television appearance to promote its third album. The group's striking custom-made electronic percussion pads, played by Flür, made their debut as well. Bartos also helped to write many of the band's most memorable songs.

The band is notoriously reclusive, as they reject to accept mail and allow no visitors at the Kling Klang Studio. Another notable example of this eccentric behaviour was reported to Johnny Marr of The Smiths by Karl Bartos, who explained that anyone trying to contact the band for collaboration would be told the studio telephone did not have a ringer, since during recording, the band did not like to hear any kind of noise pollution. Instead, callers were instructed to phone the studio precisely at a certain time, whereupon the phone would be answered by Ralf Hütter, despite never hearing the phone ring. Chris Martin, lead singer of UK group Coldplay, anecdotally recalled, in a late 2007 article in Q about Kraftwerk, the process of requesting permission to sample the melody from the track "Computer Love" in their 2005 release "Talk" from their record X&Y. He recalled writing them a letter and sending it through the lawyers of the respective parties and several weeks later receiving an envelope containing a handwritten reply, which simply said 'yes'.

In 1990, after years of withdrawal from live performance, Kraftwerk began to tour Europe again regularly. In 1998 the group made their first appearances in the United States and Japan since the completion of the Computer World tour in 1981. Hütter had wanted to play more shows over the years, but the cost and time involved in shipping all of the group's huge analog equipment hindered world tours and travel outside of Europe. The band also ran into problems with customs officials in the Eastern Bloc region, with some of them fearing that the group's older computers at the time would trigger nuclear devices by mistake. During this decade, the band often stated that it was working on new material—though speculation about release dates fell through several times. The growing time between recordings, the rarity of live performances, Hütter and Schneider's alleged obsession with cycling, and the increasingly perfectionist nature of the recording process were the major reasons behind the departure of Flür and soon after Bartos, whose improvisations and song-writing capabilities were an essential part of Kraftwerk's later recordings. Following the departure of Flür and Bartos, Kling Klang studio personnel Fritz Hilpert and Henning Schmitz have appeared in what some have called the second classic line-up of Kraftwerk, which has been active from late 1991 to the present.

In July 1999 the single "Tour de France" was reissued in Europe after it had been out of print for several years. It was released for the first time on CD in addition to a repressing of the 12-inch vinyl single. Both versions feature slightly altered artwork that removed the faces of Flür and Bartos from the four man cycling peloton as depicted on the original cover. Also at this time, the group signed a new contract with Sony-ATV Music Publishing. The single "Expo 2000", the group's first new song in 13 years, was released in December 1999 and subsequently remixed by contemporary techno musicians such as Underground Resistance and Orbital. This version was released as "Expo Remix" in November 2000. Before this time, the only artists allowed to remix the band's recordings were François Kevorkian and William Orbit.

In 2000 ex-member Flür published his autobiography in Germany, Ich war ein Roboter. Later English-language editions of the book were titled Kraftwerk: I Was a Robot. The text revealed many previously unreported details about life in the band. This book met with hostility and litigation from Hütter and Schneider, who disputed several of its claims (e.g., that Flür had built the band's first electronic drum pads) and objected to the public discussion of personal information.

In August 2003 the band released Tour de France Soundtracks, its first album of new material since 1986's Electric Café. In 2004 a box set titled The Catalogue was planned for release. It was to feature remastered editions of the group's albums from 1974's Autobahn to 2003's Tour de France Soundtracks. The item was soon withdrawn from Kraftwerk and EMI's album release schedule. It was only released as a promotional item on CD, which has become a much-wanted item that has often appeared on internet auction sites such as eBay.[6] In 2007, the group showed a renewed interest in releasing the collection, although an official street date was not given.

In June 2005 the band's first-ever official live album, Minimum-Maximum, which was compiled from the shows during the band's tour of spring 2004, received extremely positive reviews. Most of the tracks featured had been heavily reworked and remodeled from the existing studio versions. The album was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Electronic/Dance Album. In December, the Minimum-Maximum two-DVD set was released to accompany the album, featuring live footage of the band performing the Minimum-Maximum tracks in various venues all over the world.

April 2008 saw the band back on tour in the United States leading up to their previously announced show at the Coachella Festival.[7] Florian Schneider did not participate in the lineup of the 2008 US tour.[8] The lineup consisted of Ralf Hütter, Henning Schmitz, Fritz Hilpert, and Stefan Pfaffe. In September, the group will play three consecutive dates in Poland. It is not known whether Florian Schneider will be present at these concerts.

[edit] Members

  • Ralf Hütter – synthesizers, organ, lead vocals
  • Florian Schneider – synthesizers, background vocals, computer-generated vocals
  • Fritz Hilpert – sound engineering, electronic percussion
  • Henning Schmitz – sound engineering, electronic percussion, live keyboards.
  • Stefan Pfaffe – video technician (filled in for Florian Schneider on the 2008 US tour)

[edit] Former members

  • Karl Bartos – electronic percussion (1975–1991), live vibraphone (1975), keyboards on Computer World tour (1981)
  • Wolfgang Flür – electronic percussion (1973–1987)

Bartos and Flür are the most widely recognized former members of Kraftwerk; they are featured on the group's most popular recordings. Other former members include:

  • Fernando Abrantes – electronic percussion
  • Klaus Röder – guitar, electro-violin
  • Emil Schult – guitar, electro-violin (later employed as a painter/graphic designer and lyricist)
  • Plato Kostic (a.k.a. Plato Riviera) – bass guitar.
  • Peter Schmidt – drums
  • Michael Rother – guitar
  • Houschäng Néjadepour – guitar
  • Klaus Dinger – drums
  • Charly Weiss – drums
  • Thomas Lohmann - drums
  • Andreas Hohmann – drums
  • Eberhard Kranemann – bass guitar

Hohmann, Dinger, and Röder were the only other former members to be featured on any official Kraftwerk recordings. Röder has been featured on several bootleg recordings and seen in several TV performances. An unreleased studio recording session produced by Konrad "Conny" Plank, featuring the trio of Schneider, Dinger, and Rother, is rumoured to have taken place. Apparently, these plans were scrapped when Ralf Hütter returned to the group in 1971, before starting the recording sessions for Kraftwerk 2.

[edit] Music

Like many other Krautrock bands, Kraftwerk was heavily influenced by the pioneering compositions of Karlheinz Stockhausen; the minimalism and non-R&B rhythms of the Velvet Underground, as well as other radicals of the time, such as Frank Zappa, Jimi Hendrix, and the hyper-adrenalized Stooges. Hütter has also listed The Beach Boys as a major influence,[9] which is apparent in its 1975 chart smash, Autobahn. Hütter stated that the Beach Boys made music that sounded like California, and that Kraftwerk wanted to make music that sounded like Germany. Hütter and Schneider were also fans of soul music and, later, developed an aesthetical affinity for punk rock and American punk icons the Ramones.

Though most famous for its synthpop albums, Kraftwerk began as a Krautrock jam band in the vein of Can or Neu! Its first three albums were more free-form experimental rock without the pop hooks or the more disciplined strong structure of its later work. Kraftwerk, released in 1970, and Kraftwerk 2, released in 1972, were mostly exploratory jam music, played on a variety of traditional instruments including guitar, bass, drums, electric organ, flute and violin. Post-production modifications to these recordings were then used to distort the sound of the instruments, particularly audio-tape manipulation and multiple dubbings of one instrument on the same track. Both albums are purely instrumental.

With Ralf und Florian, released in 1973, the band began to move closer to its classic sound, relying more heavily on synthesizers and drum machines. Although almost entirely instrumental, the album marks Kraftwerk's first use of the vocoder, which would, in time, become one of its musical signatures.

The group's breakthrough, both critically and commercially, came in 1974 with the Autobahn album and its 22-minute title track, featuring the Motorik beat, which was a worldwide hit and demonstrated its increasing reliance on synthesizers and electronics. This preceded a quintet of recorded works that would exert a huge influence on popular music—Radio-Activity (1975), Trans-Europe Express (1977), The Man-Machine (1978), Computer World (1981) and the single, Tour de France (1983).

Kraftwerk's lyrics deal with post-war European urban life and technology—traveling by car on the Autobahn, traveling by train, using home computers, and the like. Usually, the lyrics are very minimal but reveal both an innocent celebration of, and a knowing caution about, the modern world, as well as playing an integral role in the rhythmic structure of the songs. Many of Kraftwerk's songs express the paradoxical nature of modern urban life—a strong sense of alienation existing side-by-side with a celebration of the joys of modern technology.

Kraftwerk was one of the first pop-oriented acts to record using pure electronic (or electronically processed) instruments and sounds exclusively. Many of the vocals in its songs are processed through a vocoder or generated using speech-synthesis software. In addition, a Texas Instruments Language Translator[10] was used to generate synthetic speech on its 1981 album Computer World—not a Speak and Spell as is commonly believed (though its bleeps do occur at the beginning of "Home Computer").[11] It also pioneered the use of backing tracks that were generated by the electronic sequencing of purely synthetic sounds.

All of their albums from Trans-Europe Express onward have been recorded in separate versions: one with German vocals for sale in Germany, Switzerland and Austria and one with English vocals for the rest of the world, with occasional variations in other languages when conceptually appropriate. Tour de France was released in French, along with a limited German edition. The German-language versions are Kraftwerk's attempt to provide an alternative to the dominant Anglo-American influence in rock and pop music.

Tour De France Soundtracks, which expanded the concept from the 1983 hit single, was recorded exclusively in French.

[edit] Live shows

Live performance has always played an important part in Kraftwerk's activities. Also, despite its live shows generally being based around formal songs and compositions, live improvisation often plays a noticeable role in its performances. This trait can be traced back to the group’s roots in the experimental Krautrock scene of the late 1960s, but, significantly, it has continued to be a part of its playing even as it makes ever greater use of digital and computer-controlled sequencing in its performances. Some of the band's familiar compositions have been observed to have developed from live improvisations at their concerts or sound-checks.

[edit] Early gigs (1970–1974)

Early in the group's career, between 1970 and 1974, the group made sporadic live appearances. These shows were mainly in its native Germany, with occasional shows in France, featuring a variety of line-ups. A few of these performances were for television broadcasts. The only constant figure in these line-ups was Schneider, whose main instrument at the time was the flute; at times also playing violin and guitar, all processed through a varied array of electronic effects. Hütter, who left the band for six months in 1971 to pursue studies in architecture, played synthesizer keyboards (including Farfisa organ and electric piano). Various other musicians who appeared on stage as part of the group during these years included Klaus Dinger (acoustic drums), Andreas Hohmann (acoustic drums), Thomas Lohmann (acoustic drums), Michael Rother (electric guitar), Charly Weiss (drums), Eberhard Kranemann (bass-guitar), Plato Kostic (bass-guitar), Emil Schult (electro-violin, electric guitar) and Klaus Roeder (electric violin, electric guitar). Later performances from 1972–73 were made as a duo, using a simple beat-box-type electronic drum machine, with preset rhythms taken from an electric organ. Later in 1973, Wolfgang Flür joined the group for rehearsals, and the unit performed as a trio on the television show, Aspekte, for German television network WDR.

Documentation of this period in the group's history is sparse, with Hütter and Schneider not keen to talk about it in later interviews. A few bootleg recordings are in circulation. The only official released material is its 1971 performance on the German Beat Club TV show, which is available on DVD.

[edit] Tours with the quartet line-up (1975–1981)

The year 1975, saw a turning point in Kraftwerk's live shows. With financial support from Phonogram in the US, they were able to undertake a multi-date tour to promote the Autobahn album. This tour took them to the US, Canada and the UK for the first time. The tour also saw a new, stable, live line-up in the form of a quartet. Hütter and Schneider both mainly played keyboard parts on synthesizers such as the MiniMoog and ARP Odyssey, with Schneider's use of flute diminishing. The pair also sang vocals on stage for the first time, with Schneider also using a vocoder live. Wolfgang Flür and new recruit Karl Bartos performed live electronic percussion using custom-made (and, at the time, unique) sensor pads hit with metal sticks to complete a circuit and trigger analog synthetic percussion circuits (initially cannibalized from the aforementioned organ beat box). Bartos also used a Deagan Vibraphone on stage. The Hütter-Schneider-Bartos-Flür line-up would remain in place until the late 1980s. Emil Schult generally fulfilled the role of tour manager.

By the late 1970s the band's live set focused increasingly on song-based material, with greater use of vocals, less acoustic instrumentation, and the use of sequencing equipment for percussion and musical lines. The approach taken by the group was to use the sequencing equipment interactively, thus allowing room for improvisation. In 1976, the group went out on tour in support of the Radio-Activity album. As Kraftwerk's trivial status as a "novelty act" began to dissipate in the mainstream US, this tour took Kraftwerk around Europe only, with the foursome making their first stops in the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Italy, Austria and Switzerland.

This tour also tested out an experimental light-beam activated drum cage allowing Flür to trigger electronic percussion through arm and hand movements. Unfortunately, the device did not work as planned, and it was quickly abandoned. Despite the new innovations in touring, the band took a break from live performances after the Radioactivity tour of 1976. The band did, however, appear on television shows to promote the albums Trans Europe Express and The Man-Machine.

The band returned to the live scene with the Computer World tour of 1981, where the band effectively packed up its entire Kling Klang studio and took it on the road with them. Around this time, Wolfgang Flür was heavily involved in designing customized modular housing and packaging for the group's touring equipment. The band also developed an increasing use of visual elements in the live shows during this period. This included back-projected slides and films, increasingly synchronized with the music as the technology developed, the use of hand-held miniaturized instruments during the set, and, perhaps most famously, the use of replica mannequins of themselves to perform onstage during the song "The Robots." The group came back to the US, Canada and the UK; this tour also marked the first time that Kraftwerk had toured in Spain, Poland, Hungary, Japan, Australia, India and China.

Several bootleg recordings of this period have been widely available, some even in major retail stores, particularly from the Autobahn and Computer World tours.

[edit] 1990s and 2000s

The completion of the Computer World tour in the winter of 1981, then precipitated an almost decade-long hiatus in Kraftwerk's live activities. The unit did not perform live again until 1990; by this time, Flür had left the band three years earlier and was replaced by Fritz Hilpert. A few secret shows took place in Italy in February, which were the last to feature Karl Bartos. The next proper tour was in 1991, for the album The Mix. Again, this tour only took place in Europe. Hütter and Schneider wished to continue the synth-pop quartet style of presentation, and recruited Fernando Abrantes as a replacement for Bartos. Abrantes was dismissed shortly thereafter. In late 1991 Henning Schmitz was brought in to finish the remainder of the tour and to complete a new version of the quartet that still remains active to this day. In 1993, only four shows were played in Germany, Austria and Belgium with The Man-Machine added to the set list.

Kraftwerk laid dormant from the live scene once again until 1997, which saw them headlining at the Tribal Gathering festival in the UK. It was the near-legendary success of that show, that led to a two week mini tour in 1998, with the group visiting the US and Japan for the first time since 1981. By this time, the US audience had swelled into a small underground cult following; only major metropolitan cities were visited that were of core interest—Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Detroit, and New York. This outing also took the combo to South America for the first time with shows in Brazil and Argentina. Once again, these were all monumental performances. Three new songs were performed during this period, which remain unreleased to this day. Following this trek, the unit decided to take another break.

In 2002 the band was touring again in Europe and Japan, using four customized Sony VAIO laptop computers, effectively leaving the entire Kling Klang studio at home in Germany. The group also obtained a new set of transparent video panels to replace their four large projection screens. This greatly streamlined the running of all of the group's sequencing, sound-generating, and visual-display software. From this point, the band's equipment increasingly reduced manual playing, replacing it with interactive control of sequencing equipment. Hütter retains the most manual performance, still playing selected musical lines by hand on a controller keyboard and singing live vocals and having a repeating ostinato. Much of Schneider's live vocoding has been replaced by software-controlled speech-synthesis techniques.

In January 2003, prior to the release of the album, Tour de France Soundtracks, the group performed in Australia at several dates on the Big Day Out festival; this was also their latest visit to the region since 1981. A show was also played for the first time in New Zealand. In November, the group made a surprising appearance at the MTV European Music Awards in Edinburgh, Scotland featuring a visually stunning performance of Aerodynamik. In 2004 the band toured in support of Tour de France Soundtracks. In addition to all of its usual stops, Kraftwerk ventured to Canada once again for the first time since 1981, and explored previously untouched regions of the globe, as the quartet made its first visits to Iceland, Russia, Latvia, Estonia, Slovenia, Ireland, Portugal, Chile and Mexico. The group also visited US cities Seattle and Miami for the first time, with the latter region's famous "Miami Bass" sound heavily influenced by the combination of Kraftwerk, hip hop and electro music.

In 2005 the group released its first official live album, Minimum-Maximum, recorded on the aforementioned 2004 world tour. In support of this release, Kraftwerk made another quick sweep around the globe, with more first visits in Serbia, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Turkey and Greece. In December, the DVD release of Minimum-Maximum was made available.

In 2006 a small number of festivals were played in Norway, the Czech Republic, Spain, Belgium and Germany. The songs, Showroom Dummies and Computer Love were added to the set list. This was the first time that Showroom Dummies had been played live since 1981.

[edit] The future

Most recently Kraftwerk was announced as a headlining act at the 2008 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. This was their second appearance at the festival since 2004. The group performed on the evening of April 26, 2008. At the end of the Song "Radioactivity", "Tschernobyl: April 26th 1986" was added to the Background video.

Prior to the performance at Coachella, Kraftwerk played three shows in US cities Minneapolis, Milwaukee, and Denver. The touring quartet consisted of Ralf Hutter, Henning Schmitz, Fritz Hilpert and video technician Stefan Pfaffe. Florian Schneider was curiously absent from the lineup. It is unknown what Schneider's status in the group is at this point in time.[12]
Three new live dates have been added in Kraków, Poland at the sixth Sacrum Profanum Festival. These shows will take place at the Old Lenin Factory from September 19–21, 2008 as revealed on the group's website and MySpace page.

[edit] Influence on other genres

Kraftwerk’s releases in the 1970s and early 1980s, most significantly Radio-Activity (1975), Trans-Europe Express (1977), The Man-Machine (1978) and Computer World (1981) - directly influenced and continues to inspire many popular artists from many diverse generes of music.

One of the first major recording artists to claim a direct influence from Kraftwerk's music was David Bowie. Part of this can be heard in his series of albums, starting with Station To Station and continuing with the Berlin Trilogy - Low, "Heroes", and Lodger. Iggy Pop's association with Bowie during this period would result in the classic albums, Lust For Life and The Idiot. Kraftwerk were mutual fans of both artists, name-dropping them in the lyrics of their 1977 single, Trans-Europe Express.

Following this, were the artists in the new rock and dance music scenes that were developing in the US, Europe and Japan. A large number of them borrowed heavily from Kraftwerk; not only musically, but also in terms of image and ideals. This can be seen and heard in a wide variety of artists such as Gary Numan, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Human League, Depeche Mode, Devo, Joy Division, Telex, Yellow Magic Orchestra, Giorgio Moroder, New Order, Front 242, Cabaret Voltaire, Rammstein (who also did a cover of "Das Modell" which was an original song by Kraftwerk), Nine Inch Nails, Kent, Art of Noise, Yello, Ultravox, Visage and Thomas Dolby.

In addition to David Bowie, Kraftwerk has also turned down offers to collaborate with Michael Jackson and Elton John.[13]

Afrika Bambaataa’s Planet Rock (1982) was a major defining hit for hip hop and the birth of electro music. The song contains elements of Trans-Europe Express and Numbers. Legal action was pursued and won against Bambaataa for his strong use of these particular sounds and melodies without giving proper credit to the group. Since the lawsuit, proper credit is now given on the song’s writing credits. Numerous artists have continued to sample and pilfer various elements from Kraftwerk's catalog.

The influence of Kraftwerk’s distinctive use of synthesizers, drum machine rhythms, and heavily effected vocals can also be heard on early Detroit techno records. Detroit techno artists Derrick May and Juan Atkins tried to replicate Kraftwerk’s sound on early techno records such as Cybotron’s Clear (1983), Model 500’s No UFOs (1985), and Derrick May’s Nude Photo (1986).

Kraftwerk was also a strong influence in the genre of Chicago House Music. Keith Farley's (Farley "Jackmaster" Funk of the Hot Mix 5) recordings, Funkin With the Drums Again, pays homage to Kraftwerk's Home Computer and It's More Fun to Compute, which are cult classics in Chicago's House music history.

While touring after the release of Astronaut in 2005, Duran Duran would signify its arrival on stage by playing The Robots. This track appeared on the album Nick Rhodes and John Taylor present Only After Dark (2006). When Duran Duran played Broadway in November 2007, and the Lyceum in London in December 2007, it performed "Showroom Dummies" as part of its Electro-set. Each band member used electronic instruments—Nick and John used a Korg Radias and Simon used a microKorg.

The band has also had an influence on celtic fusion most notably in the use of electronic sounds to complement traditional instruments in the music of bands such as the Peatbog Faeries, whose fourth album was called Croftwork and featured the track Trans-Island Express.

A petition for the induction of Kraftwerk into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was recently created, through PetitionOnline. They have been eligible for induction since 1996.[14] However, there has been no formal consideration, by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's committee.

[edit] Videography

See The Official Kraftwerk Video Page at http://www.kraftwerk.tv and links below.

  • 1974 : Autobahn
  • 1975 : Radio-Activity [2]
  • 1975 : Antenna [3]
  • 1977 : Trans-Europe Express [4]
  • 1978 : The Robots [5]
  • 1978 : The Model [6]
  • 1979 : Neon Lights [7]
  • 1981 : Pocketcalculator [8] [9]
  • 1982 : Showroom Dummies (Remix)
  • 1983 : Tour de France [10]
  • 1986 : Music Non-Stop [11]
  • 1987 : The Telephone Call [12]
  • 1991 : The Robots 1991 [13]
  • 1991 : Radio-Activity (William Orbit Remix) [14]
  • 2000 : Expo 2000
  • 2000 : Expo 2000 (DJ Rolando Remix)
  • 2003 : Tour de France 2003
  • 2004 : Aerodynamik @ MTV EMA 2003
  • 2005 : Minimum-Maximum (promo video)

[edit] Discography

This discography focuses on Kraftwerk's English-language releases. Alternative-language versions are also noted. Chart positions are given for the United Kingdom and United States America. UK chart positions are taken from the Guinness Book of Hit Singles. USA chart positions are taken from the Billboard Hot 100 Web site (http://www.billboard.com/).

For more information on individual releases including track listings and label details see Kraftwerk discography.

For country specific releases such as items released in South America and Eastern Europe visit [15].

[edit] Albums

Notes:
The only difference between the Radio-Activity and Radio-Aktivität albums is the packaging. The music on both albums is identical.

Tour De France Soundtracks was only released in French.

[edit] Compilations

Kraftwerk has never authorized any best-of albums; however, the group's former record companies often put together compilations of old material to cash in on the band's growing popularity, particularly during the early 1980s. A number of these releases can be found here in the following link [16], as they are too numerous to list here.

[edit] Singles

  • 1973: Kohoutek-Kometenmelodie
  • 1974: Comet Melody 2 (German version: Kometenmelodie 2)
  • 1975: Autobahn (UK #11 USA #25)
  • 1976: Radio-Activity (German version: Radioaktivität)
  • 1977: Trans-Europe Express (German version: Trans-Europa Express' - USA #67')
  • 1977: Showroom Dummies (French version: Les Mannequins)
  • 1978: The Robots (German version: Die Roboter)
  • 1978: The Model (German version: Das Model)
  • 1979: Neon Lights (UK #53)
  • 1981: Pocket Calculator (German version: Taschenrechner - Japanese version: Dentaku - French version: Mini Calculateur - UK #39)
  • 1981: Computer Love (UK #36)
  • 1981: The Model (Reissue - UK #1)
  • 1982: Computerwelt (Remix) [German only release]
  • 1982: Showroom Dummies (Remix - UK #25)
  • 1983: Tour de France (Released in German and French versions - UK #22)
  • 1984: Tour de France (Remix - Released in German and French versions - UK #24)
  • 1986: Musique Non-Stop (UK #82)
  • 1987: The Telephone Call (German version: Der Telefon Anruf - UK #89)
  • 1991: The Robots (Re-recorded version from "The Mix" - German version: Die Roboter - UK #20)
  • 1991: Radioactivity (Re-recorded version from "The Mix" - German version: Radioaktivität - UK #43)
  • 1999: Tour de France (Reissue - Released in French only - UK #61)
  • 1999: Expo 2000 (UK #27)
  • 2000: Expo Remix (various remixes)
  • 2003: Tour de France 2003 (UK #20)
  • 2003: Aerodynamik (UK #33)
  • 2003: Elektro-Kardiogramm (Radio Mix - Promo Only)
  • 2007: Aerodynamik/La Forme (Remixed by Hot Chip)

[edit] Collaborations

[edit] Bibliography

  • 1994 : "Kraftwerk: Man, Machine and Music" by Pascal Bussy
  • 1998 : "Kraftwerk: From Düsseldorf to the Future" by Tim Barr
  • 1999 : "Kraftwerk: I Was a Robot" by Wolfgang Flür
  • 2000 : "A Short Introduction to Kraftwerk" by Vanni Neri & Giorgio Campani
  • 2002 : "Kraftwerk: The Music Makers" by Albert Koch
  • 2005 : "Kraftwerk Photobook" by Kraftwerk (included in the Minimum-Maximum Notebook set)

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Guardian, Desperately Seeking Kraftwerk
  2. ^ NME, Kraftwerk : Minimum-Maximum Live
  3. ^ John McCready on Kraftwerk
  4. ^ Harrington, Richard. "These Days, Kraftwerk is Packing Light", Washington post, Friday, May 27, 2005, p. WE08. Retrieved on 2006-07-06. 
  5. ^ Gill, Andy. "Kraftwerk:". 
  6. ^ More and more remastered Kraftwerk eight-CD promo boxed sets auctioned via eBay
  7. ^ Kraftwerk announce US tourdates
  8. ^ News. Techno-Pop: The Official Kraftwerk Fan-Site (2008-04-20). Retrieved on 2008-04-20.
  9. ^ [1] thing.de Retrieved on 10-10-07
  10. ^ http://www.datamath.org/Speech/LanguageTranslator.htm Datamath.org Retrieved on 06-02-07
  11. ^ http://kraftwerkfaq.hu/equipment.html
  12. ^ News. Techno-Pop: The Official Kraftwerk Fan-Site (2008-04-20). Retrieved on 2008-04-20.
  13. ^ Mojo magazine interview, August 2005
  14. ^ Artists Currently Eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Future Rock Hall (unknown). Retrieved on 2008-05-06.

[edit] External links

Official Kraftwerk links:

Other associates:

  • emilschult.com—Web site of artist Emil Schult.
  • Klaus-Roeder.org—Website of avant-garde Western classical guitarist Klaus Röder, former Kraftwerk member.
  • Early Kraftwerk—Former associate Eberhard Kranemann reminisces about the Düsseldorf music scene during the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Further information:

v • d • e
Kraftwerk
Ralf Hütter · Florian Schneider
Fritz Hilpert · Henning Schmitz · Stefan Pfaffe

Fernando Abrantes · Karl Bartos · Klaus Röder · Wolfgang Flür · Emil Schult · Plato Kostic · Peter Schmidt
Michael Rother · Houschäng Néjadepour · Klaus Dinger · Charly Weiss · Thomas Lohmann · Andreas Hohmann · Eberhard Kranemann
Albums
Live and compilation releases
Non-album singles
Videography
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