Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk was the innovative creation of the electronic age of music by Ralf Hutter and Florian Schneider in 1970. They were considered pioneers of electronic music and they influenced many artists to follow, such as David Bowie, The Cars and Devo. They initially played extended instrumental jams of an exploratory nature, principally utilizing instruments affected by post-production electronic sound modifications and processing. The musical duo then moved on to rely more heavily upon newly developed synthesizers and drum machines. The implementation of the vocodor and the Minimoog established a signature sound for Kraftwerk in their 1974 album “Autobahn”. Seemingly overwhelmed with the popularity of the Beatles, Motown and The Beach Boys and their influence upon newly energized modern rock sounds in America and England, these German composers felt as if they could not compete musically in the same genre. Kraftwerk was part of a post-war Germany, a depressed and divided country that needed a way to re-gain acceptance in the world. Despite the horrible atrocities of Adolf Hitler and his legacy on the post-war world, Kraftwerk introduced “Autobahn” as an avenue of regaining that credibility and acceptance. It focused on road travel and one of the world’s engineering feats ascribed by Germany, the autobahn. It looked at traveling at high rates of speed, taking in the surrounding landscape exemplifying the simultaneous thrill and monotony of road travel. Although popular, the album lacked commercial appeal due to the lengthy nature of the songs. Kraftwerk later developed shorter, more focused electronic pieces in their albums “Radio-Activity” (1976), “Trans Europe Express” (1977), and “The Man Machine” (1978). They also began to introduce more song-based material and vocals, thus gaining more popular entry into the music world of disco and the dance club scene. Their music had a progressive message of a new Germany, a new Europe, with innovation other than rock and roll. They had a significant impact on other artists as well, such as David Bowie, Brian Eno and Ziggy Pop. One of the most famous influences was upon Giorgio Moroder, an Italian producer who helped create the sensuous worldwide disco electronic hit, “I Feel Love”, featuring the American singer Donna Summer.
Kraftwerk had a number of qualities and influences that distinguished them as innovators in development of music of the electronic era. Kraftwerk was a major influence on post-war urban Europe, trying to rebuild its war torn infrastructure, focusing on traveling by car in “Autobahn”’ and by train in “Trans Europe Express juxtaposed with the urban isolation of then Berlin, Eastern Europe and the individual isolation of those inhabitants of the then decimated areas in which they lived. Their songs also injected a rhythmic structure to music through the electronic manipulation of sounds, which at times could be extremely unstructured. Their simple vocal messages, most obvious in “ bahn, bahn, bahn of the autobahn” is homage to one of their American influences, The Beach Boys. And their use of the song, “Fun, Fun, Fun”. Kraftwerk was truly an innovator, having created a new sound, message and a new image for the musical world. They had successfully emerged from one of the darkest holes in the history of the world.
As a listener, I was entirely ignorant of the impact of the dawn of the electronic age of music in the 1970’s. I was a teenager of the 70’s and my entire musical focus was on southern rock, blues and bluegrass music. I held no interest in the dance club scene. Discotheques and the use of synthesizers out of rock were not of interest to me. I was a fan of Yes, Pink Floyd and The Who, who all employed electronica in their music and I ingested all this as part of my early listening experience. I was naïve to the early development of synthesizers and electronic sound generators. I could have cared less, for I had The Allman Brothers, Marshall Tucker, The Stones, The Who, Molly Hatchett, The Seldom Scene and The Country Gentlemen. My musical palate was already filled.
Interestingly, I spent 1977-1978 in Paris, France, while in school as a college junior, learning about the art and politics of Europe from the perspective of the French. I travelled in France and Germany and played bluegrass music in a variety of venues. I never experienced any of the sounds of Kraftwerk. Again, I was not imbedded in the club scene. My interest was in the café and jazz experiences. I can say bluegrass music was very popular. Europeans were very captivated with the authentic sounds represented by the southeastern United States. As an artist of 2012, I have fortunately now come to realize some of the positive influence of Kraftwerk on the progress of modern electronic music. They were the original innovators of improvisation of electronic sound and structure, often just as juxtaposed. In order to shape our development as artists and producers, we now have the benefit of learning from history and musical pioneers such as Kraftwerk.
Rudolph Rustin