Where to start with [artist]

[Marvin]

Some Fantastic Place is an interesting record, Squeeze is worth having although ironically it doesn't feel like a proper Squeeze record, Ridiculous is quite good, as is Sweets From a Stranger, also the album 'Difford and Tillbrook' is worth seeking out. I like Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti, it's not as consistent as something like Argy Bargy but if you like Squeeze there's gems on all of these.

[alan nagsworth]

Where do I start with Krautrock? Tell me, say, one album by each of your top three essential krautrock artists. I feel like I'm missing out on something awesome! I have Ege Bamyasi by Can, although I've never really given it my full attention.

[Mary Hinge]

Where do I start with Krautrock? Tell me, say, one album by each of your top three essential krautrock artists. I feel like I'm missing out on something awesome! I have Ege Bamyasi by Can, although I've never really given it my full attention.

The link here to a thread on Krautrock contain some links to a documentary series which gives examples of lots of the different artists involved. It is a decent place to start. Julian Cope's Krautrocker book is excellent (get your local library to get it).

http://www.cookdandbombd.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=17697.msg857690#msg857690

Me, I would recommend Faust 4 because it has "Krautrock" on it! 12 minutes of looping, repetitious droning electronic driven rock that builds and builds. Awesome. As you like the Boredoms, you will most likely enjoy this. The rest of the album is good as well.

Tangerine Dream: Phaedra. Welcome to the wonderful world of the analogue synth. A vivid soundscape of an album. It's probably this album that gave the young Aphex twin nightmares.

And now a quick cheat. Space Ritual by Hawkwind. Just because they are British and had Lemmy in the band, the innovation and power of the band are totally overlooked yet they were exploring a lot of the same sonic space as many of the krautrock pioneers. The ten minutes of "orgone accumulator" are a blizzard of basic Black Sabbath riffery, juddering early seventies electronics and whirling saxophone. Truly marvellous!

[NoSleep]

Where do I start with Krautrock? Tell me, say, one album by each of your top three essential krautrock artists. I feel like I'm missing out on something awesome! I have Ege Bamyasi by Can, although I've never really given it my full attention.

Faust & Can are two of the greatest bands of all time, never mind Krautrock.

My own intro to Krautrock, along with the 50,000 others who took advantage of Virgin Records' loss leader price of 50p in 1973, was The Faust Tapes. It's a collage of demo tapes & ideas, presented as two trackless sides of an album. But all the first 4 albums (Faust, So Far, Faust Tapes, Faust IV) are worth checking out.

My favourite Krautrock album is Tago Mago by Can, particularly for what originally constituted Side One of the double album: the three tracks Paperhouse, Mushroom & Oh Yeah. A finer 19 mins of music I cannot think of.
Ege Bamyasi has its ups and downs, as they run out of time in production: part of the album shows the attention to detail that is Can's signature, whilst the other half is basically live improvisation in the studio the night before they presented it.
Monster Movie & Soundtracks are well worth a look, and the one album that many Can fans see as their greatest work is Future Days.

I'm belatedly getting into NEU! recently (despite recommendations over many years) and recommend their eponymous first album.

[Famous Mortimer]

What NoSleep said, really. "Tago Mago" was one of my three most-played records at Uni, because it also sounded lovely when played quietly so I didn't annoy my housemates playing it at 3 in the morning. Faust IV is also pretty essential to the new listener of krautrock.

So, as they've all been stated, I'll go for some slightly more obscure but equally decent, albums for you to listen to should the toe you dip in the water be a happy one:

Agitation Free - "Malesch"

Popol Vuh - "Aguirre: The Wrath Of God"

Kraftwerk - 1st album


*waits for the rock in opposition thread*

[simondykes]

I'd say 'Neu!75' would be the ideal intro into the whole Neu! family tree - well,it was mine,and 'Isi' is still my favourite track of theirs.Although I'd also recommend 'Zuckerzeit' by Cluster,which is ten beautiful little tunes which you will want to play over and over again.

I'd say 'Ege Bamyasi' was the best place for anyone starting with Can,although my own favourite is 'Tago Mago',but that might be a bit mental for anyone who's never heard them before ('Peking O' isn't exactly easy listening...)'Ege Bamyasi' has five short very accessible tunes (especially 'I'm So Green',which I think may be the most perfect record of all time),the long drum freakout 'Pinch' and the long just plain freakout 'Soup' which does go into areas of 'Tago Mago' strangeness at times.

My own introduction into krautrock was with 'The Faust Tapes' too,as my dad used to own it (it somehow became part of my collection a few years ago...) and it probably sums them up the best,though as NoSleep says,all of the original four albums are worth owning.

What is great is that so many of these albums are now readily available.When I first bought 'Krautrocksampler' practically none of them were unless you were willing to track them down at record fairs and spend lots of money (which I didn't have),but now I'd say a good 90% of the 'sampler Top 50 can be found very easily - though I still need to get hold of a copy of 'Rastakrautpasta' - the greatest album title ever - and I still don't have any Ash Ra Tempel.

A couple of other recommendations - Cosmic Jokers 'Galactic Supermarket' and Klaus Schulze's 'Irrlicht',not to mention Popol Vuh's 'In Den Garten Pharaos',when you want to get into those longer more epic space odysseys (man).Oh,and my favourite Tangerine Dream album is 'Zeit'.

[Hank_Kingsley]

What NoSleep said, really. "Tago Mago" was one of my three most-played records at Uni, because it also sounded lovely when played quietly so I didn't annoy my housemates playing it at 3 in the morning.

They don't make students like you any more!

[boki]

Ah, they do, but they tend to keep very quiet about it.

I'm just in here to tell Nagsworth to listen to Neu! too, btw.  Not that I've listened to enough Krautrock myself to speak with any kind of authority on the subject, but Neu! are good, especially if you like dancing.

[Ciarán]

Ah, they do, but they tend to keep very quiet about it.

I'm just in here to tell Nagsworth to listen to Neu! too, btw.  Not that I've listened to enough Krautrock myself to speak with any kind of authority on the subject, but Neu! are good, especially if you like dancing.

I'd go along with this recommendation, but my fave Neu! album is "Neu! '75" which I know others don't consider to be really krautrocky or hard enough. But stuff them, it's a terrific album. Also try "Faust So Far" by Faust. One last thing, "Tago Mago" is my favourite Can album. Because I know you're all gagging to know.

[simondykes]

Well,both Julian Cope and myself would agree with you on 'Neu!75' being the best Neu! album....

[Ciarán]

It's turned into quite a bright summer's evening over here so I went for a long walk to the shops and listened to Neu! 75 right through as I walked there and back, just to test it. And yep, it remains ace. Side 1 is better than side 2 overall, but I love the loud punky "Hero" at the start of side 2. And yes, I think "Seeland" is my favourite track off it.

[alan nagsworth]

Okay, got Tago Mago, Faust IV and Faust So Far on the gwan. Will give 'em a listen tomorrow when they've finished downloading. Couldnae find any Neu! on Demonoid so I'll scour Soulseek tomorrow also. Thanks for the tip-offs guys.

[Neville Chamberlain]

Get anything by Faust - you can't go wrong!

Tago Mago is one of my favourite albums of all time too. I too used to stay up listening to that till all hours when I was a stinking, filthy student.

I'm surprised nobody's mentioned Soon Over Babaluma. I listen to this way more than Ege Bamyasi or Future Days.

One band that's often got overlooked in history, probably because the trend went more towards the electronic krautrock, is Amon Düül II. The few classic albums they released (they released a lot of less-than-classic stuff too) remain some of my favourite albums of all time, particularly Yeti and Wolf City. This is quite simply some of the best psychedelic rock ever released, dark, very intense, sinister, and often genuinely disorientating. Highly recommended!

Schwingungen by Ash Ra Tempel is another example of amazingly intense and genuinely psychedelic rock, particularly the track Flowers Must Die, which features a brief moment that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end when it sounded like the entire band was being sucked up just as they were hitting their most intense bit. Of course, it's just a bit of cheesy 70s studio trickery, but it's damn effective. Seriously disturbing stuff (but in a good way!).

Although not from Germany, British bands Henry Cow and This Heat I think share a hell of a lot in common and are well worth checking out if you're that way inclined.

[Neville Chamberlain]

Couldnae find any Neu! on Demonoid so I'll scour Soulseek tomorrow also.

You could always try looking in a "shop"!


;-)

[Hank_Kingsley]

You could always try looking in a "shop"!


;-)

Shut up Grandad!

[Ciarán]

Here's one:

Where to start with the Elephant 6 collective? I have one Olivia Tremor Control album ("Black Foliage" from 1999), I bought it when it was released but lost interest in it early on.  So I know Of Montreal and Neutral Milk Hotel are faves around college campuses and on here. So which record should I buy next? Fell free to factor in that I started a thread on Girls Aloud...

[buttgammon]

Well, there's lots but I would especially recommend two more recent releases: 'Hissing Fauna Are You The Destroyer' by Of Montreal and 'New Magnetic Wonder' by The Apples In Stereo. They are two very addictive records and I've played both of them countless times. Apples In Stereo are a very fun band, I'd certainly recommend them.

[NoSleep]

Get anything by Faust - you can't go wrong!

Tago Mago is one of my favourite albums of all time too. I too used to stay up listening to that till all hours when I was a stinking, filthy student.

I'm surprised nobody's mentioned Soon Over Babaluma. I listen to this way more than Ege Bamyasi or Future Days.

One band that's often got overlooked in history, probably because the trend went more towards the electronic krautrock, is Amon Düül II. The few classic albums they released (they released a lot of less-than-classic stuff too) remain some of my favourite albums of all time, particularly Yeti and Wolf City. This is quite simply some of the best psychedelic rock ever released, dark, very intense, sinister, and often genuinely disorientating. Highly recommended!

Schwingungen by Ash Ra Tempel is another example of amazingly intense and genuinely psychedelic rock, particularly the track Flowers Must Die, which features a brief moment that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end when it sounded like the entire band was being sucked up just as they were hitting their most intense bit. Of course, it's just a bit of cheesy 70s studio trickery, but it's damn effective. Seriously disturbing stuff (but in a good way!).

Although not from Germany, British bands Henry Cow and This Heat I think share a hell of a lot in common and are well worth checking out if you're that way inclined.

I know nothing about Ash Ra Tempel, but otherwise endorse your recommendations of Soon Over Babaluma (I guess it's neglected because Michael Karoli takes over vocal duties from Damo) & Amon Duul II as part of the extended tour of Krautrock.

Re: Henry Cow & This Heat... I almost suggested TH's first album in the context of UK "Krautrock", and I guess there are overlaps between Faust & HC in terms of technique, even sound at times, but I'd never really thought of them as Krautrock because of the 20th Century Classical/Zappa/Free Jazz influences in there too.

[buttgammon]

The only Ash Ra Tempel album I have is the self-titled one, but it is very good so I would definitely recommend it. Neu! and Can are probably the best places to start though.

[Ciarán]

Well, there's lots but I would especially recommend two more recent releases: 'Hissing Fauna Are You The Destroyer' by Of Montreal and 'New Magnetic Wonder' by The Apples In Stereo. They are two very addictive records and I've played both of them countless times. Apples In Stereo are a very fun band, I'd certainly recommend them.

Of those, which would be the most bright and tuneful one? Which comes closest to approximating chart pop music?

[Lord of divs]

Enough of this Kraut Rock shite!  Where do I start with the mighty Melvins??  help!

[buttgammon]

Of those, which would be the most bright and tuneful one? Which comes closest to approximating chart pop music?

Apples In Stereo, definitely. Some of their best tracks are just pure sunny pop genius.

[simondykes]

I know nothing about Ash Ra Tempel, but otherwise endorse your recommendations of Soon Over Babaluma (I guess it's neglected because Michael Karoli takes over vocal duties from Damo) & Amon Duul II as part of the extended tour of Krautrock.

Re: Henry Cow & This Heat... I almost suggested TH's first album in the context of UK "Krautrock", and I guess there are overlaps between Faust & HC in terms of technique, even sound at times, but I'd never really thought of them as Krautrock because of the 20th Century Classical/Zappa/Free Jazz influences in there too.

The later Can albums tend to get overlooked because Copey didn't include them in his book,but there is some classic stuff.My own favourite is 'Saw Delight' and I have a soft spot for the very last self-titled album too.I have to admit that I've never 'got' 'Future Days' however...

Enough of this Kraut Rock shite!  Where do I start with the mighty Melvins??  help!

On the basis of what I've heard of them,start by listening to something else......

[buttgammon]

I've never 'got' 'Future Days' however...

Me neither. Not sure why, it just never did it for me. It's not a patch on Tago Mago as far as I'm concerned.

[CaledonianGonzo]

Of those, which would be the most bright and tuneful one? Which comes closest to approximating chart pop music?

I'd try a couple of songs from each, Ciarán- both albums have very poppy moments (Energy, Heimdalsgate Like a Promethean Curse ) alongside less radio-friendly tracks(The Non-Pythagorean Compositions, The Past Is a Grotesque Animal).

Or you could give Neutral Milk Hotel's In the Aeroplane Over the Sea album a whirl. 

[Lord of divs]

The later Can albums tend to get overlooked because Copey didn't include them in his book,but there is some classic stuff.My own favourite is 'Saw Delight' and I have a soft spot for the very last self-titled album too.I have to admit that I've never 'got' 'Future Days' however...
On the basis of what I've heard of them,start by listening to something else......

Bah! and piffle.

I actually quite like Krautrock, Tangerine dream especially, I just wanted to be sensationalist....

From what I have heard, Melvins are ace.  Therefore you are wrong sir.

[Vitalstatistix]

Of those, which would be the most bright and tuneful one? Which comes closest to approximating chart pop music?

I'd maybe try a different Of Montreal album if this is what you're looking for. I find Hissing Fauna very very dark lyrically and often musically, although there are still a few pop gems in there. The album's about a messy breakup, whereas Sunlandic Twins and Satanic Panic in the Attic are more positive and humorous. Hissing Fauna is fucking fantastic, mind!

[Neville Chamberlain]

Enough of this Kraut Rock shite!  Where do I start with the mighty Melvins??  help!

You can start by buying all their albums then throwing them in the bin!

Great band live! Complete arse on record though!

[simondykes]

Bah! and piffle.

I actually quite like Krautrock, Tangerine dream especially, I just wanted to be sensationalist....

From what I have heard, Melvins are ace.  Therefore you are wrong sir.

I was just being cheeky myself,so no offence intended...
I've got a friend who raves about the Melvins,but they've not quite grabbed me from what she's played me of theirs - but I'll ask her and find out what she recommends.

[buttgammon]

Well, thanks to all the Krautrock enquiries in this thread I've been prompted to dig out my copy of Tago Mago again and I think I'm now going to say that it is the best Krautrock album ever recorded, Neu! 1 being second.