In
the age of the single download, Jeff Harford rediscovers the
album . . .
While 1974's Autobahn marks the moment Dusseldorf
band Kraftwerk fully integrated its human elements with the
machinery of electronic music, 1977's Trans-Europe
Express presents the most engaging aspects of the hybrid
personality that emerged.
Seams of romanticism and humour run through Kraftwerk's sixth
studio album, challenging the stereotype of robotic German
efficiency and precision the group plays on to this day in
its artwork and stage presentation.
Written between spare lines of lyrics are hints at a fresh
connectedness and sophistication within Europe, represented
by opening track Europe Endless and the eponymous
ode to the rail service that reached its zenith in the
mid-'70s.
A sense of detached wonder at the stark beauty of industrial
Dusseldorf also pervades, reflecting the band's experience of
travelling in and out of the city at night.
Fame's alienating price is addressed in Hall Of
Mirrors, but there is time to lampoon the growing
perception of band members as personality-free automatons who
would rather twiddle knobs than enjoy a knees-up.
On Showroom Dummies the mannequins burst through
shop windows in search of a decent nightclub, finally taking
their chance to boogie.
However primitive, minimalist and relentlessly ordered the
rhythms and sounds are, this is where the blueprint for all
electronic dance music to follow was drawn up.
Without Kraftwerk there would have been no Detroit or Chicago
techno scenes, no '80s synth-pop and no Shapeshifter.
While echoing the artistic approaches of pre-war German
modernism, the band was always future-focused, using the
16-channel analogue Synthanorma Sequencer on this album and
thereby building exponentially on the possibilities for
automated musical patterns.
Last month saw the release of digitally remastered versions
of all classic Kraftwerk albums.
The pioneering outfit still performs dazzling live shows
under the guidance of sole remaining original member Ralf
Hutter, the band's human heart.
Trans-Europe Express
A fantastic album that popped up a few years later in hip hop and still sounds fresh today.