Krautrock: Original Album Series

A lot of really great stuff here that's hard to find elsewhere..... I especially dig on the inclusion of the Message and Asterix albums..... Too much cool!

This is a great value you get 5 krautrock cd's at a great price ( I paid $15) you will probably pay more than that for 1 of these anywhere else, they are not classics but they are all good.

ok

I must say I bought this primarily for the Asterix album that I had heard on youtube (who says people don't buy music they hear for free?). I must say that I'm a sucker for German progressive jam bands with a bit of inventiveness (rough edges and accents and all) like Kraan, Birth Control, King Ping Meh et al, alongside more 'traditional' Krautrock like Neu, Harmonia. The Message and Gift albums are fun. Parzival is twee pseudo mediaevil folk-rock in the vein of Amazing Blondel - though decidedly inferior. For me the La Dusseldorf is actually a disappointment after having heard so much about it - very much a second rate Neu in an early 80s vein - but perhaps it might grow on me. At this price worth a visit for sure.

Not krautrock but nevertheless pretty good hard rock Message is especially good.

La categoria 'krautrock' è abbastanza ambigua (fu coniata con intento canzonatorio dalla rivista inglese 'Melody Maker') ma è di solito associata ai gruppi tedeschi degli anni '70 che facevano la musica cosiddetta 'cosmica', oppure elettronica (Kraftwerk in testa). In questo cofanetto di musica simile se ne trova ben poca, poiché quattro dei cinque gruppi qui inseriti sembrano piuttosto dediti a un più convenzionale hard rock e progressive di stampo britannico, cantato in inglese.I più interessanti mi sembrano i Message (che a stento si possono definire un gruppo tedesco, visto che il cantante/fiatista e il chitarrista sono inglesi), che producono un rock piuttosto variegato, duro ma non troppo, con qualche cenno di funky che sembra prefigurare bands di 15-20 anni dopo come Living Colour o RHCP.I Parzival fanno un'orecchiabile progressive medievaleggiante, mentre i Gift non si discostano molto dai canoni dell'hard rock inglese à la Led Zeppelin o Deep Purple. Gli Asterix (uno dei nomi più stupidi mai assunti da un gruppo rock) fanno invece un curioso hard rock con pianoforte, che a tratti può ricordare The Who.Gli unici che si discostano da questo trend sono anche i peggiori del lotto, i LA Dusseldorf; pare che fossero molto apprezzati da Brian Eno e David Bowie, ma sinceramente non ne capisco il motivo: quello che si sente in questo disco ('Viva', 1978) sembrano mediocri scarti dei Kraftwerk (a voler essere generosi), ripetitivi e privi di una qualunque idea musicale. L'unica cosa apprezzabile del disco in questione è la foto sul retro che ritrae (presumo) il leader Klaus Dinger in compagnia di un asino: per come la vedo io, una severa ma giusta autocritica...In conclusione, se vi interessa il krautrock lasciate perdere questo cofanetto, ma fateci un pensierino se siete interessati al rock tedesco orientato all'hard e al progressive.

Though Viva isn't my favourite La Dusseldorf album - some of it's a bit throwaway - the 20-minute 'Cha Cha 2000' is pretty much essential. However, the reason I bought this set was just to try out the other 4 albums, none of which I knew. You never know, there may be an obscure classic here... There isn't. The Parzival album is decent enough prog, with some experimental touches, but turgid early 70s rock is pretty much the order of the day for the box. In fact, if you could devise a process to distill the pure essence of cliched early 70s hard rock, you'd come up with the Asterix album: plodding, reverb-soaked vocals, ham-fisted hammond, neanderthally predictable guitar solos, & lyrics that could give Spinal Tap a run for their money. And if, for some reason, you idly wonder what they would sound like without the Hammond, the answer is: Gift. In comparison, the fact that the Message album is instantly forgettable seems a blessing. 'Krautrock' is one of those notoriously imprecise terms, but I don't know anyone who would include anything other than Viva here under that umbrella. So, it's two stars, but would go up to four if it didn't have the four no-hopers.

I've always found the term Krautrock somewhat patronising but if it is going to be used then use it in the proper context. Thats German bands whos music is primarily informed by their own industrial and social landscape.Four of these groups take their musical ques from the late sixties early 70s British progressive and hard rock boom and two of them feature British musicians. Asterix having John Lawton as one of two lead singers,[they became Lucifers Friend immediately after this album release] This box would have been better balanced if the Kin ping meh album Virtues And Sins from the German Rock Classics box was transposed with the La Dusseldorf album Viva, and why call that one German Rock Classics?. Anyway if like me you enjoy aquiring all kinds of music,then this and German Rock Classics is an excellent opportunity to get your hands on some individually hard to get hold of bands from the 70s at a very reasonable price.