A companion piece to Wolfgang Seidel’s book, Krautrock Eruption: An Alternative History of German Underground in the 60’s & 70s, this double album release shines a light on some of the more underground and cosmic acts from that great era of music. Instead of just focusing on Can, Neu, Amon Düül 2, Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, et. al, Krautrock Eruption includes some amazing lesser known artists like Conrad Schnitzler, Harard Grosskopf, Gunter Schickert, Wolfgang Riechmann, Faust, Asmus Tiechtens, Pyrolator, and the Cluster crew. Seidel co-founded the rock band, Ton Steine Scherben, in 1970, and had a first-hand view of the birth of the German underground as it went from the 60s beat bands to the more radical and experimental 70s groups. Interestingly, Seidel notes how the Monks (who were American GIs stationed in Frankfurt) were the originators of the motorik drum beat, and how a lot of the early musicians were rightful unhappy with the term "Krautrock" due to how it pigeonholed their music and wrongly tried to tie their music down based on national identity. The other obvious point, especially when you listen to this release, is that a good chunk of these bands simply did not rock. Nobody has ever fist-pumped or raised a lighter to a Cluster or Conrad Schnitzler song; that music was aiming for something more cerebral and even otherworldly than your standard 70’s arena rock affair. Regardless of the term, this music is some of the best experimental music of the past fifty years, and it is impossible to overstate its influence over so many genres of music. Whether you're a new to the German scene, or well versed in it, this collection is very well curated and highly recommended.

Bureau B