According to English music journalist Simon Reynolds, Kraftwerk were influenced by what he called the 'adrenalized insurgency' of Detroit artists of the late '60s MC5 and the Stooges. Although almost entirely instrumental, the album marks Kraftwerk's first use of the vocoder in the song 'Ananas Symphonie' (Pineapple Symphony,) which became one of its musical signatures. With Ralf und Florian, released in 1973, Kraftwerk began to rely more heavily on synthesizers and drum machines.

Later in 1973, Wolfgang Flür joined the group for rehearsals, and the unit performed as a trio on the television show Aspekte for German television network ZDF. These shows were mainly in Germany, with occasional shows in France. Occasionally, they performed with bass players as well. Live performances from 1972 to 1973 were mostly made as a duo, using a simple beat-box-type electronic drum machine with preset rhythms taken from an electric organ. Post-production modifications to these recordings were used to distort the sound of the instruments, particularly audio-tape manipulation and multiple dubbings of one instrument on the same track. The albums were mostly exploratory musical improvisations played on a variety of traditional instruments including guitar, bass, drums, organ, flute, and violin. The band released two free-form experimental rock albums, Kraftwerk (1970) and Kraftwerk 2 (1972).

Hütter, who left the band for eight months to focus on completing his university studies, played synthesizer and keyboards (including Farfisa organ and electric piano). The only constant figure in these line-ups was Schneider, whose main instrument at the time was the flute at times he also played the violin and guitar, all processed through a varied array of electronic devices. Įarly Kraftwerk line-ups from 1970 to 1974 fluctuated, as Hütter and Schneider worked with around a half-dozen other musicians during the preparations for and the recording of three albums and sporadic live appearances, including guitarist Michael Rother and drummer Klaus Dinger, who left to form Neu!. The same year, Hütter and Schneider started bringing everyday life into art and form Kraftwerk'. While visiting an exhibition in their hometown about visual artists Gilbert and George, they see 'two men wearing suits and ties, claiming to bring art into everyday life. Schneider became interested in synthesizers, deciding to acquire one in 1970. They joined a quintet known as Organisation, which released one album, Tone Float in 1970, issued on RCA Records in the UK, and split shortly thereafter. History Formation and early years (1969–1973) įlorian Schneider (flutes, synthesizers, violin) and Ralf Hütter (organ, synthesizers) met as students at the Robert Schumann Hochschule in Düsseldorf in the late 1960s, participating in the German experimental music and art scene of the time, which Melody Maker jokingly dubbed ' krautrock'. 1.8 3-D The Catalogue and Schneider's death (2017–present).1.7 The Catalogue and continued touring (2010–2016).1.6 Tour de France Soundtracks and touring the world (2000–2009).1.3 Trans-Europe Express, The Man-Machine and Computer World (1977–1982).

1.2 International breakthrough: Autobahn and Radioactivity (1974–1976).In 2021, Kraftwerk was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in the early influence category. They later won the Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Album with their live album 3-D The Catalogue (2017) at the 2018 ceremony. In 2014, the Recording Academy honoured Kraftwerk with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. The band's work has influenced a diverse range of artists and many genres of modern music, including synth-pop, hip hop, post-punk, techno, house music, ambient, and club music. Following the release of Electric Café (1986), Flür left the group in 1987, followed by Bartos in 1990. On commercially successful albums such as Autobahn (1974), Trans-Europe Express (1977), The Man-Machine (1978), and Computer World (1981), Kraftwerk developed a self-described 'robot pop' style that combined electronic music with pop melodies, sparse arrangements, and repetitive rhythms, while adopting a stylized image including matching suits.

Wolfgang Flür joined the band in 1974 and Karl Bartos in 1975, expanding the band to a quartet. The group began as part of West Germany's experimental krautrock scene in the early 1970s before fully embracing electronic instrumentation, including synthesizers, drum machines, and vocoders. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk were among the first successful acts to popularize the genre. ' power station') are a German band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider.

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