AUTOBAHN

Autobahn could be called Kraftwerk's "breakthrough" album, when they moved from an avant-garde krautrock sound to a more mechanical, synth-oriented sound- Autobahn is no Man-Machine, but it's a lot more electronic than Kling Klang. However, what makes Autobahn great in my opinion is that it fuses minimalistic, repetitive sounds that would be at home in the domain of rhythmic krautrock with electronics. The title track is a perfect example. There's really not much to be said about it besides the fact that it's simply a joy to listen to, and perfectly captures the feeling of driving. Kometenmelodie 1 is a subdued, restrained ambient track, with little more than atmosphere noise and slow synth notes. The second Kometenmelodie, however, is absolutely delightful, life-affirming, and hopeful- the song was about German reconstruction after WWII, and it takes that feeling perfectly- this is honestly one of the happiest songs ever made, up there with XTC's Ten Feet Tall. Mitternacht is a bit of a flashback to their early days, featuring mostly random noises, though synths do poke their head out occasionally. Morgenspaziergang is another happy song, that sounds very morning-like, as the title suggests. The flute is used very nicely with other sounds to create a delicious atmosphere. So, Autobahn is a truly great album that sees the mighty German cyborg people known only as Kraftwerk hit their stride and start making truly epic proto-electronic music. It's on the border between four-star and five-star land, but I think that their later albums are a bit better, and there are a few holes here. Still, four stars is a great honor.