AUTOBAHN

Kraftwerk's breakthrough album sees them adopt a cold, stark, predominantly synthesised sound which somehow manages to be catchy and pop-friendly would eventually exert a huge influence over the new wave (particularly artists like Gary Numan). A few acoustic sounds slip in here and there, but the strong emphasis on synthesisers is already becoming apparent, and would eventually be relied on to an almost cartoonish extent by the band - but here, the transitional nature of the album means it's of more than usual interest to fans of their earlier Krautrock style. Definitely worth a listen and unquestionably a historical album, but the title track does go on for a bit and some of the synths sounds have not dated well.