NEU!

And it isn't, strictly speaking, a concert recording at all, but rather a "non-public test" (in Dinger's words) for an upcoming set of gigs, captured in less-than-glorious low fidelity on strictly non-professional equipment (a cheap audio cassette player, I'm guessing).

First, the bad news: the sound quality is undeniably atrocious. The bass guitar of guest-star Eberhard Kranemann (a comrade from the early days of KRAFTWERK) tends to overwhelm the other instruments, and Dinger's drum kit might have been played in a different building altogether, across a busy street. The louder the music, the greater the audio distortion, and in what sounds like an empty warehouse the trio could be very loud indeed.

It was all part of Klaus Dinger's proto-punk, audio vérité aesthetic, which means you can expect a lot of more or less dead air between the moments of actual performance. That irritating scraping noise, by the way, was likely a microphone dragged across the concrete floor while the instruments were being re-tuned.

But the album hardly represents the bottom of the Krautrock barrel, as some reviewers have said. Despite all the cosmetic shortcomings, you're being allowed privileged access to a Neu! rehearsal...and you're complaining? Never mind the poor sound or the lack of structure or the time spent searching for that elusive one-chord groove. Enjoy instead the rare experience of being a fly on the studio wall while two Krautrock legends struggled to find their muse. Whether or not they succeeded is beside the point.

Maybe the belated release of these tapes was Dinger's desperate attempt to 'beat the boots', following the example of FRANK ZAPPA's anti-bootleg campaign. The difference was that Zappa marketed the material himself, rather than selling it to the first outside bidder with an open wallet. As an officially sanctioned album it would have tarnished the band's impeccable legacy. But as an only semi-legitimate, untouched portrait of a Neu! practice session-in-progress it's well worth investigation by Krautrock completists. Call it a two-star treasure to die-hard collectors, with another star added for raw documentary appeal.

"Neu!", the debut album Neu! is an album that sends you into a parallel dimension. Clearly you need to be relaxed and ready for anything in order to understand this music. It is the pursuit of a parallel world, often higher. Certainly it would seem elementary music, but every note is not random.

There are many aspects that should be dissected, such as a whole speech on the ambient scene, it would be important. However I feel I can say that even in a narrow view to the scene of the 70's Krautrock "Neu!" is an honest masterpiece.

Kraut legends Neu! consisting of Klaus Dinger on voice, percussion, guitar, piano, organ, and Michael Rother guitar, piano, synth orchestra, electronics, voice, made an indelible impression with their debut with some stark haunting compositions that are definitive to the Krautrock scene. This is their third album which is at times a very accessible project and at other times lunges deep into the avant territory of the first album. It begins with a surprisingly upbeat motorik electro pop sound on 'Isi'. The commercial sound is striking when compared to the dark drones and experimentation of the debut. It has a great melody and is reminiscent of early Kraftwerk.

'Seeland' is a darker sound with cold stark tones and an ominous guitar and spacey synth lines. The guitars are beautiful drawing in the listener with spacey textures over the hypnotic melody rhythm. The synth pads are laced with ribbons of sizzling electronics. The rain fall, thunder rolls across the heavens and leads to 'Leb' wohl'. This one is haunting and has a slow dreamy feel that entrances. The sleepy piano lines are accompanied by echoed vocals, sung as though half asleep, the beach sounds are part of the ambience. But if this one puts the listener to blissful sleep the next track is a rude awakening.

The album may be seen as an album with a multiple progressive disorder; one half is mesmirising ambience, with the other half, side two of the vinyl, a proto punk bolt of energy. Side one is Rother's ambient influenced instrumental dreamscape, side two is Dinger's aggressive punked up distortion nightmare.

Dinger's excursion into anger as an energy is helped with two supplementary drummers; brother Thomas, and Hans Lampe. This would be the backbone of the next project for Dinger with these members jumping on board, for the esoterica of La Düsseldorf. 'Hero' is the first taste of punk and really sounds extraordinarily like Johnny Rotten's vocals and the angst driven guitar sonics of the Sex Pistols. Dinger sounds better though and the time sig is a simple 4 on the floor with double percussion. I like the keyboard chimes on this and it is so jarring after all the sleepy music that it has to be one of the shining moments of the album.

There are tape noises that are put through effects machines to add a sense of weirdness to it all similar to the first 2 Neu! albums. It is followed by motorik hypno trance rhythms on 'E-musik' sounding rather like 'Autobahn' or other early Kraftwerk in places. The electro sounds augment this feel that is no holds barred Krautrock. The very sweet synthesizer swooshes are similar to early Gary Numan, who must have been influenced here, especially on songs such as 'Complex' and the synth punk of Tubeway Army's 'Listen to the Sirens' and 'Zero Bars'. The beat on 'E-musik' is electronica at its most entrancing, and this is an influential track for all these reasons. The one note or chord of E works well allowing jamming instruments to fade in and out. It ends with a haunting wind howling and a deep slowed down bassvoice. Simply stunning Neu! at their best.

The final track is 'After Eight' and we return to the proto punk, and listening to this may cause one to wonder did Neu! invent the punk sound that almost single handedly destroyed prog? Ironic, if so, but Neu! were pioneers and took incredible risks and are all the more infamous for this. This last track is reminiscent of Hawkwind's punk sound more than Sex Pistols or perhaps closer to Iggy and The Stooges.

This album is perhaps one of the better albums in terms of accessible music and an entertaining sound throughout. I am no fan of punk but on this album Neu! make it easy to digest due to the inventive structures. Rother and Dinger would reunite after a ten year hiatus to try their hand at another Neu! project but the album is nowhere near the legendary status of their first three classic 70s master works.

"Isi" is a powerless instrumental with a song structure. "Seeland" is a mild ambient track that also seems to possess a kind of a song structure, only it sounds more like just a series of repetitions of a chorus all the way through. "Leb' Wohl" is another mild ambient track; a piano, the sound of crashing waves, and signals in the air is all there is. The second side opens with "Hero", a puzzling punky song with a verse and a chorus that just drag on for six minutes. "E-Musik" definitely sounds like a product of human waste for the most part because it features flanged-up drums going on for minutes and minutes. What I mean is that the track lacks emotion and blazing energy ? just the thing I would usually expect from this duo. The reprises in the end are quite interesting, though. Yet still, the drums just bug me.

All of the aforementioned shortcomings emphasize the closing track as quite a surprise. "After Eight" sounds like a precursor to the things to come in US and UK, a.k.a. the punk movement. Yes, it does sound like the bland fourth track on the album, but it features certain little things that made all the difference for me. The song is shorter than "Hero". Plus, it has Klaus Dinger trying out different things with his vocal. Sometimes he goes higher in pitch and louder when he sings with that grotesque worn voice (thanks to his smoking habit). The song also features some hellish backing vocal accompaniment and experimental synth sounds veering through the texture. The guitar timbre has a good amount of that crunch and richness in tone. This is experimental industrial punk at its absolute best.

There is something I would like to add here: even though most of these tracks sound like simplistic dross, they also show that Neu! did not seem to be willing to strive in music-making beyond their abilities. They were not in the least bit pretentious. They demonstrated their limitations and were very sincere about it, and I must give them credit for that.

To sum up, this is not a completely worthless record. As it always has been, I'm just one person, and you just might be one of those people who would regard it as a kind of an obscure sonic triumph. But, as it has been implied in the text above, innovation does not seem to be prevailing here, and don't even dream about abundance of melody on this record.

Ratings/comments (if you have to ask):

1. 'Isi' - * ; 2. 'Seeland' - ** ; 3. 'Leb' Wohl' - ** ; 4. 'Hero' - ** ; 5. 'E-Musik' - * ; 6. 'After Eight' - ***** ;

Stamp: "Try it yourself."

The album starts with a ten-minute affair that took me quite a few listens to appreciate it. "Hallogallo" is largely constituted of mild grooves by Michael Rother and minimalist drumming by Klaus Dinger. I have no clue who exactly concocted those weird experimental guitar sounds, but they sure sound mild too. This is like a steady-paced boat- or car- trip, better yet a mid-tempo motion of windshield wipers, that gives you an opportunity to relax and take a break from all the hectic activities you might have gone through.

The second track is probably something that has never been done before, but I mean that without any implications of good quality whatsoever. It's an interesting track the details of which I refuse to disclose so that you would have the opportunity to shape your own perspective about it. Let's just say that "Sonderangebot" ("Special Offer") has a surprise that significantly improves the track's quality in general, defines its purpose more clearly, and has the potential of corrupting your prostate (if you have one) if you are listening to this through a pair of headphones or a surround system.

Frankly, I don't know what tracks 3, 4, and 6 do on the album. The duo seems to be pretty hung up on some ambient minimalism ideas so mediocre that I fail to see the point of the existence of these three tracks. The last one, especially, makes me want to do some crazy things to myself whenever I hear that weird vocal performance.

Now let's discuss "Negativland", my biggest favorite on the album. I remember that back in the day when I was in high school I was a bit frightened of the idea of enduring the lengthy noise torture present on this track. Some two-three years later I have perceived its mighty power and the possible purpose of that power. "Negativland" could serve as a great soundtrack for that segment of the footage on the Deutsch Avantgarde documentary "The Rebirth of Germany", where all these West-Berlinians had to flee the police force as fast as they could. I presume that it is Klaus Dinger who demonstrated his vision for punk since he is the punk of the duo. He shoots out some mean, just neurotic, guitar patterns as if he is about to rip his heart out. I think that I wouldn't be able to see that has it not been for the amazing guitar tone. I forgot to mention that the track is also very well structured, which is another plus for it. It's like as if Dinger is soloing with riffs. Quite an idea, huh? Also, the production on the track sublime.

Ratings/comments (if you have to ask):

1. 'Hallogallo' - *** ; 2. 'Sonderangebot' - *** ; 3. 'Weissensee' - ** ; 4. 'Im Gluck' - ** ; 5. 'Negativland' - ***** ; 6. 'Lieber Honig' - * ;

Stamp: "Try it yourself."

A listener's first excursion into the murky dense world of Neu! can be a love hate relationship. The tracks range in emotion from dynamic, vibrant exhilaration ('Hallogallo') to brooding impenetrable intensity ('I'm Gluck'). This early pioneering album is as important to Krautrock as it is to independent alternative modern music.

At times the rhythms are positively hypnotic such as the spacey 'Negativland', and the album does have its fair share of disturbia reminiscent of God Speed You! Black Emperor. 'Sonderangebot' has some unsettling gong splashes and distant cries and is one to avoid in pitch darkness.

The motorik beat of Michael Rother's guitar is a force in itself on the 10 minute hypnosis of 'Hallogallo'. This is my introduction to Neu! And I was delighted it did not over indulge in experimental avant-garde ramblings. 'Weissensee' is as close to Pink Floyd's musicality as one can get and its slow crawling psychedelic tones drone beautifully with measured guitar wah-wah swells.

'Lieber Honig' has a vocal performance in the form of Klaus Dinger's mournful intonations about the pain of feeling isolated; at least that is how it sounds in a language as foreign as Kobaian. The minimalism is unnerving in places but Neu! never overdo things by releasing a loud blast to induce a cheap heart failure as some bands do so. Actually, in the most curious way, the song is rather relaxing.

'Im Glück' is memorable for its ambient textures especially the soundbytes of a rowboat paddling on the river slowly. One may be reminded of a scene in a horror movie where the paddlers are being watched from afar by rednecks ready to strike terror; cue the banjo.

One may hear the makings of alternative indie such as Sigur Ros, Radiohead, GSYBE or Stereolab. This debut was light years ahead of its time and would have stunned listeners and of course it carved an indelible mark in the foundation of Krautrock.

"Neu! 2" is uber exciting in it's quirkiness.

Neu!'s sophomore effort is too many times underrated, as it is in my book on the same level as the acclaimed debut, and is essential for the forming od the project's following album, "Neu! 75". It's ambition and boldness might turn off some people, or make them believe it's only pretentiousness, because what we have here in a few moments is pure avant-garde.

Compared to the debut, it looks that "Neu! 2" uses the same paradigm of the self titled but adds something to it: the sophomore is far more experimental, quirky, and straight-up weird. The rhythms are even more robotic and futuristic sounding, while the guitars are using even weirder effects (especially a lot of pitch change) and are even more abrasive in the lively moments, making Neu! one of the most influential bands for Punk and especially Post-Punk. Best way to describe this music seems to be Cyberpunk, in the end. But this is also groundbreaking for electronic music in general; many of the songs here are remixes, or little experimentations which are a result of messing around with old tapes. The use of soundscapes, sound collage and what else, has sure been used before, but never in such a context.

Cool and brave at the same time, "Neu! 2" has however one flaw only: some parts are a little boring and way too toned down: the effects these few moments have aren't really exhilarating and don't really do anything to the album. These moments are just pure fillers, and fillers usually are something that don't bother me.

This album is in fact at times hated for this reason, it is basically a collection of filler songs, each one of these different from the other: Examples of such variety are songs like "Lila Engel", with it's bizarre wild vocals, the drony "Super 16", the energy sprint of "Neuschnee 78", "Super 78" and the final song "Super", this last one the most Punkish song of the band. Finally, the dragging "Hallo Excentrico", and the opening eleven minute track which possibly is the most serious one and the one that most resembles the masterpiece of the debut album "HalloGallo".

"Neu! 2" is one of the most fun Krautrock albums ever written; courageous, ultra-strange, uber exciting. It's a shame that this album is sort of underrated compared to the other albums of the project, when it really maintains the same high qualities as the rest of their discography.

Neu!'s self titled debut is the spinal cord of the band's career.

When considering Krautrock as a whole, Neu! Are one of the first projects to pop into mind. This duo from Dusseldorf has been extremely influential for a very wide range of genres, from Ambient to Punk. The self titled debut album of theirs is acclaimed as a masterpiece of the genre, a perfect Krautrock model.

Neu! Have a very distinct and unique sound, which makes it question their position of being the most typical band of the genre. All the songs feature strong repetition, determined and solid rhythms that never fade out or change, accompanied by guitars with different effects, the only element that gives some sort of change during the course of a song. The atmosphere might be calm or more tense, peaceful or more chaotic, but this formula will never change, at least not for this album. As a consequence all of the songs are very stretched out, despite not being extremely long (the maximum length on this album for a track is about ten minutes).

The only problem about this album is that although well planned, executed, and everything else, it has no meat to it, it has only the spinal cord. Here we have an album that relies mostly on structure, and not specifically on the music. Then again, if this album did have more meat to it, it would have been a masterpiece, and probably the following albums would not have been so, unless the duo went towards a completely different direction. This album could have overshadowed everything else Neu! did in the future, but, thank God, it didn't.

These are minor complaints that don't at all affect the entertainment this album gives, when looking upon some of the songs here: "Hallogallo" is one of the best, most memorable and well constructed songs by the band, an instant classic that mixes robotic, futuristic atmospheres with deeply human emotions. Among the more lively songs, the dreadful and torturous "Negativland" has a creepy feel to it that isn't easy to forget, while among the more experimental and mellower songs, the minimalistic "Lieber Honig", the Ambient based tracks "Im Gluck" and "Sonderangebot", not to forget the more optimistic sounding "Weissensee", give a further hint of originality to the picture.

Neu!'s debut is no doubt an important release not only for the band but for Krautrock in general, to the point where this kind of value comes before the music itself. It is a very entertaining album nevertheless, essential listening for anyone who loves the genre.

Even though E-Musik drags on somewhat, and Hero and After Eight are basically two very slightly different takes on the same general concept, these compositions both expanded the Krautrock palette and also caught the attention of artists such as David Bowie, whose subsequent Berlin albums would be crucial in making sure a progressive/art rock attitude survived to become part of the post-punk/New Wave movement. I'd say this more than earns its four stars.

Side two, however, is a bit disappointing to me, at least a couple of the tracks. I generally enjoy both Krautrock and post-punk stylings, but I can't help but think that "Hero" TOTALLY destroys the mood the album started to set on the first side. The track takes this side of the album in a decidedly punky direction, plus adds two more members (another Dinger and Hans Lampe) on percussion. Not a bad track, but not what I would have wanted to hear had I heard this album on vinyl instead of CD. "E-Musik" is a lot better, being somewhat of a compromise between the wonderful atmosphere of side one's music and the beat of "Hero" - the group sort of...warp the beat, and this track is pretty dreamy, in a motorik sort of way. Later on it backs off a bit and we get a sort of reprise of "Leb' Wohl" which I enjoy. Good track overall. "After Eight" goes back to the general style of "Hero" and like that track I wish it was more laid back.

Side one of the album is definitely at least 4.5-star material, some of my favorite (and I think most representative) of Neu!'s dreamy side. Side two is trickier; "E-Musik" is 4 star material at least, the other two tracks are 3-star. Overall, I'd definitely recommend one of Neu!'s first two albums as a starting point...probably their debut, since Neu! 2 toys around with a lot of tape manipulation/vinyl manipulation, which I know isn't everyone's cup of tea. 3 stars for this album...still good, but doesn't match the heights of the previous two.