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Not just outside the box, but denying the existence of boxes.
Covering music from the fringes since 1993.

Reviews

Kluster — Klopfzeichen
(Bureau B BB 110, 1971/2012, CD)

Kluster — Zwei-Osterei
(Bureau B BB 111, 1971/2012, CD)

by Mike Ezzo, Published 1998-07-01

Klopfzeichen Cover artZwei-Osterei Cover art

Much rapturous and subjective ink is continually spilled in praise of the early years of krautrock. But let's call a spade a spade. These two long lost morsels by Kluster are regarded as classics primarily because they are very old, and hellatiously rare in the original vinyl versions. Don't misunderstand my point though. I love this stuff too. It is definitely where the story begins (sidestepping the academic pioneers like Stockhausen). Kluster deserves, but rarely gets, at least as much credit as the (at that time) rock bands Tangerine Dream and Can. But compare Klopfzeichen and Zwei-Oesterei to later Cluster (same as Kluster minus Conrad Schnitzler) such as Sowiesoso, and the former pre-historical efforts are like crawling on hands and knees. Both discs were produced in two recording sessions late in December 1970, though many discographical sources seem to botch this information. The music was completely improvised in the studio, utilizing what primitive technology was available at the time. And "primitive" is the operative word. If you think MIDI-fied gizmos and samplers are to music what formica is to furniture, then feast the ears on 90 minutes of pure, raw exploration. Their clanging and tweaking of what sound like pots and pans, and manipulating of soundboard effects is what experimental music used to be all about, before automation replaced imagination. No question then, essential items if for no other reason than to witness a slice of history. But let us not allow the nostalgia of krautrock zealots, whose mawkish opinions are proliferating nowadays, to cloud our judgment. Moebius, Schnitzler, and Roedelius have, since 1970, throughout all their projects, far surpassed what is found on these archive discs. Newcomers would be well advised to check out something along the lines of Curiosum or One Hour before coming here.

Filed under: Reissues, Issue 15, 2012 releases, 1971 recordings

Related artist(s): Conrad Schnitzler, Cluster / Kluster / Qluster, Hans-Joachim Roedelius, Dieter Moebius

 

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