Keine Dachs-erforderlich-Europameisterschaft – #2

2. Kraftwerk

The Robots – Kraftwerk (1978, King Klang Records)

Points 199

Highest Position: First (Twice)

I think this is the fourth or maybe the fifth Musical Jury Vote, and it is without doubt the closest contest we have ever had.  Throughout the voting period the lead swapped between Kraftwerk and the act that finished first.  There was barely ever more than two or three points between them.  When the last set of votes came in, Kraftwerk had 182 points and the act that finished first had 179. 

In that set of votes, Kraftwerk got 17 points and the other act got 20.  Which meant that we have a tie, with both acts on 199 points.

Now, normally in the event of a tie, I choose which of the acts that are tied I like the best and simply awarded them .01 of a point.  But this is the European Championships, we can decide things like that and so we can only do the only sensible thing. 

A penalty shoot out.

Pocket Calculator – Kraftwerk (1981, Kling Klang Records)

Largely because what with Kraftwerk being Germans they would obviously start as clear favourites.  So in order to make that happen, nine members of the Musical Jury were selected at random and told to pick one of the two acts, and then the one with the most votes will be voted Rocks Greatest Europeans.

If life has taught me one thing, its never expect the expected because somehow Kraftwerk lost the penalty shoot out and as such are officially now Rocks Second Greatest Europeans.

However, it was a very close run thing and there was a still a lot of love for Kraftwerk.  Here is for the third time this week MJM Helsinki, who as usual, hits the nail right on the head,

“They got stuck in the 80s and concentrated on updating their equipment rather than writing songs but by that point they’d already done ‘Autobahn’, ‘Trans-Europe Express’, ‘The Robots’, ‘Radioactivity’, ‘Man Machine’ and invented a new vocabulary and sound for European music”.

Trans- Europe Express – Kraftwerk (1977, Kling Klang Records)

Autobahn – Kraftwerk (1975, Kling Klang Records)

It’s not just that new sound for European Music that Helsinki talks of so vividly above, that makes Kraftwerk stand out from the crowd.  Here is MJM London,

“If you only ever listened to just three Kraftwerk albums, namely ‘Autobahn’, ‘Computer World’ and ‘Man Machine’ you would hear at least eight musical genres scrapping for primacy.  You get synth pop, of course, but you get post punk, hip hop or at least the beats and structures of hip hop), techno, disco, ambient soundscapes and house music and I’ve not even mentioned krautrock, and that motorik bassline that propels most of Kraftwerk’s music along.  They have become a band that are so difficult to pigeonhole and they remain one of the greatest of all musical treats even fifty years after they first stepped (quietly) on to the stage”.

I agree with pretty much all, of what Helsinki and London say.  There is nothing quite like Kraftwerk.

Neon Lights – Kraftwerk (1978, Kling Klang Records)

Right, join us here tomorrow for the number one. 

Before we leave though, here is a track from the act that finished in 29^th position, a band who need our support because they find themselves supporting Pearl Jam tomorrow, lord only knows who they upset to get that punishment. 

Don’t Cling to Life – The Murder Capital (2019, Human Season Records)