In some ways, the Autobahn album by Kraftwerk feels like their first one but it’s actually their fourth release. It’s the first entry point for many, like skipping the early Pink Floyd or Fleetwood Mac to jump into the later catalogue. The core two of Germans Florian Schneider and Ralf Hutter added Klaus Roder and Wolfgang Flur to create an album that is split into two. The 22-minute title track takes up side one with four other songs making up side two of this album that went top 5 in both the US and UK.
Starting with a car door slam, the auto is started and the music starts to drive onto the “Autobahn”. Cinematic, it starts with the sound of driving down the highway while passing by rolling plains and fields of wheat. It’s Kraftwerk’s first track with lyrics that immediately get misinterpreted. Singing “drive drive drive” in German, the words sound like The Beach Boys-like “fun fun fun” in English. The Moog bassline is the main sound with a guitar and flanged synths. Later the sounds gets tighter, more serious, as busy traffic appears before turning into spacey prog. It’s truly an epic song with ebbs and flows like driving down a highway on a long road trip.
The second side is the come down after the glorious first side, with shorter songs that are more of a soundscape. “Kometenmelodie 2 (Comet Melody 2)” is a lively track with the low end making a bit of a groove with an infectious, more lighthearted sound. With a couple of moody pieces, closing track “Morgenspaziergang (Morning Walk)” is a bit new age-y with a flute and the sound of rushing water.
As an album, it’s side one that will rightfully get all the attention but side two manages to hold the listener’s attention as they recover from the long drive. A remarkable piece of electronic music history that would prove to be as highly influential as it is enduring.
9/10
The Light Appears 