Mechanised music - the other side of electronica.
Tonight was supposed to be a night to stay in, to rest up ahead of a short camping trip to Wales, but circumstance dictated otherwise. Or rather, I decided otherwise. Notified by a parent of Wolfgang Flür playing up the road in Kings Heath, I adjusted what formative plans I had, and headed up said street. Of the four key Kraftwerk members, Flür was the one that bailed first, and has been out of their orbit the longest. His departure wasn’t clean. Having not been credited on his last two albums with the group, he was likely already ostracised within the group. Feelings further soured when remaining members sued him to prevent the release of his autobiography, aptly titled ‘I was a Robot’. Subsequently, there has been a reinvention of sorts, from Robot to Music Soldier. He lent on his robotic past heavily, the screen behind showing intimate photos of Kraftwerk outside the studio in civvies - occasionally even smiling. Yet this soldier was distinct, actively promoting the difference ...