Man Machine Music

 Kraftwerk's Computer World by 

Steven Tupai Francis

Ueli Frey, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

                                                                                                                                                                            By Joel Solomon CC BY 2.0

By HoKoSto Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives Works 3.0 License

I really enjoyed Francis’s entry into the 33 1/3 book series on Kraftwerk. This was one of the stronger entries, not only focused on the technical aspects of the album, but also on the cultural significance of the album as well. Francis not only explores the history of the album and how it came about, but also examines the legacy of Kraftwerk and how influential they have been in other genres of music as well, whether it is techno, hip-hop, disco, funk, etc. Most enjoyable for me was Francis’s exploration of the different equipment Kraftwerk used to create their albums. He helped to show how they shifted ideas about art and music, and like Dadaists in visual art earlier, helped to emphasize how readymade objects and everyday devices can be repurposed for art and expression. I really appreciated how revolutionary Kraftwerk were and hadn’t necessarily thought about this. Nevertheless, it was fascinating to learn more about the ways they explored technology and its uses in our lives, and how they attempted to interrogate that kind of merging of man and machine that has been growing steadily closer as we move towards a knowledge economy. Although recorded over 40 years ago Computer World remains relevant because Kraftwerk were so visionary and experimental. This book provides not only an enjoyable overview of the album, but also looks at the cultural factors that helped to create the album as well as the legacy and influence of the album and the band.