The Man Machine
	Produced by Ralf Hutter & Florian Schneider
	Released on May 1978
	UK CHART POSITION #9 . . . US CHART POSITION #130
	Find it at GEMM
S11-56854 cover [high resolution photo]

M ankind called to the dance by the mesmerizing hum of Machines, a once-preposterous notion that was fast becoming our possible future. Kraftwerk were ahead of their time in creating such a musical cyborg, where spirit and circuitry twined indistinguishable from the other. Human beings were, in effect, puppets to be pulled by the directives of machines in the direction of the dance floor. The quartet had advocated the unholy alliance earlier on Radioactivity (the machines shall inherit the earth) and Trans-Europe Express (technology has turned man into automatons); here The Man Machine appropriates leisure as its pleasure. It remains one of their most accessible records, offering tantalizing beats and simple melodies in a siren’s song from our robotic overlords. And many listeners were sympathetic to the message, ranking The Man Machine as one of Kraftwerk’s most effective statements. It is a remarkable record, even as it seeks to simplify the discussion of earlier works. Blurring the distinction between electrical noise and electronic music on “The Robots” and “Spacelab” is fascinating at first, but by “Metropolis” the band seems bored with the experiment. Warmer sentiments arise on “The Model” and especially “Neon Lights,” two tracks that best balance the animechanical merger, but again the title track does little more than draw out a template for the dance mixes of the future. It’s not fair to blame the messenger, I know, but the message here is that people could be placated with blips and beats and a barely dressed melody. Kraftwerk showed restraint in the application of their new discovery, but the bands of tomorrow took less care, soon inundating the market with pointless remixes whose purpose was to facilitate a long, synchronized orgy of oxygen-deprived dancers. It’s difficult to separate the two today, much as the genius of Robert Oppenheimer remains tarnished, even if Kraftwerk’s original goal was revolution rather than repetition. The Man Machine remains an important chapter in the genesis of electronica; too bad it inspired an exodus of integrity that trampled the musical sensibilities of more than a few of us.

S11-56854 back cover

TRACK LISTING

1. THE ROBOTS
2. SPACELAB
3. METROPOLIS
4. THE MODEL
5. NEON LIGHTS
6. THE MAN MACHINE

CREDITS

KARL BARTOS -- electronic percussion
WOLFGANG FLUR -- electronic percussion
RALF HUTTER -- voice & electronics, album concept
FLORIAN SCHNEIDER -- voice & electronics, album concept
Joschko Rudas -- engineer, mixing
Leanard Jackson -- engineer, mixing
Karl Klefisch -- artwork (inspired by El Lissitzky)
Gunter Frohling -- photographs

return to KRAFTWERK discography

For more discographies visit...

© 2004 Connolly & Company. All rights reserved.