Neu! (album)
Encyclopedia
Neu! is the debut album by Krautrock
band Neu!
.
It was recorded in December 1971 at Windrose-Dumont-Time Studios, Hamburg
, Germany
, mixed at Star-Musik Studio, Hamburg, Germany, and released in 1972 by Brain Records
. It was reissued by Astralwerks
on May 29, 2001. This was Rother & Dinger's first recording together after they left Kraftwerk
in 1971. They continued to work with Conny Plank, who had been producing the Kraftwerk recording sessions.
The pair recorded in Star Studios in Hamburg, with the up-and-coming Krautrock producer Konrad "Conny" Plank, as Dinger had with Kraftwerk. Dinger describes Conny's abilities as a "mediator" between the often disagreeing factions within the band.
The band were booked in to the studio for four days in late 1971, according to Dinger, the first two days were unproductive, until Dinger brought his Japanese Banjo
to the sessions, a heavily treated version of which can be heard on "Negativland", the first of the album's six tracks to be recorded.
It was during these sessions that Dinger first played his famous "motorik
" beat (Two songs on the album, "Hallogallo" and "Negativland", feature Dinger's "Motorik
-beat"). Motorik is a repeated 4/4 drumbeat with only occasional interruptions, perhaps best showcased on "Hallogallo". Dinger claims never to have called the beat motorik himself, preferring either "lange gerade" ("long straight") or "endlose gerade" ("endless straight"). He later changed the beat's "name" to the "Apache
beat" to coincide with his 1985 solo album Neondian.
The track Negativland provided the name for a later group
of American musical satirists.
Additional personnel
Krautrock
Krautrock is a generic name for the experimental music scenes that appeared in Germany in the late 1960s and gained popularity throughout the 1970s, especially in Britain. The term is a result of the English-speaking world's reception of the music at the time and not a reference to any one...
band Neu!
Neu!
Neu! was a German band formed by Klaus Dinger and Michael Rother after their split from Kraftwerk in the early 1970s...
.
It was recorded in December 1971 at Windrose-Dumont-Time Studios, Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, mixed at Star-Musik Studio, Hamburg, Germany, and released in 1972 by Brain Records
Brain Records
Brain was a Hamburg-based record label prominent in the 1970s releasing several important Krautrock records by bands such as Neu!, Cluster and Guru Guru...
. It was reissued by Astralwerks
Astralwerks
Astralwerks is a New York-based record label that releases primarily electronic music. It is owned by Virgin Records/EMI and distributed by Caroline Distribution in the United States....
on May 29, 2001. This was Rother & Dinger's first recording together after they left Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk is an influential electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was formed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1970, and was fronted by them until Schneider's departure in 2008...
in 1971. They continued to work with Conny Plank, who had been producing the Kraftwerk recording sessions.
History
Having broken off from Kraftwerk, Rother and Dinger quickly began the recording sessions for what would become Neu!. The band was christened "Neu!" by Dinger (Rother had been against the name, preferring a more "organic" title) and a pop-art style logo created, featuring italic capitals: NEU! Dinger recalls about Neu!'s logo:The pair recorded in Star Studios in Hamburg, with the up-and-coming Krautrock producer Konrad "Conny" Plank, as Dinger had with Kraftwerk. Dinger describes Conny's abilities as a "mediator" between the often disagreeing factions within the band.
The band were booked in to the studio for four days in late 1971, according to Dinger, the first two days were unproductive, until Dinger brought his Japanese Banjo
Koto (musical instrument)
The koto is a traditional Japanese stringed musical instrument, similar to the Chinese guzheng, the Mongolian yatga, the Korean gayageum and the Vietnamese đàn tranh. The koto is the national instrument of Japan. Koto are about length, and made from kiri wood...
to the sessions, a heavily treated version of which can be heard on "Negativland", the first of the album's six tracks to be recorded.
It was during these sessions that Dinger first played his famous "motorik
Motorik
Motorik is a term coined by music journalists to describe the 4/4 beat often used by "Krautrock" bands such as Neu! and Kraftwerk...
" beat (Two songs on the album, "Hallogallo" and "Negativland", feature Dinger's "Motorik
Motorik
Motorik is a term coined by music journalists to describe the 4/4 beat often used by "Krautrock" bands such as Neu! and Kraftwerk...
-beat"). Motorik is a repeated 4/4 drumbeat with only occasional interruptions, perhaps best showcased on "Hallogallo". Dinger claims never to have called the beat motorik himself, preferring either "lange gerade" ("long straight") or "endlose gerade" ("endless straight"). He later changed the beat's "name" to the "Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
beat" to coincide with his 1985 solo album Neondian.
Reception
Neu! sold well for an underground album at the time, according to Dinger approximately 30,000 copies were sold.The track Negativland provided the name for a later group
Negativland
Negativland is an experimental music and sound collage band which originated in the San Francisco Bay Area in the late 1970s. They took their name from a Neu! song, while their record label is named after another Neu! song...
of American musical satirists.
Track listing
Personnel
Band members- Michael RotherMichael RotherMichael Rother is a German experimental Krautrock musician and composer.- Early life and education :Born in 1950, Rother went to school in Munich, Wilmslow , Karachi, and Düsseldorf. He also lived in Pakistan in the early 1960s where he was exposed to Pakistani music that would influence his own...
– guitar, bass guitar - Klaus DingerKlaus DingerKlaus Dinger was a German musician and songwriter most famous for his contributions to the seminal krautrock outfit, Neu! He was also the guitarist and chief songwriter of new wave group La Düsseldorf and briefly the percussionist of Kraftwerk.-Pre-Neu! :Klaus Dinger was born in Scherfede,...
– Japanese banjo, drums, guitar
Additional personnel
- Konrad "Conny" PlankConny PlankKonrad "Conny" Plank was a German record producer and musician. He was born in Hütschenhausen. His creativity as a sound engineer and producer helped to shape some of the most important and innovative recordings of postwar European popular music, covering a wide range of genres including...
– producer, engineer