Kraftwerk: Wolfgang Flur, Florian Schneider-Esleben, Karl Bartos, Ralf Hutter (synthesizer).
By the 1980s, the world had at least somewhat caught up with Kraftwerk's chilling musical vision. Synthesizers were everywhere, and the automation of music was developing with alarming speed. As pioneers of the genre, Kraftwerk was hitting its stride as the rest of the pop music world was taking its baby steps. 1981's COMPUTER WORLD serves as an ominous reflection of our evolving technological world, and it's a seminal influence on electronic music to come.
Kraftwerk's music had always been completely based in technology, all the while reflecting a healthy fear of global automation. This album met that fear head on, from the plaintive musical theme and lonesome Everyman protagonism of "Computer Love" to the chilling "Home Computer," which foretells the PC revolution via the group's trademark marriage of relentless, melodic electronic music and stark, touching human imagery. Other landmark compositions include the infectious, oft-sampled "Numbers" and "Pocket Calculator," a cut which stands out even on this album as a milestone in quirky, Teutonic synth-pop.
Professional Reviews
Q (5/95, p.123) - 5 Stars - Indispensable - "...their best LP to date. A celebration/valediction of information technology, it flickers with hooks..."
Alternative Press (8/01, p.112) - Included in AP's "10 Essential '80s Albums" - "...A concept album...a huge influence on Detroit techno's elite producers..."
Q (Magazine) (p.116) - 5 stars out of 5 -- "[With] a sense of everything sound beautifully nocturnal."
