It took some time but the wait is finally over: here is the new FOTH comp! This relies heavily on the famed Prae-Kraut Pandemonium series of comp which has now stopped being published in vinyl. I suppose most of you have heard about Kraut Music and the bands who invented it: Can, Amon Düül etc. You certainly also heard about the infamous Beat scene and the Star-Club in Hamburg. But what happened in-between? I think the Pre-Kraut sound is heavily influenced by the political situation of the time. While the US was directly influenced by the end of the Vietnam war, Germany was recreating painfully its identity. The youth were trying to invent a new way of living but in a very explosive political moment. Extremism was rife, left-wing terrorism was on the brink of plunging the country into years of fear. Peace and love were not quite understood the same way as in the US. Alternative lifestyles such as creating communes and squatting were starting to happen. This is the sound of an angry and loose generation, shaking the sins of their fathers off their back and creating their own world.
Where else could a band have sung in 1968: "If you see a policeman, strike him down as fast as you can"? Quite far from Flower Power isn't it? This comp spans a wide range of styles but all songs are infused with an umistakable sound and energy. From tongue-in-cheek themes like modern surgery to class struggle reflections, from furious post-beat instrumentals to wacky english-sung psych songs (not to mention deeelicious german accents), the quality and variety of the songs is simply amazing. Another defining trait of Pre-Kraut is the will to invent something new and trying to sound different from the current British or US sound: Experimentation leads songs into some wild directions, be it quasi Stoogey punkers or etheral rave-ups. This experimentation will become the foundation of Kraut music… another subject.
You can find more about Pre_kraut at
Spurensicherung , the blog home ofthe makers of the original Prae-Kraut comps. This is where they publish their new finds. Many thanks to them for all their hardwork and dedication.
This is, simply put, one of our best FOTH volume, get it
here.Your comments are always very welcomed… do not hesitate.
Track Listing:
1- Hab Keine Lust Heut' Aufzusteh'n -The Blizzards
I don't want to get up today - the perfect song for Mondays.
2- The Old Hangman Is Dead - The Kentuckys
A beat rehash of a traditional german folk song, the Dubliners wouldn't have recorded it that way.
3- Why Can't It Be Me - Ian & The Zodiacs
4- Leave This Lesbian World - Improved Sound Ltd.
A perfect example of a bent Pre-Kraut theme for a song.
5- Hypodermic Needle - Novak's Kapelle
Quasi-punker drug song.
6- I'm An Unskilled Worker - The Dukes
Typical of a them never touched by the US bands. I think the only song that comes close is
"(Would I Still Be) Her Big Man" by the Brigands on the Original Nuggets.
7- The Dentist - The Dukes
Yes. It's a song about going to the dentist… or avoiding to.
8- Hullabaloo - The Guards
Big Noise indeeed…
9- Kamera Song - The Inner Space & Rosy Rosy
What starts as a nice and gentle lullaby suddenly veers off towards anguish… and back.
10- Stupid Generation - The Kentuckys
A comment still valid today.
11- What Do You Think - The Rainy Daze
I think this one popped up already on one FOTH volume,
it has the closest US sound of this selection, could be Texas or Louisiana folk punk.
12- Round The World - The Rebbels
An interesting ditty about rocketships with a few snotty musings thrown in.
13- Panic - The Slaves
Do you know what's the matter with me? It's a real panic!
14- All Right - The Wildcats
Teenage angst in the best tradition.
15- Indiano - Andy Nevison & his Rythm Masters
Peter Gunn influenced piece of beat fury.
16- I'm So Lonely - Les Copains
Start as a completely tart song and then suddenly grabs Iggy by the throat.
17- Wild Woman - Jo Hamann
Cool declamation that includes some strange Velvet like rumble.
18- Who Knows - John Deen & The Trakk
One of my fave: very loose but catchy.
19- Doing That Rhythm Thing - Novak's Kapelle
Again, nothing like what was done elsewhere in the world.
Trying the break the mould here.
20- Smile Please - Novak's Kapelle
Their signature song, MC5 here we come.
21- I'm Your Guy - The Blizzards
Another splendid beat/pop nugget.
22- Heart Transplantation - The Dragons
After the dentist, the heart surgeon gets the treatment.
23- Wieder Auf Der Gass - The German Of The Bored
You will never listen to the Canned Heat version the same way.
I'm on the gas (pedal) again.
24- Understand - The Loosers
Slow downer sung weez an eery German accent.
25- Tartarex - The Petards
This one veers towards prog, but the theme of the song alone is wirth the listen.
26- Can't You See - The Renegades
Another classic garage piece.
27- Give Your Love To Me - Les Copains
A desperate call for love from Les Copains.
28- The Things She Says - The Cherry Stones
This could have been Freakbeat if it were English.
29- Stop This War - The Seals
This one has its feet firmly in the period, both lirycally and musically.
LINK IS UP! Another one bites the dust. "If there’s ever a day you don’t want to die on, publicity-wise, it would be the day Michael Jackson dies. That kind of sucks up all the ink in the room, and if there’s a drop left, it goes to Farrah Fawcett." I couldn't have put it better… read the rest here. Hilarious account of gigging with Sky's New Seeds in the late 70's. 
On a lighter note, you have to wonder what Muddy Water took before writing these liner notes… I suspect a combination of hard liquor, young hippie vestals and a manager sleeping in the bath tub.
Posts
