Favourite Member of Kraftwerk (classic line-up)

You do know that even conventional rhythm sections are often part of the writing process, help compose and arrange tracks, and are integrally involved in the recording process as much as lead guys are supposed to be

Turrican's point is that Bartos was the main composer, not just "part of the writing process". He pretty much wrote all their melodies as well as the rhythm tracks.

Turrican's point is that Bartos was the main composer, not just "part of the writing process". He pretty much wrote all their melodies as well as the rhythm tracks.

― you've got no fans you've got no ground (anagram), Monday, January 12, 2015 6:25 AM (17 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

^ This ^

But rather than the main composer, he was one of three main composers, contributing melodic content. There's nothing for the courts to decide, for he's been credited for the tracks he was involved in co-writing since those albums were first released.

Not to discredit the contributions of the others, but to my mind, Ralf IS Kraftwerk in the way that MES is the Fall.

Also always thought he was rather handsome after he cut off those long locks ca. Radio-Activity.

So, Ralf.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Florian

RALF FFS

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Florian in a landslide.

Come on X has been in the band for like 20 years and doesn't even get a mention?

curious as to whether the one vote this option received was for a specific member of the post-classic line up, or just a general sympathy vote for all of the other guys

Conny Plank, I reckons.

Wolfgang was the one who invented electro

Well, Florian went from jaw-length hair and sideburns, to short hair, to no hair. So there's been some change. He's just so distinctive looking I think it's impossible for him to look like anyone else, no matter what styling he has.

But the thing is, I'm sorry, but... sexless? Fluteless, sure, I can understand how free jazz flute isn't to everyone's taste.

I have never understood why people called Kraftwerk's music sexless. OK, maybe the earlier experimental traffic cone stuff is a bit wibbly and rather sexless; Ananas Symphony isn't exactly a banger. But the *music* of the kind of classic period? Are you kidding me? It's dance music! It's incredibly sexy, even while it's austere and restrained - or perhaps that's why it's so sexy, because it's so repressed, it's practically dripping with sex. (And that's not even touching on the lyrical content - like, every hetero(ish) female Kraftwerk fan I've ever known has highlighted the same bits in Computer Love and The Robots - come on! "We are programmed just to do/Anything you want us to" like HELLO! - and so on.)

Sexless... if all that machine music on TEE isn't drop-dead sexy and if the romanticism of e.g. Neon Lights isn't drenched in emotion... well if that stuff isn't considered sexy, then quite frankly I'm not sure what sex is supposed to be.

Granted, this is not the best thread for this, perhaps I should just go and revive one of ILM's 8 billion Kraftwerk threads, but this has always confused me deeply.

― The Hauntology of Celebrity (Branwell with an N), Sunday, August 9, 2015 5:50 PM

Robot sex jokes aside, really. Is Kraftwerk's classic period *MUSIC* sexless? Really? Discus!

So how true is that Ralf and Florian are trying to erase the other guys' existence? Read a review about the reissues where the writer was saying the album covers where changed so it didn't feature any of the band members.

What other guys?

Those were very early EMI cd issues,where you'd get a page of 'technical detail" about CDs in five languages, rather than the credits.

Wolfgang Flür's new album now streaming on Spotify.

I'm going in...