ELECTRIC CAFE/TECHNOPOP
After ‘Computer World’ the band was working on their next album ‘Technopop’ which would have included ‘Tour de France’. Unfortunately Ralf Hutter was involved in a cycling accident that left him in a coma for a short time. This delayed the work on the album. ‘Tour de France’ was released as a single in 1982. The album would eventually be released in 1986 as ‘Electric Café’.
The album was not based on a single concept that we know of. It is made up of several upbeat dance tracks. It also contained Spanish lyrics and even had a limited release EP in Spanish produced from it.
The cover has computer-generated images of the four band members, created in America from the heads of the bands mannequins. This was a change from the previous three albums. It showed a technologically advanced image on an album of music produced using the best technology Kraftwerk had at its disposal.
The album opens ‘Boing Boom Tschak’, a percussive track with a voice emulator providing the titles wording as lyrics and notes. This passes in to ‘Technopop’, which is a heavily percussive track, once again with electronic vocals, as well as human vocals, in Spanish, French and English.
‘Musique Non-Stop’ is another percussive track using electronic vocals sounds in place of notes. In modern times this track is combined with ‘Boing Boom Tschak’ for live performances and used to end the concerts.
‘The Telephone Call’ is a brilliant dance track, using sounds from the telephone network and the vocals of Karl Bartos. It was a big dance hit in the US. On the 2009 remaster version, retitled ‘Technopop’, a shortened and edited version of the song was included with ‘House Phone’ making up the spare time on the album. In my opinion the longer album version is by far the better of the tracks.
‘Sex Object’ is another brilliant dance track, with a strong beat and electronic orchestra providing the rhythm and tune. It was released in English, German and Spanish versions.
The album ends with the title track ‘Electric Café’ which is in French. It is another good dance track in an album of dance tracks. Generally it ends a collection of steady and pleasing album, which wasn’t as advanced or as groundbreaking as their previous releases.
The original album was recorded using state of the art digital equipment, for the time. The 2009 digital remastered album does improve the sound quality.
Though it wasn’t of the quality that people expected from Kraftwerk and that many other groups had caught up with the technology and electronic was an every day thing on the radio but this is still a good album.
Kraftwerk fans had to wait 5 years for this album and they would have to wait another 5 for the next. In that time Karl Bartos and Wolfgang Flur left the band.
James Nason
January 2014
I am not a journalist or music critic and the opinions expressed in this report are my own. I am just a very biased Kraftwerk fan!
