KRAFTWERK. Tour de France. A 21st Century klassik. Man and technology working together in sublime harmony.
Over the last decade, Ralf Hütter, Florian Schneider, Fritz Hilpert and Henning Schmitz have toured across five continents, and now, as rare and splendid as a returning comet in the night sky, Kraftwerk release their first new album in 12 years on August 4th. 'Tour De France Soundtracks' has already electrified the band’s global army of disciples and imitators in awed anticipation.
It was 20 years ago that the reclusive Düsseldorf quartet first released their landmark electro-pop single, 'Tour De France', a lean shimmer of exquisite elegance. Now their long awaited new album expands on this enduring fascination by providing a soundtrack to the legendary French cycle race, which is currently celebrating its centenary year. The album also places the original tune firmly in a modern context with its symphonic opening suite of undulating techno rhythms and liquid-crystal harmonies.
But 'Tour De France Soundtracks' is certainly not an exercise in pop nostalgia. All of its dozen sumptuous tracks are fresh products of Kraftwerk’s legendary Kling Klang studio. From the rubbery oscillations of 'Vitamin' to the restless metallic ripples of 'Aéro Dynamik', from the bio-mechanical pulses of 'Elektro Kardiogramm' to the glistening vistas of 'La Forme', this is emphatically the sound of Kraftwerk in 2003. Sensual, playful, simple, profound, beautiful.
'Tour de France Soundtracks' also reaffirms Kraftwerk’s intoxication with the transcendent joys of motion and emotion. In their seminal 1974 composition 'Autobahn', cars hummed in hypnotic harmony. In 'Trans-Europe Express' from 1977, a ground-breaking tune much sampled by the early pioneers of hip-hop, trains sang and rocked in rhythmic regularity. In 'Tour De France Soundtracks', high-tech racing machines glide through speed-blurred soundscapes, pedals and chains exchanging rhythmic chatter, riders panting in metronomic union.
Kraftwerk’s return cements their legacy as one of the most influential bands in pop history – some even call them the “electronic Beatles”, no less. In a career spanning more than 33 years, the Düsseldorf quartet have been endlessly saluted and mimicked by each new generation of innovators. In the 1970s, David Bowie and the post-punk futurists professed their devotion. In the 1980s, New Order and Depeche Mode joined the leading lights of Chicago house and Detroit techno in paying homage. In the 1990s and beyond, supergroups like U2 and Primal Scream kept the flame alive. Possibly the most sampled band on the planet, their music has inspired everyone from Beck to Jay Z, Moby to the Chemical Brothers.
