Trans Europe Express

I dig Kraftwerk's stuff. It's really chill. Definately influenced electronica and industrial bands that came later. Also of note: I reviewed an album by Afrika Bambaataa a while back that had a song on it called Planet Rock. That song features samples of Kraftwerk's song Trans-Europe Express. These aren't traditional samples, however, as DJ and producer Arthur Baker met with Afrika Bambaataa and decided that instead of just playing a recording of the Kraftwerk tune, they would recreate it. This was done without Kraftwerk's permission, so the band approached the record label, and got royalties awarded to them for sales of the single. Favourite songs: Showroom Dummies, Trans-Europe Express, Metal on Metal, Abzug, Europe Endless Least favourite songs: Endless Endless 4/5

Very NICE!!!

Synth heavy German new wave ish electronics. Pretty artsy. Really cool sound. A bit slow, but I look forward to checking out the rest of the catalog.

The amount of disrespect this album is getting is astounding.

Can't say I hated this. I should have hated it given my reaction to almost all the "electronica" that's come my way on this list .. but no. I dig this album. There was something both relaxing and enjoyably disturbing about it at the same time. I think it was the way Kraftwerk really took the monotone inhuman automaton vibe as far as the current technology would allow. Good job, Kraftwerk. And thanks for influencing the old Mike Myers "Sprockets" sketch. I see you, Kraftwerk. I see you. Lastly, silently pronouncing the german version of the W in KraftVerk in my head is amusing me more than it should. That gets this an extra star.

So close to being a perfect album. In my opinion, Hall of Mirrors and Showroom Dummies throw off the flow of this album. Also I just think they’re stinkers, just not good songs, especially Hall of Mirrors. Otherwise this album is amazing. I love the opener, skip the next two, and then it’s basically one long suite of songs that all flow together.

Favorite Tracks: Trans-Europe Express Europe Endless The Hall of Mirrors

Strong 4

Good, not in love with every song, but I liked it overall.

Poor man’s CHVRCHES. I love this album, this is maybe the most essential to the list so far for me, this is what it’s all about. The value here is in more than the music. The concept is executed like a classical music suite, it’s so unique and unlike other electronic music despite being a massive influence on basically all electronic music that followed. Would there be LCD Soundsystem or Daft Punk without Kraftwerk? It’s so disciplined and German, it’s about a train and it sounds exactly like a train. I don’t much like the second and third tracks. If this went straight from Europe Endless to the TEE suite then this would be a near perfect album for me. 4.4/5 Fave Tracks: Europe Endless, Trans-Europe Express, Franz Schubert, Endless Endless

A cold and clinical but simultaneously bright and hopeful early synthpop record. Always smooth to listen to with not a harsh note for the ears, almost to a fault. Attentive listening is advised, but may prove difficult to those with short attention spans. Famously one of Ian Curtis's favorite records - sets an excellent mood. Its primary flaw is that it may not be a mood one is actively seeking out.

Kraftwerk - what else!

Minimalistic and very European!

I know how important people think this album is and at time I can get lost in the sound. Its a little slow and repetitive and some of the songs could be shorter or would benefit from changes in tempo.

"It’s just coming up to 5:35am. Kommen Sie bitte, und listen to Kraftwerk." Super cool electronic futurescapes of the past. Evocative of a clean, cold, calculated, industrial dystopia dressed up as a utopia. Innovative, atmospheric and excellent. Rating: 4/5 Playlist track: Trans Europe Express Date listened: 14/01/24

A pioneering classic in the burgeoning electronic genre

This album makes me feel like I've moved to ROBOLANDIA.

Really enjoyed this one, especially the last half The building up on the first tracks leading to the crescendo at the end of metal on metal is where I think the album really clicked for me Strikes many nostalgia cords for me, which is why I like it so much. Some tracks sound like they are coming straight out my game boy or the Minecraft jukebox funnily enough.

A lot of albums on this list manage to be this weird. I wish more managed to be this good.

Big fan, felt a little samey at points but I think that's the intention

It's a 4.5, but I'm rounding down instead of rounding up because it's an album I used to put on in college to write papers to. Half a point seems fair for evoking that particular sense memory.

if there's one thing Kraftwerk fucking loves it's a leitmotif

Ťŕäŋṣ. Ėŭřøpə. Ëxpŕéşš.

I think both hating and loving this album are perfectly valid opinions. It's monotone and kind of simple with a basic loops running throughout each track. I however really enjoyed it. The Hall of Mirrors was the only track i disliked due to it's weird lyrics and annoying loop. "Abzug" was my clear favourite, it's such a menacing loop running throughout the song. While it might not go down as my favourite album it is experimental, weird, groundbreaking and surprisingly good. A 4 star from me.

TRANS-EUROPE EXPRESS. Always nice to hear the humble beginnings of electronic music. Yeah, it is a little samey, but who care? What's there is solid.

Good stuff

Des bas comme des hauts mais je ne vais noter que les hauts

161223 15:43 4

It's like a fun album, much like playing Yars Revenge on the old Atari 2600. The segue of Trans Europe Express -> Metal on Metal -> Abzug is just awesome.

I liked this. Sounds like the soundtrack to anything slightly futuristic from the late 70s or early 80s. Early electronica.

While not their best work this album is still amazing. Its sound reminds me most of the the train in its album cover. With the soundscapes the the European countryside passing by

Great rhythms, probably their best album

1, 2, 7

Perfect soundtrack for glazing over while making spreadsheets

Should be required listening for electronic music and hip hop fans, pioneers for both genre's

Lots of really cool synthesizers! The songwriting itself wasn’t that great in my opinion but the sound design was really ahead of their time.

Europe Endless should be the EU's anthem, not Ode to Joy. It captures our great continent's energy perfectly. The first set of songs are totemic and epic. The final section doesn't bring that same atmosphere but this is still a great album

Europe's answer to YMO. First electronic music a lot of people will have heard, no? Giving quite the northern European grim feeling. Influenced so many. 4/5

7/10 Is there an album from the 70s that sounded more 80s than this one? Which only shows how influential this album and their aesthetic was to prevail in the coming decade. This, however, has none of the pop pithiness that would go along to define the eighties. Not afraid to hang around with fairly redundant, hypnotic synth pads and melodies for long stretches of time, with occasional unemotional singing over it, this really is one of those albums born out of theory and the brain rather than the heart. Which is cool. Devo would play to these same experimental, thematic figures, but with tighter songs.

interesting album, truly deep

Definitely one that has grown on my based on exposure.

New discovery for me!

It just doesn't feel like Kraftwerks best work, but I'm probably wrong. Still great though

Incredibly original, great album (to be fair, they have better ones but this was great)

Realizing now that this wasn't a joke: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SAFC4_KbW0. Me and my sample brain, I caught that "Hall of Mirrors" was sampled by The Molemen on their classic "Put Your Quarter Up." And had to look it up to confirm, but Afrika Bambaata also sampled this album on "Planet Rock," that's a big hallmark. Really love this one, these guys are weird and fun. Favorite tracks: Trans-Europe Express, Hall of Mirrors, Showroom Dummies, Abzug, Endless Endless. Album art: Very simple, black and white with a warped, artsy silhouette of the train. What's the deal with Kraftwerk and public transportation? An album about the Autobahn, now an album about a train? It's time for them to travel to Japan and make an album about the Shinkansen. 4.5/5

This was 1977 - Nobody was doing music quite like this. To listen to it now, it loses a bit of the novelty it once had - but it is still interesting and a good listen. Standouts: Trans Europe Express, The Hall of Mirrors, Others: Showroom Dummies 4/5

Legendär

Bändi ei luo tunnelmaa vaan etäisyyttä, minkä vuoksi sen musiikki kuulostaa vanhentuneessa korniudessaankin tuoreen humoristiselta. Lisäksi levyn minimalismi on perusteltua, koska sen melodiat on pähkäilty loppuun saakka. Olen liikuttunut.

There's a constantly nagging part of my brain that can only be satisfied by listening to German people repeat the same three words for half an hour. Probably Kraftwerk's best album. As always, listen to the German version over the English version.

Such a classic

Unlike anything that came before The repetition is the point. Like being on a train journey into the future

Kraftwerk. Cool! Ungewohnt. Deutsch.

Þetta er frikkin brilliant plata.

An ode to the glory of modern machinery, of place and identity, and of electronic possibilities ever-explored thanks to Kraftwerk's industrial innovation.

Title track was my favorite.

I’m excited for today’s album! I hadn’t heard any Kraftwerk before starting this music review project, but I loved The Man-Machine. I still play that a lot now. Here’s hoping for more of the same with today’s album! Songs I already knew: none Favourites: Europe Endless, Showroom Dummies I’ve said this before, but it blows my mind that this music was made in the 70’s! It sounds extremely modern, showing Kraftwerk were very much ahead of their time. The songs are interesting (a a little long at times) and full of the synth that I loved from The Man-Machine. Overall, I did prefer The Man-Machine over this, but Trans-Europe Express is still an excellent album.

I mean it's definitely repetative, and other electronic albums have come along since then and done so much more with the genre. Still a mostly enjoyable listen, just gets a little tiring in the second half.

Early techo's early techno. Very industrial and sparse which I liked, with quite a unique sound. It is let down by how repetitive it is though

Fun electronic, classic kraftwerk

Good album

foram os precursores da eletrônica e pa sei oque la, sonzinho agradável

A good album, but it is more influential than it is excellent. Synthy, and at times even industrial, but with one foot still in Kraftwerk’s kosmische roots.

Minimalist, repetitive, and catchy. I can see how this was inventive for its time, although it can feel a bit dated amongst electronic music now. Overall, a cohesive album and enjoyable listen. Favorite tracks: Showroom Dummies, The Hall of Mirrors. 4/5.

Excellent

Own on Vinyl

Surprisingly good. Reminded me of Final Fantasy, especially the title song and Metall auf Metall. + Spiegelsaal + Schaufensterpuppen + Trans Europa Express + Metall auf Metall

TEE is less about occupying the engine of a locomotive and much more Kraftwerk's journey. A side the slow exploration of a space, B side the working-out of the found theme. It's all too stereotypical Kraftwerk, but the band adds another layer just as the earworm crosses over into the negative. Or, on that second side, don't add, just let it ride on out.

Slowly grew on me as I listened, really great album, ahead of it's time.

I agree with another comment that said early electronic music is super repetitive and doesn't explore. That's the problem with pioneers, they were limited by the tools of their time and they were the innovators that opened the doors for others. You can hear in this the evolution of the genre that others would come along and perfect. A product of its time.

Is this how I become a Kraftwerk head? Some amazing sounds

To be honest, I didn't know anyone even made music like this back then. The songs could all stand to be shorter, but I did enjoy the beats/style, especially Europe Endless and Abzug. Some songs were a bit boring, but nothing I specifically dislike. I did enjoy the fact that they reuse samples/loops throughout different songs - reminds me more of a live show format. Will probably listen to this again soon, as well as check out more of their stuff. 7/10

I like this band, specially when working

This was really cool! Funky! Fun to listen to. Might play it again!

What if I got really into Lraftwerk. Their fans seem really cool

Surprisingly better than I expected, really reminds me of one of my favorite albums by Mort Garson.

Really quite something - arch, detached, ironic and groundbreaking, these future sounds deliver the goods even today.

Очень специфичная и глубокая электронная музыка

Classic Kraftwerk. Didn't grab me as much as Autobahn, though; it felt a bit too repetitive.

Super cool. 4/5

Great sound! Few beautiful songs but an entire album gets a bit on your nerve.

4.5

Nice Work. Kraftwerk keeps what they promise.

Not their finest but v g

- really liked Europe Endless. Felt familiar? Office-theme vibes? - less fond of hall of mirrors - a little creepy - unexpectedly enjoyable

3.5 if I could JUST WEIRD.But in a good way it feels like one long song.The album really represents it well because it feels so sparse and dark.They keep repeating “trans-Europe express” no idea what that’s about.I can’t see myself listening to one of these songs for fun but I’ll still give it 4 stars because I had a good experience.

Goddamnit, I just love Kraftwerk so much. This certainly isn't my favorite Kraftwerk album, as I like both Autobahn and Man-Machine better, but plenty of songs on this album are great early electronica songs. I will say that I find The Hall of Mirrors to be an absolutely crucifying song to listen to. The title track has the feel of the electro dance genre that would come about a few years later. 4/5

4-

В целом, альбом понравился. Конечно, как все отмечали, слишком короткий, но от этого не менее цельный. Концепт выдержан на отлично, и электронный звук очень уместен здесь по смыслу. Кроме того, стилистически альбом цельный, звучит монолитно. Очень годная заглавная песня, действительно передает настроение и заряжает какой-то внутренней, пульсирующей энергией. Вторая The hall of mirrors погружает нас в какой-то внутренний медитативный мир и на контрасте с позитивом первого трека слушается отлично. В целом, мне понравились +- все треки альбома, хотя некоторые и наскучивают к концу. Почему 4, а не 5? Всё-таки музыка эта не для всех, да и довольно монотонная. P.s. Очень круто зашёл для тренировок

early techno is really something, man. this is a pioneering album from a pioneering group. there's so much to kraftwerk that's still heard today, because they fucking rule. thank u kraftwerk

LP

I dont care if people think its repetitive and boring, this music is awesome and it came out in friggin 1977! 4/5

Good

These crazy cool kraut cats do it again! Anthropomorphising inanimate objects and giving them emotional depth backed with deep hooks on a bed of synth baths. This record strides between hopefulness, glamour, intense geekiness and brilliance. Loved it.

Amazing the way this album manages to be both futuristic and nostalgiciac at the same time.

Early German synth? Yeah, I like it. Kraftwerk are obviously the leaders of the genre, but this album was a fun listen. Easy rhythm, simple lyrics. Good album. 4/5.

Fun

Liked it quite a lot, been meaning to listen to kraftwerk, Abzug is pretty good, ambient techno noise for dramatic winter scenes, stealth scenes, etc

Trans rights

Trailblazers. I can hear so much of groups to come on this album - Yaz, Dépêche Mode, Erasure…….so many. I really enjoyed this album and have recommended it to others.

Trains, what's not to love. 4.5 stars

First time hearing this and it’s wide reaching influence is clear to see, I can hear shades of everything from modern dance and electronic music to 80s pop, post punk and bands like Radiohead and LCD Soundsystem, as a result it doesn’t sound dated at all. Great uplifting opener followed by a couple excellent and well written songs, the TEE section is dark and hypnotic, very reminiscent of a modern techno set, and the final two tracks are soothing and melodic with a nice callback to the opener. Sounds fantastic on headphones and flows beautifully as an album, nothing outstays it’s welcome and could easily be listened to on repeat (and will be). Great stuff all round, I imagine this will get even better with time.

Kraftwerk goats heerlijk album om te concentreren op men werk.

Was pretty stoked for this one after having The Man Machine a few months back. I wouldn’t say it disappointed because I still enjoyed most of it, but one or two of the tracks on the back half didn’t quite have much punch for me. 7/10

Love. It. Makes. Me. Boop. And. Beep.

Semi chill

I don’t have much to say about this that I didn’t say about their other albums. Their music aged gracefully because they played to the strengths of the technology rather than using it to try and replace traditional instruments

Ebic

I really enjoyed this. Not something I would go to on a daily basis, but I liked it!

4 The dudes at Green Light are huge Kraftwerk fans so I’d heard a few albums in the background working or whatever but I never ended up listening to them on my own. I know how influential Kraftwerk was to house and techno music because of how many artists credit them, hell you can absolutely hear Daft Punk in a lot of this. However when this album first started I was worried again. Worried about an experimental boop boop album with little variety. What I got was a lot more entertaining. The songs definitely ran long but a lot of times I didn’t notice and was surprised that it’d been 7+ minutes. My only complaint is that it could benefit from a low end rework. It’s a little sharp on the ears. Maybe also that I keep thinking the cover is a golf club. The worlds this album took my imagination to were fun, vibrant and a little spooky. Def going to look into these guys more. Turns out the dudes at Green Light know what they’re talking about sometimes. Favorites: Europe Endless, Hall of Mirrors, Showroom Dummies, Trans-Europe Express, Endless Endless

Como siempre pasa, viendolo a la distancia suena como un disco muy experimental, de todos modos es un gran disco.

One of the building blocks of electronic music as it exists today. Through repetition and careful choice of effects and arrangements, there arises an interesting texture that really does replicate traveling through Europe via train.

Pretty good

I like trains

Nesten på høyde med Die Mensch-Machine og Radioaktivität

Kraftwerk proves how to make good train station music. Favorites: "Europe Endless", "The Hall of Mirrors", "Trans-Europe Express"

Inspirational. It’s incredible a couple of people created these sounds almost out of nowhere. I respect what Kraftwerk was able to do, but not my style

Loved this techno.... Very clean! Would listen to again

I love it! I can't believe they were doing this in 77.

Haven’t heard for ages. Was good in its time.

Kraftwerk is the shit. I don’t really have more to add besides side 2>side 1 B

Another album my brother turned up with in the 80s, no clue how he got onto them. I listened to it quite a bit, over 30 years ago, and not at all since. Surprised to find I remembered it very well, and I think that lasting impression says something about it. It really is iconic, and was a big part of so many foundations of electronica that were set down around those times. I have to dun it slightly for the lyrics being so mundane, even though I think this is an intentional choice.

absolutely delightful.

I really loved this and can’t believe this was 1977. Hearing the sounds that influenced so many of my favorite 80s bands was a real treat.

Such a classic, influential album. Not something I listen to regularly, but when I do I am impressed every time. Any fan of electronic music should listen to this!

The motifs are super catchy on this album, and the songs are quite hypnotic. It's of course very repetitive but feels more carefully structured musically and conceptually than Autobahn for example, which veered off after the title track for me. There's also much more of an emotional range than you get with most Kraftwerk, even though it's still veiled by this robotic coldness

Okay yeah this album is pretty amazing. I would do a 4.5 if I could, but since I can't, I rounded down in order to preserve the integrity of 5/5. Considering individual tracks (which is maybe not a great thing to do for an album like this, but nevertheless): -Spiegelsaal is my favourite track. Very cool. -Schaufensterpuppen is great, but it is an obvious ripoff of t.A.T.u's song "They're Not Gonna Get us". Very disappointing that Kraftwerk would stoop to thievery. -Abzug is maybe the only track that didn't do it for me.

Solid. I do enjoy Euro electronic. You can clearly hear the influence they’ve had on the genre

Un dels pics de la protoelectrònica. 'Europe Endless' i el tema títol són dos dels grans temes que donarien força al génere als seus albors. Però és 'Hall of Mirrors' on excel.leixen; tema hipnòtic amb una melodia brillant que tal com la vesteixen t'acaba absorbint per complet. Molt a prop de les 5 estrelles

Listened to the German version. I liked it a lot, it pulled me in and felt shorter than it is.

Beautifully krafted werk! Have never listened to Kraftwerk album before.This felt like a symphony for celebration of Europe constructed on a synth. Really innovative and enjoyable record. Strong 4 to Light 5. Most Favourite tracks: Europe Endless   The Hall of Mirrors Trans-Europe Express   Franz Schubert

These guys were so damn cool!

Muito bom.

Smá legacy bónus hér á ferðinni, er betri í sögulegu samhengi en úr því. En samt ánægjuleg hlustun heilt á litið, og titillagið er frábært.

I had to listen several times before I could decide what to make of it. It’s not immediately engaging but after a while it becomes quite mesmerising/almost hypnotic.

Sometimes when I listen to Kraftwerk they sound to silly for me, and the album started that way, but they really had me in a trance by the end. The friendliest most seductive robots.

Pioneering

Very listenable electronic music from some early German innovators.

I liked it

..

Muy bueno

Not bad listening in the background.

Kraftwerk are the great pioneers of electronic music, weaving their synthesizers, vocoders, and electric drums to make the sounds of the future, and this album demonstrates that in spades. Intrinsically unique is the group's background, growing up in a unique musical vacuum post-WWII. This pushed Kraftwerk to innovate and developed the gran new genre of Electronic music, embracing the cold, calculated sounds of synthesizers. I love the little ambient arpeggiated synth line in "Spiegelsaal" especially, so cool. There's also Iggy Pop and David Bowie influence on this album, but it's a lot more subtle than other contemporaries of the 70's.

un viaggio, minimale, con uno zaino, in giro per l'Europa, con quei due amici inseparabili. così vedo nella mia mente questo disco

Fun background music. Not my favorite thing but good beat and enjoyable to listen to.

Kraftwerk are pioneers of the electronic music scene and any of their albums merits a spot on this list, without a doubt! The core of the album is the openning track (Europe Endless), and then tracks 4 through 8 ('Trans-Europe Express' through 'Endless Endless'). If you consider those 6 tracks alone and played in order, it's really two musical movements. When I listen to those 6 songs together, I hear it like a musical interpretation of a trans-european train ride. The themes slowly ebb and flow, much like the scenary would out the window of the train. Where you end is much like where you started, but there is just enough variation to make it feel all its own. The other two tracks ('The Hall of Mirrors' and 'Showroom Dummies') are more like single b-sides that were tossed into the album. The seriousness of 'The Hall of Mirrors' stands in sharp contrast to the nearly humourous 'Showroom Dummies'. Both are enjoyable tracks, but they seem a bit out of place. This album provides a great trip through the state of the art for early days electronic music.

Really love the early synthesizer sound. Europe Endless is my fav. Great background music (which I guess is what ambient type music tries to be). Rating gets docked for lacked of diversity...too much of the album is just a riff on the TEE staple. 4/5

Put Your Quarter Up! Planet Rock! It's a beautiful thing.

The music was curious and amusing for me. It works as an album to work by.

There's nobody that quite sounds like Kraftwerk. This is another of those bands that I appreciate and respect more than like. They're good. They're unique. They're interesting. And yet... Their music doesn't make me FEEL anything. I never have the thought, "Oh, I should listen to some Kraftwerk." This album is good. I have a hard time distinguishing between songs but I can tell that things change now and then. I find the affectless German thing quite charming and some lines stick in my head (We look around and change our pose.) I wasn't wishing for it to end but I wasn't all that disappointed when it was over, ya know? Normally, this kind of review would mean a 3-star rating from me but I'm bumping it up to 4 stars because, although I don't love them, my husband does and he doesn't love many things and so the fact that he loves Kraftwerk DOES make me feel something...happy.

a very pleasant surprise. I enjoyed it!

Fan of their work, not the best album

Always always love Kraftwerk. This album is not their best one, but I love a lot of the melodies. I think I like the German language one better (fyi: every single Kraftwerk song has a German language version). The main "Trans Europe Express" melody gets over-used a lot by the end. Still a damn good time and my ears are happy.

Awesome.

A total classic! Really enjoyable listen despite some of the tracks being quite repetitive.

When I first got into music I was really into synth sounds. Early computer music (Commodore 64) and synthy TV themes from shows like Doctor Who and The Tomorrow People really appealed to young me and started me on a path of musical discovery that still continues today. You can imagine then how excited I was when I first heard Kraftwerk. I think it was even one of their stronger albums that I first heard but it hooked me right away. This album is one of their greats and really pushed the boundaries of synth music at the time. I like side 2 a little more than side one, especially the Trans Europe song cycle.

I could see why this wouldn't be for everyone, but i loved it. The second half was particularly good. The vocals were hit or miss for me, but i loved these sparse, iterative electronic arrangements throughout

That's why we had synth-pop in the 80s, techno in the 90s and glitch in the 00s. And today Nintendocore. One of the first albums that charmed me with robotic rhythms and mechanical melodies. (8/10) Favourite Songs: Europa Endlos, Franz Schubert

4.0 + It's impossible to hear those first synth strains on "Europa Endlos" and not feel a swell in my chest! It makes me nostalgic for that optimistic vision of a united Europe that was going to advance humanity towards greater prosperity, peace and peace. Having listened to the English and German versions, I prefer the latter. “Schaufensterpuppen” sounds cooler than “Showroom Puppets.” Kraftwerk’s efficient and minimal production is on display, though sometimes the repetition of song elements feels “endless endless.”

There were a few moments on here that really shone- the instrumental intro really stands out. At its best it sounded like the soundtrack for an indie. Still, the vocals and lyrics were both really weak and uninspired, and I feel that it got repetitive in the middle section so I didnt really enjoy listening to it that much. I can see how it was really influential in the development electronic music, so I’ll be generous and give it a 7/10

Sehr gut

I remember watching a hip-hop documentary a few years back and they highlighted Afrika Bambaataa’s “Planet Rock” which samples “Trans-Europe Express” quite liberally. (IMO it’s the only part of the song worth listening to). They went on to claim that this song, especially that sample, launched electro-boogie in the 90s. I remember saying to my co- judge that without Kraftwerk, no one would have heard of Afrika Bambaataa. Maybe an overstatement, but he was one of so many artists were influenced by the Kraftwerk sound. When I listen to “Hall of Mirrors” and “Showroom Dummies”, I can hear a lot of new wave/post punk bands like OMD and Simple Minds. That said, the title track runs on a bit. If you count all 3 parts, it's something like 13 minutes.

I grew up listening to Kraftwerk and it shaped my musical taste profoundly. They were so innovative in the 70s that this sound must have blown everyone’s mind. However the irony is that because they were so influential that you hear this style almost everywhere now so the their unique groundbreaking sound is lost on most new listeners. This album is great but I think Man Machine and Computer World are better so it only gets a 4 from me.

Electronic German music. Synthesizers rock. I dig it.

8/10, spacey, repetitive in the best way possible, very forward thinking, very good. v good.

Light on vocals, heavy on synthesizers. I can get behind this. I hope I listen to more Kraftwerk. Maybe I will. I probably won't. But it would definitely make me cooler. Great music for chugging away at work. Highlights: The feeling of listening to the same drum beat and synth sounds for 6+ minutes, and how that lures you into a trance.

Banger and mash

This felt "milder" than The Man-Machine album that came up from Kraftwerk already. Maybe more song/melody oriented? Fairly laid back.

Another really great album from Kraftwerk. I think I like this one a bit better than The Man Machine actually, especially in the vocal department.

Een gezelliger album dan ik van Kraftwerk herinner. De moeite waard om nog eens te luisteren.

The grandfathers of electronic rock music. Lots of very familiar beats with moody Eurocentric lyrics. Album has a great flow but some of the tracks are very long and repetitive, even if the motifs never really get boring.

Liked it. respect for the technical challenges early electronic music faced

interesting to 1. realize more songs than I know are covers of albums i didn't know. 2. listen to early electronica and see how that comes through in more recent music 3. realize I love the the mild german-accent in english. 4. realize that my only impression of kraftwerk was based on the name, and that conjured a very different sound that reality.

great album

Beeps and books to move your hips to.

Parts of this album really blew me away. Some of it was repetitive to be sure, but there was a level of energy that was constant throughout that kept me hooked. I really enjoyed this.

I would play this album again. The last 4 tracks, from "Metal on Metal" through "Endless Endless", was may favorite portion of the album. The first track, "Europe Endless", felt like the typical sound from Kraftwork to me (in a good way). Track 2, "The Hall of Mirrors", was the weakest spot for me on the album. Perhaps this was because of the almost spoken word portions. "The Hall of Mirrors" wouldn't prevent me from putting this album on again. Between 3.75 and 4.25

Lovely stuff for a summers day. True pioneers. Cant believe this was made in 76!

Otra banda que nunca había escuchado pero esta vez sí fue algo a conciencia jajaja Kraftwerk para mí siempre fue música de gente cool y a ese mundo yo no pertenezco. Ahora que tuve la ocasión de escucharlos, sigo con la misma idea (?). Es un disco muy conceptual que, en ese sentido, lo siento lejano a mí, pero de todas formas sí me gustó, aunque no sabría poner en palabras por qué.

Production: 17/20 Songwriting: 12/20 Innovation: 19/20 Bangers: 10/20 Emotional response: 16/20 =64 Awesome sauce.

No me queda sino imaginar solamente cómo sonó esto en su momento. Aun hoy, me gusta prácticamente todo. El minimalismo y la repetición de las vocales le dan un aire todavía más artificial, ese sonido "robótico" con el que se ubica a Kraftwerk. Un pensamiento random, me gusta mucho, pero siento que si estuviera atrapado en algún lugar con solamente esta música, sentiría miedo rápido (?). Creo que mis beats favoritos están en "Trans-Europe Express", "Metal on Metal" y pues qué linda "Franz Schubert". 9/10

Surprenant, j.aime bien la musique electro. C’est tres en avance sur son temps. 4.25*

Was initially thinking 3 stars during a background listen, but put it on again and paid slightly more attention and definitely bumping it up to 4. It's been so massively influential on a bunch of genres I like. To quote from a Drowned in Sound review quoted on Wikipedia, it's "all at once antique, timeless, retro and contemporary". Fave track - the whole of side 2! 🚅

sample this

Not something I'd choose to listen to but probably good to have on the background while working.

Just a great electronic record.

Fucking funky and weird. Definitely 80s electronica?

4.5

Listening to this brought to mind the stereotypical German who does everything efficiently, methodically and to numbers. A bit like the German guards in that Blackadder episode when he’s held prisoner by Prince Ludwig….. Ein, zwei…Halt! Jingle the keys: (keys jingle) Open the door! (door opens) Greetings to the prisoners: (they take one step in, and wave) Guten abend, Englander-scum! March to the table: Ein zwei, ein zwei, ein zwei…Halt! Food on the table: ein zwei! (they put down a loaf of bread and a sausage). Spit on the food: ein zwei! Insulting further gestures to the prisoners: ein zwei, ein zwei! (they do pelvic thrusts) So I’d listen to this whilst painting a wall with a paint roller to ensure I got the same shaped squares from top to bottom with the same amount of paint applied. But not one to listen to on a long train journey across Europe because it bloody well never gets to the end. 3/5 25/8/26

This album resonated with my slightly more than the other one on the list. A little more industrial sounding, i could trace the electronic hertitage back from early Depeche Mode. Vocals still annoying though

I still haven’t worked out if one Kraftwerk is enough. 2.5

Kraftwerk invented time dilation technology to fit a 2 hour track list into 40 minutes just for this album

The 70s era Electronica scene isn't really my bag as these bands necessarily pale in comparison to what later bands would be able to do with better technology. But Kraftwerk were amazingly influential, and this is one of their better and more accessible records.

Some cool tracks. You can really hear the influence this had on video game music and on more modern techno like daft punk! It does feel a bit dated now but a fun experience

I understand why this is significant, for the year this came out this is pretty awesome -- and it still holds up. I don't love it or anything, but it does the job.

The album starts strong. The melodies are good, the sounds are pleasing, and it reminded me of video game music a lot, like Fez and Baba is You. But then you hit the Trans-Europa Express. And oh boy. At first it's quite nice. A bit repetitive, but the beat is good, and it doesn't really matter because there are other songs on the album, right? But it keeps going. The next track is just a continuation of the previous one, minus the lyrics and with industrial percussions added. And then it keeps going on, with the same repeated lyrics, and it goes on and on and on, the whole thing can't seem to shut the fuck up for almost 14 whole-ass minutes. It's not even bad. But even ice cream makes you puke if you eat too much. At the end I wanted to drill a hole in my brain.

They really like trains.

Eh, there's some good stuff here but as an album this got bland for me. The best song was better used by being repackaged elsewhere (Afrika Bambaata's "Planet Rock"). Top tracks: "Trans-Europe Express," "Abzug"

Ummm not sure how to feel about this. A nice change of pace, but far from standout. I think The Man-Machine was more inventive and interesting, although Europe Endless was an excellent starting song for this. Maybe just a bit too repetitive for me Favorite Songs: Europe Endless, Trans-Europe Express

tre eller fyra kanske. Ganska bra men lite för enformigt. Hade säkert varit fett live ändå.

Slukade den både på engelska och tyska men det nådde inte fram riktigt. Blev tyvärr för uttråkad. Får en symbolisk 3a för att det europeiska järnvägssystemet förtjänar att hyllas och för titelspårets enorma inflytande

Lyckades tajma hela plattan perfekt med löprundan. Pinigt. Lite väl keff i början men närapå religiös upplevelse i slutet. Stark trea.

This is a kind of weird blend of pretentious keyboard demos, frutiger aero, and the sort of music you would put on to get into the right headspace and do your makeup before you go out into the city of Berlin to go clubbing. Sometimes it's too long, sometimes it just feels like the same song repeating over and over, and sometimes it's so quirky and oddball that you can't help but be endeared. This is a weird album, even for me.

I didn’t have great focus when I listened to this. I could tell it was good though. I added “The Hall of Mirrors” to my playlist.

Fascinating, hypnotic electronic music, totally unbothered by any notion of pop song structure. Not something I'd reach for all the time, but an important precursor to later developments and just the thing if you're in the right mood.

This really is an amazing album and the amount I appreciate it and enjoy it as a concept does not reflect the rating I am giving it. Kraftwerk is so cool and I really love their music. This is such a complete and thoughtful concept album. That said, it doesn't elevate on the individual song level that The Man Machine does for me. It becomes very monotonous and repetitive... kind of like a train. So cool though!

Beep boop I’m on da robot train!

I know everyone treats this like some holy grail of music, but man, it feels so pretentious to me. It’s basically just dudes standing stiffly behind synths, taking themselves way too seriously while playing "beep boop" over a repetitive train beat. Sitting through ten minutes of cold, joyless minimalism where they just robotically repeat the same lyrics feels less like a listen and more like a total chore. I get that it’s supposedly "high art," but a lot of it just sounds like a self-important art-school project that went on way too long. That said, as much as the robotic minimalism grates on me, I can't deny the impact. When the back half of the record hits that industrial, clattering vibe on "Metal On Metal" and "Abzug," you can actually hear the blueprint for modern dance music getting written in real-time. Hearing those looping, chant-like vocals on "Abzug," it's super obvious that this is exactly where Daft Punk got their whole "Around The World" vibe. So yeah, it’s an insufferably pretentious listen, but I guess I have to give them credit for basically inventing the future.

Great sounds but not so great songs.

Is interesting. The songs are long though, and tend to drone a bit.

Kind of underwhelming, honestly. Being released just before "Die Mensch-Maschine", an album that I love for its futurist, poppy and spacey sound, I was hoping for this album to have a very similar sound to these aesthetics that I like so much, but it doesn't, or at least not at the same level. My main problem with this record is how repetitive it is. Kraftwerk is not stranger to repetitions, being a primordial element in their music, even in earlier projects such as "Autobahn", which I scored positively three reviews ago. So while I think they do it well overall, in this case I find it to be a bit too tedious in some parts, specially in the three songs section formed by "Trans-Europe Express", "Metal on Metal" and "Abzug". Thankfully, not matter how repetitive it is, I still like this album for its interesting futuristic sounds, its very textured synths and its catchy aspects. The first three songs are the best example of doing something very effective and easy to listen to with these elements, despite being some of the longest cuts. I liked how inviting and fun "Europe Endless" is, how haunting and cold "The Hall of Mirrors" is, and how in between of being mysterious and fun "Showroom Dummies" is. Then comes the mentioned part I don't like as much, yet I appreciate how well connected the three songs are. Regardless of having some elements in common, like melodies and base, all three of them are not hard to tell apart from each other, specially "Metal on Metal" incorporating clanks of some metallic elements I can't recognize. Finally, the album ends with the two minimalist songs "Franz Schubert" and "Endless Endless". Just like the previous part, these two song are also connected by the same melody that sounds beautiful and nice, but it isn't as memorable as the first ones, and it is basically the only thing they offer. So in the end, I think it is a good album. I am definitely a bit disappointed compared to the other two releases I've heard from them, but still has that particular sound of them that I do enjoy. Before ending the review, I want to mention how great the album cover of the 2009 remaster is. The minimalist train design looks super clean and represents the album incredibly well. Possibly the thing I like the most about the whole record, which feels shameful to admit...

Ganz cool, aber irgendwie manchmal nervig. Aber hat was

Early electronica. Kind of retro cool, and surely groundbreaking. Probably for sure deserves to be on this list. On the other hand, I'll probably never listen to this again. I like electronic but this just sounds too outdated. 3/5.

Per ongeluk was ik Trans Europe Express op shuffle aan het luisteren. Het zou verboden moeten worden. Nu maakt dat bij Kraftwerk mogelijk niet zo veel uit. Alle nummers hebben hun eigen opbouw en sfeer alsof je onderdeel bent van een langzaam op stoom rakende machine. Geen waanzinnig grootse roken machien, maar een simpele soepel draaiende apparaat. Als er ooit een apparaat zou bestaan die meer energie op zou wekken dan deze verbruikt, dan zou deze tegelijkertijd nummers van Kraftwerk afspelen denk ik. Het concept van een Trans Europe Express is bijzonder en perse heel sexy. Maar het gaat bij Kraftwerk natuurlijk om het geluid dan de boodschap lijkt me. 7/10

i wonder if this was the inspiration for starlight express… anyway good album sounded good but the lyrics are way way too repetitive i got so sick of hall of mirrors and showroom dummies

2.5

This is my 2nd Kraftwerk album since I started 6 weeks ago. I can appreciate this bands place in music history as pioneers, but I think just one of their albums would have sufficed.

Not too bad - quite hypnotic - just not something I’d choose to listen to

This is just the same as most Kraftwerk album, some cool shit but it's all way too similar with not enough variation

Really like the bookends on this album. The middle is very dull. I listened to this album a few times and I liked the middle less each time. I think it’s because the first time I listened I was expecting it to go somewhere more interesting, but it just never really did. “Franz Schubert” reminded me a lot of this song “Schopenhauer’s Garden” by Mark Barrott. Check that song out if you liked the first and last songs.

i like trains

Okay so we like the train a lot. It was fine, felt like a train ride, but not a great one but a fine one.

Now's the time on Sprockets when we dance! This was perfectly pleasant but got a little repetitive for my liking.

3.5

Proto-trance? Locomotive EDM? Not sure, but it’s an enjoyable entry and feels innovative for the time. I am not well versed enough to know how the full impact of this coming out when it did but it seems to have done something new and different. The songs are very slow to develop and they don’t really vary too much from start to finish. There’s catchy elements and I can sort of nod along to it as a concept but by the end it’s a bit wearing. I did enjoy the later tracks Franz Schubert and Endless Endless that had a different feel to the more beat-driven, metronomic elements in the earlier tracks. All in decent but significance not enough to boost it beyond a 3.

I don't mind a bit of Kraftwerk but this seemed very slow, repetitive and quite basic. I guess when it first came out, it was still fairly revolutionary, but I am so used to hearing much more complex electronic music that this seems very primitive. This wouldn't be my Kraftwerk album of choice.

It might have been groundbreaking at some point, but I don’t think it aged really well.

3.5

mmmm robots

Kraftwerk is like listening to a game on pong.

The most impressive part of this is that Casio keyboards with all the presets you hear here didn’t come out until the year after they made this. I’m sure it was innovative then but it hasn’t aged wonderfully.

I can see how this has influenced so many things I love but it does get quite repetitive.

I don’t have any particular opinion about this album.

Europe Endless 3.3 The Hall of Mirrors 3 Showroom Dummies 3.2 Trans-Europe Express 2.7 Metal on Metal 2.4 Abzug 2.6 Franz Schubert 2.4 Endless Endless 2.6 Score: 2.775

The repeated phrases got on my nerves, but there was also something hypnotic and relaxing about the music. Mixed feelings on this one.

Influence for bands i love. Better than the other Kraftwerk album I've had on the list

I can absolutely respect these guys for being pioneers of electronic music and laying the groundwork for countless artists who followed. Their influence is impossible to deny. That said, this album feels like it's missing depth. The ideas are interesting from a historical perspective, but as a listening experience there's just not much here for me. The vocals sound dated, and both the singing and the beats are so repetitive that the album starts to feel one-dimensional after a while. I understand why Trans-Europe Express is considered important, and I can hear its DNA in everything from synth-pop to techno and hip-hop. But influence and enjoyment aren't always the same thing. For me, this is one of those albums that's easier to appreciate than it is to actually sit down and listen to.

Good

Doesn't hold up as well as The Man Machine. 3/5.

6.5/10

Likely an influence for some bands I like (thinking LCD Soundsystem) but I am not sure I really get this band.

Computers. Music. Now they are intertwined like lines of code. Back when this album came out, this was cutting edge and futuristic. This is NOT EDM, there is no "Dancing" here. It's electronic music with the focus on electronic.

3.14

It was interesting and I can see where it is hugely influential on modern music but at the same time it wasn't all that great of a listen.

I didn't love it, but I appreciate it for what it is. Probably won't listen again.

Very difficult to review. I understand how important and influential this album is, but it's not something that I'd ever want to sit down and listen to.

Beep boop

I will never be able to rate these guys lower than a 3 based on influence alone. While I prefer some of their other albums, this one had an interesting effect. I appreciate the repetitive feel and use of minimalism here that interestingly never got boring while sending the listener on their own journey. Which I guess is the point. In the end we are all just showroom dummies on our own endless train ride.

I listened to this album when it showed up on Apple Music's top 100 albums of all time... gave it 3* and sticking with that rating. A little boring buy hard to deny the impact on electronic and hip hop. 2.5/5

Ich weiß um die Bedeutung von Kraftwerk für die Elektronische Musik. Aber heute kann man das irgendwie nicht mehr hören.

Weirdly alluring.

🤖

Atari, of music.

I may have been a bit too harsh on Trans Europa Express the last time I heard it over 3 years ago now. Now that my musical tastebuds seem to have settled I think it is time to give this a proper re-review to see if I was missing out on anything the first time around. Trans Europa Express may be one of Kraftwerk's more repetitive pieces as this whole album feels like 1 big song broken up into 8 individual pieces. I don't mind how this album is split up but it does make breaking this album down into the individual tracks to enjoy a lot harder than I would have liked it to be. Don't get me wrong I thought this was good, but not much else. Autobahn does the repetitive style much more effectively and doesn't split up the track into unnecessary pieces. I did enjoy Trans Europa Express more than my first go around, but I am not overly into it even still...

Oddly enjoyed this, incredibly repetitive though it was, much like a real train journey

Ik heb veel geleerd over de trans europe express

I’m by no means the biggest fan of electronic music, in fact it’s my lowest rated genre, but I quite liked this one. In saying that it’s highly unlikely I will ever listen to it again. Top Track - Franz Schubert

Definitely liked this more than the first listen. I think it is reluctantly groovy, and not nearly as droning as I remember it being. I still just have no relevant vibe to place this in. Like sure if I was on a train going across Germany this would be the first album I play. But anything short of that? I’ve got no reason to turn to this

Pretty good. Some tracks I had not heard before, but all unmistakably Kraftwerk.

Loved some parts, bored to tears at others.

Played it a couple of times. Rhythmic and cool

Repetitive. Probably relaxing if I listen to it more. Opening track is gorgeous

It was different, I enjoyed it. Faves were Endless and Franz.

I really enjoy electronic, but I've only heard a handful of Kraftwerk and this was pretty good. Very innovative for the time with some really catchy synth lines.

Just because an album is influential does not mean it is an enjoyable listen

A very important album. Not something I’d listen to often, but I don’t mind when I do.

This is the way I like my 70's German techno. Not a bad listen. Musically, a lot of it still holds up.

Good.

Some interesting moments, but Franz Schubert is especially a shimmering song to me. A nicer, much dreamier place to be than most of the songs

Trans Europe Express was sampled/interpolated for the song Plant Rock which became an electro- hiphop masterpiece. That alone means that Kraftwerk were cool. This album is interesting but not amazingly groundbreaking. I enjoyed it overall.

Pretty nice early synthpop, however it is very repetitive.

a nice retro look into the infancy of electronic music. But overall pretty bland and no memorable tunes to me. Some depeche mode vibes here. I expected more maudlin.

Album #76: Trans Europe Express - Kraftwerk Genre (W): Electronic, synth-pop, experimental pop, avant-garde Singles: Trans-Europe Express, Showroom Dummies I have listened to this album once before. Thoughts?: The songs have great melodies, but they drag on for a bit too long for me. Very repetitive. Favorite songs: Europe Endless, Showroom Dummies, Trans-Europe Express, Abzug,

this album settled the electronic sound for ppl that’d come after like daft punk. it’s literally a train atmosphere late at night, sounds repetitive on the best way possible. it was a fun listen, but it’s not my cup of tea

Weird to have kraftwerk on back to back days. I prefer their 1978 offering to this one, but this is still good.

Feels very sparse now, but impressive for the time.

Crazy to think that we probably don't have hip hop as we know it without these guys.

I liked most of these songs. Want to listen again.

I like their unique sound, haven't really listened to german music before, but the music i have listened, i feel like they have a lot of instrumental aspects in their music. First non english album so far. I liked them, but i dont think id add them to my playlist, the songs are abit too long to my liking, but i think i could enjoy them as a cd or vinyl more

Can you play the one that goes "bee boo boo bop, boo boo bop boo bop"?

Trans-Europe Express is a perfectly enjoyable listen. It's cool, precise, and atmospheric in a way that rewards patience. But "one of the greatest albums ever made"? That's a stretch. There's no track here that I'd call a genuinely great song. It's enjoyable enough, but nothing that makes you want to hit repeat. That said, a list of albums every music fan should hear isn't purely about melody and emotional impact. Innovation and influence matter too, and albums like Velvet Underground & Nico managed to be innovative, influential, and genuinely *great* listens. Trans-Europe Express only delivers on two out of three. So let's talk about the influence and innovation. Critics love to credit this album as a foundation of modern hip-hop, but that's a stretch really. The real influence was on the early 80s electro and breakdancing scene, which was significant, but short-lived. (Afrika Bambaataa's "Planet Rock" is the clearest example, and modern hip-hop sounds nothing like this.) The innovation case is stronger, though Kraftwerk were refining a sound they'd already established rather than inventing one from scratch. Still, I can't think of much before 1977 that sounds like this, and that counts for something. So 4 stars? Not quite: without a single track that truly grabs me, I'll call it 3.

You always know what you will get with Kraftwerk. 7/10

Liked this a fair bit less than Man Machine - comes out of the gate strong with Europe Endless and Hall of Mirrors, loses a lot of steam in the middle and gets a bit too repetitive in places (I realize that is a lot of what Kraftwerk is about). Franz Schubert is quite pretty. Still appreciate the foundation these guys laid basically for all electronic music to follow but just didn't latch onto this one as much.

Could've been worse

This was interesting and surprisingly catchy

I always start out enjoying Kraftwerk and then eventually just want it to be over. Some of the songs are so cool and unique. This one even felt less cheesy ….until it did start feeling cheesy… But overall, I enjoyed this. I certainly don’t hate it. And definitely liked the uniqueness and creativity of this one.

I’ve never listened to a Kraftwerk album before. Just not my thing. But having listened to this I have a level of respect. Definitely groundbreaking. Enjoyed some of the repetitive and clever rhythms.

Watching them live bored me to tears, studio, a very different experience. With a pair of headphones on, moving about doing the housework (in a robotic style of course) is the only way to appreciate such a band. Its amazing to think this is the mid 1970's compared to other electronically of the time. Groundbreaking stuff.

Influential, but pretty mundane.

Sunken if it was good.

i enjoyed it, although the titular song was way too long for me considering there wasn't that much variation. i think it's not my favorite kraftwerk i've heard so far but it was still fun.

Not something I will play over and over, but interesting. Ahead of it's time for 1977? Influential.

good background music. The audio level fluctuations got obnoxious at times

Was familiar with a coupleKraftwerks albums already. Not this one. Not sure why this one was chosen over some of the others that they’ve done. Wasn’t their first. Wasn’t their best. However, that being said, a prime example of their work and why they are on the list as leaders in the electronic dance music genre.

This album grew on me the 2nd or 3rd time I listened to it. It was never bad, I thought it was boring. What I realized is that its a very subtle album. Its good for the background, but not their most inspiring album.

A cool album, but I don't think I would ever enjoy this kind of music enough to give it more than 3 stars.

All I can hear is early Depeche Mode. I can understand the importance of, and the influence, but not my cup of tea.

6/10

6.5 / 10

The German beep boop guys are back.

Video game music