Reviews (page 4 of 15)
So fun, I really enjoyed this one
I appreciate the skill/talent involved in making this. It just doesn’t speak to me at all.
Damn. I actually really liked this. I need to listen to more.
I wanted to love german music, this just wasn't doing it for me
I mean this was quirky fun silly but also no thanks Favorite song?: neon lights
Definitely a relc of it's time. However, while it is long and dense, it is also creative and atmospheric. You can easily see why this group has such an impact. Not really my thing, but I respect the work.
The music feels very modern with its synth style. You have to get used to the German accent though.
It was.... "historically intereseting" 😂 and actually an okay listen. But overall too repetitive and the clean voice was annoying (robot voice yessss)
I really like this. You can tell that this was super influential in electronic music. I did think it got quite repetitive but I think this genre has been rinsed making it feel repetitive. So it’s not Kraft work more the influence they had, which I guess is impressive in itself
Always enjoyed Kraftwerk, this one I know some of them but not the record as a whole. Always pleasantly surprised at the level emotion there, that isn't always apparent to begin with.
Fun and silly
Honestly enjoyed this a lot more than I thought
Hmmm gave me knightrider-esque vibes and I could hear this playing that that German club that no one can get into apparently. Feels very ahead of its time, not something I put on to listen to but not bad
Fav lyrics include: "we are the rrrrobots, we are the rorrobots" and also "space lab, space lab" Pretty amazing synth sounds (1978!!). LCD Soundsystem owes a lot to this band it sounds like. Personally this would be a lot better for me if it were just instrumental, but it was an OK 1-time listen. Fav track was Neon Lights.
So hard. Doesn’t sound like 78. Rare music that I believe will sound relevant forever. No wonder it’s so influential.
Pretty jokes to be honest. Hard to take this one seriously. I imagine it was pretty wild to hear in 1978, but now it comes off like a sketch comedy bit. Two stars for historical respect and a chuckle
4/10 - One of the cool things about music and art in general is that everyone has different preferences. I could understand how people would love this piece, but this is not a style that I personally enjoy.
I really like this album. It paved the way for future electronic albums and still holds up nearly 50 years later. 8/10
잘 못 들엇내요.. 흠 와닿진 않음
An all time classic
Not bad, but kinda feels like it needs more time to cook which makes sense.
Visionär, tolles Album.
1110 1010 1111 01001
This isn't man vs machine, this is man and machine working together seamlessly. Oh and it's awesome. Favorite track: The Model
Classic is often over used, but this is a Classic Album among the few classics of all time.
Great album, Kraftwerk does Kraftwerky things that they know how to do so well.
Wow that was tedious!
I have come to a deeper appreciation of Kraftwerk over recent years through my daughter. The deal with them has always been on their embrace of technology, but she grew up in an age where that's the norm. She finds a relatble anxiety and warmth in them that I get as well. That said, this is probably my least favorite of their records. Still good, but a little too on the nose. Not sure why so many people have covered "The Model" when they have better songs. Computer World is the Kraftwerk album you need.
One of my favorite music discoveries came one day several years ago when I was home alone and put on Kraftwerk’s “Computer World,” the follow-up to this album, and started cleaning the house. It is the absolute perfect domestic soundtrack in the way it elevates the rote to sublime. Anyway, I think I technically prefer that album to this one, but only by a hair. The Man Machine has a slightly poppier sheen, and even a bit of Giorgio Moroder influence in the track “Metropolis,” compared to the minimalist, alien quiet of CW. But it’s still weird and cool and light years ahead of its time and we should all be thankful for Kraftwerk.
A near perfect kraftwerk album. All the songs are great and the perfect length they need to be.
It's solid. Hugely influential. 3 1/2 really. A pleasant groove.
This isn't overtly annoying like I find most electronic music to be, its actually good background music.
Insane. I feel like I am inside a film.
Pinta q flipas Representacion musical de como la sociedad hubiese avanzado si no existiese el genshin impact
Geweldig
Too much synthesizers make it so stereotypical. I can feel it is trying something new and fun, and it’s really sounds fun. I want it can give me more feelings, like some imagination for future or fear or excitement or confusion… anything. Maybe I’ll try more electronic music. 3/5
Some of the tracks on the album were catchy, but it gets outweighed by the repetitiveness that unfortunately makes it stale quick. After only listening to the first song, we know how the rest of the album will sound. 3/5
Interesting listen, but did get a little monotonous. Metropolis and The Model were favourite tracks.
Man fuck outta here
Important and ahead of its time, but not something I'm gonna listen to twice.
Can't help what your preferences are, this definitely aligns with me. Old school synth pop dance music with admittedly not a lot of variation through out but never wore out its welcome on my end. Heavy theme of robotics and industrial noises which probably inspired a lot that was to come in the 90's and 2000's with Daft Punk as a big one. Will not have any issue going back to this album and happy to know the bands name now.
funky
so so so good
Nice
Not really my vibe but interesting
Fine! Not my fave.
Not my first time with Kraftwerk, though I think getting this right after The United States of America is mean haha. The Model is such a classic. Beep boop 🤖
This was a very interesting album. Nice for working.
y
This is a fascinating album that definitely belongs on this list. Even though synth and electro is not my regular cup of tea, the arrangements and sounds on this album show true genius and everyone should definitely expose themselves to Kraftwerk before they leave this earth. I can honestly say I was pleasantly surprised and entertained. Almost an auditory acid trip.
- The Robots: mm mostly distracting, kinda annoying "WE ARE THE ROBOTS." - Spacelab: neat. Bit of a FFVII moment for me: I suspect I had to be there. In context of these being new sounds, it must've been crazy. Hearing it for the first time today, sounds like faffing with knobs. - Metropolis: Cool. Arpeggio reminds me of Daft Punk Tron soundtrack, probably an intentional reference from DP. Overall, not something I expect to come back to, but glad to have heard it. This breaks my thinking that nothing here will be under 3 stars, or "good, great even, but not for me" -- here I introduce 2 stars, being "even as someone who likes music in this genre, I don't want to put this on."
Excellent. Primitive given that it came only a few years before the synthpop movement, but pristine and lush in its own way
I know nothing about these guys, I have no expectations for how this will sound, I have no idea what i'm about to get into 1. The Robots - I like the production, it's fun and cool. This feels like something that would be in Phineas and Ferb. A little bit too long overall 2. Spacelab - Oh, I really like the intro of this one. I wish there was more to it lyrically, but I do love the sound of this one. 3. Metropolis - This one sounds really cool too. 4. The Model - I like the sound, but lyrically meh it's fine. 5. Neon Lights - Oh, this is really pretty! Even tho it's repetitive, something I typically don't vibe with, I actually really like this one. 6. The Man Machine - This one is also cool, but not my favorite Hmmm how to rate this one? I actually vibed with this pretty well, but I don't think it's something I'd throw on often at all. I love the sounds/production, lyrically it mostly felt lacking to me, but it's cool seeing early Electronica. Idk why I've vibed with this more than other Electronic albums on this list so far? I think, I gonna give this like a 3.75/5 or 4/5. It was pretty fun and interesting. It felt very spacey in a way I enjoyed.
Not a fan per se but they did revolutionize the genre...
Listening to this album made me feel smarter.
I like Kraftwerk and everything but I’m just not that into them. That’s my lukewarm take
It creates a special atmosphere, hipnotizing. Iove the calm tempo. I love when an album tells a story, and this one does that. They managed to create a characteristic sound through a sort of repetition that never gets old, and you can feel the creativity put into each song. Some highlights for me are Spacelab, Neon Lights, and The Man Machine. Also, I noticed some similarities to Daft Punk and Japan.
YEAHHHHHHH CULTURAL BANGER i obvs like the german version better
I really want to love this but I just can’t get into it really. Maybe I’m just not in the right mood because it feels like I should like it more. Metropolis works for me. But this just feels like a worse version of R.A.M, which isn’t a good comparison for a lot of reasons, but oh well
Strange and very European. Feels ahead of its time. Not bad.
No meaningful opinion here. Honestly more of a fun inclusion than anything. Certainly not going to line up for tickets to a live show, but kind of fun to see an early iteration of bands like Daft Punk and Nine Inch Nails
I channeled my inner robot and grooved on this album. this is basically the 1970s progenitor of Daft Punk, and I'm here for it
This is the defining album by Kraftwerk, concept- and music-wise. The album is perfectly balanced, the songs are timeless and many of these songs remain unreached.
This was nice but not as good as the Trans-Europe Express
I dig it. Maybe not a regular in my rotation, but it's impossible to deny Kraftwerk's influence on electronic and hop music. 3.5/5 rounded to 4.
man sad machine goes brrrrr man happy
German robots and Pac-Man because why the hell not
Spent the entire day going back and forth on whether or not this was a 3 or a 4. I definitely love it, and would absolutely go back to it, but comparing it to the other Electronica albums I've rated so far, I think a 3 is fine for this. I'm sure that when it came out, it must have sounded like the future. It actually reminds me a lot of some bands I listen to today. This is yet another fundamental Electronica that I'm sure was directly influenced by virtually everything that came after it. To that degree, it's also extremely easy to listen to. I didn't think I was going to manage to have just this on for the whole day, as it's pretty short for an Electronica album. Usually they're like an hour long, but this one is only 6 songs, and 36 minutes long. Of course this is freaking German as well. The funniest part about this album is that even with the voice modulators, you can frame 1 instantly tell the singer is German. It gets a pass for being basic, but I don't know whether to let that dictate my rating of the album or not. Yes, it's repetitive, yes it's samey, but it's never boring and for coming out in 1978 it's pretty incredible. Then again, look at some of the other albums that came out that year. I don't know, I do love this, but I think it's a 3. A very, very high 3. Like a 3.95/5, but I don't round up. I've been very consistent with that. Favorite song on this one is the intro, "The Robots". Sounded vaguely familiar to me, regardless of whether or not I've heard it before. It's just such a good start, and tells you exactly what to expect from this album. I would not skip a single song on this album and also loved the biggest hit "The Model" as well. Hilariously enough, as of a few years ago, Kraftwerk is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, so they're actually more important of a band than most people will realize. For just a bunch of German goobers making beep boop sounds, it's phenomenally impressive it still sounds so damn good today. This is the 1st of 3 Kraftwerk albums I have rolled for this project, as well as the last chronologically, so I'm very interested to hear what they sounded like before this. Considering how much higher this is rated than the other 2, if this is them at their best, I kind of want to give it a 4, and expect what came before it to be a 3. Otherwise all 3 albums are likely to get a 3 from me. Even after talking myself through it and writing this review, I still don't know if this is really a 3 or a 4. Good job with this one though. It's simple and repetitive by today's standards but it still absolutely slaps, and I love it for that. Fine, it's a 4. I've decided.
Zeitgeist. It was the era when science fiction was booming. The era when astronauts were working in multinational space stations. The future was just around the corner. I’ve known this album ever since it came out. In German. The English-language version still sounds strange, a bit off. Perhaps also because the strong accent makes it clear that the lyrics were never intended to be in English. But that doesn’t matter. Because with Kraftwerk, it’s the atmosphere, the concept, the idea – and the music, of course – that counts. The album is a masterpiece. Their most commercially successful one. And perhaps not even their very best. But great. Still visionary, almost 50 years after its release. And the future is still around the corner. For better of for worse.
It was... fine? Not for me, I didn't hate it or anything, but it also wasn't that interesting to me
Wow. Unexpected nostalgia hit. I was never that in to Kraftwerk, but I absolutely know The Robots and The Model. I remember the friend who played them for me. I remember my mind getting blown. Still can't believe this album is from 1978.
Förstår att det var ground breaking men det är för tråkigt
Interesting for its time, but too basic nowadays for my tastes
Listens: 3 Standout Tracks: The Man Machine I do not like this. I almost hate it. But why? Why do I like Jean-Michael Jarre's Oxygène, but not this. They're practically the same thing. This album is too upbeat; it feels cheesy for some reason. I think it's aged poorly. Something about the idea of this music being futuristic makes me think the exact opposite. It's not futuristic, its corny and tired and the evocative of a bunch of late 70s early 80s futurism/retro tropes. I also think the production is way too clean and buttoned up... it's inorganic, sterile... which I suppose makes sense within the context of robots and machines? But is that the intended purpose or is that just a coincidence? Do all of Kraftwerk's other albums have this same sterile production value? As I put more words down, I think my issue with the album is crystalizing: This album sounds way too optimistic. The future simply hasn't turned out as futuristic as was envisioned 50 years ago. Space travel is not possible on a widely-available, commercial level. Robots exist, but not in the butler/maid sort of way envisioned in the Jetsons (unless you count a Roomba). Cybernetics are still a ways off. Instead, things seem a lot more dystopian. Social media that causes echo chambers, depression and addiction. People glued to their electronics. AI that is coming for your job. Mass surveillance and a loss of privacy. A global rise in authoritarianism, fascism and right-wing nationalism. Basically, this album sees the future as something to look forward to, and that cannot be reconciled with the future we're living in today. I give this 2 stars. I do not like it, but it did get me thinking about the future (and the past through the lens of the impact of technology on our lives.
Absolutely adore Kraftwerk, brilliant album
The spotify link goes to the english version. I suggest going on Spotify and look for "Die Mensch∙Maschine" for the german version.
I can enjoy and appreciate Kraftwerk but I can't quite love them - I've even seen them live at Manchester's cycle... thing. This is brilliant though, and more human than other Kraftwerk albums. Spacelab is something I've come back to a few times for the lovely motifs.
perfect length album for this but also i was SO confused that spotify only had the english version. I never realised they recorded the whole thing in two languages. i’ve never heard the model in english before and it was slightly off-putting but still solid.
Whenever I put kraftwerk on I assume it's gonna just sound really dated and somehow it never does. The synth sounds they recorded sound glorious and they have a real charm to them. "The robots" felt a little on the nose, but beyond that this is a great collection of tracks, it's not too long (which I imagine might get a bit tedious). Great stuff.
at least its not AI! i love das model!
The year is 2126 and this is your robotic personal assistant's favorite album. The Man Machine really comes off as something that should be from far out into the future, except it was released in 1978. That's pretty mind-boggling to me. Not sure what other groups were making music like this in the late 70's, but this had to be considered pretty ground-breaking at the time.
Kraftwerk is great for a lot of reasons and are probably one of the hidden architects of modern music. I like some of their earlier stuff as opposed to their full blown electric sound, but it's all catchy. The idea of growing up in postwar Germany is a bit of a trip. Your parents and all of their friends were probably Nazis and nobody really seemed interesting in unpacking that. Instead, you and some of your boys get together with some other bands, create a whole scene, and make some of the most mind blowing albums for the next 10 years or so. German ingenuity channeled for good and not evil!
I can throw The Man Machine on basically whenever and always have a good time. One of the most revolutionary bands of the era, no small task.
Kinda fun for a few minutes but not for long
Ehhh techno
Not bad. No solid bangers for me. But good music. Not enough songs. 1.75/6 54.01%
Im a robot
Without this we don’t have daft punk. Without daft punk we don’t have the rumor that Kanye West would stop watching porn in the studio while they were making the song Stronger.
Great song. Oh, that was the whole album? Oops. I guess I liked the sound and the vibe and "The Model" was really good, but the rest was just fun, but not in a way that would make me want to listen to this again.
Iconic sound.
quede demasiado sobreestimulade (derogatory)
Robots back in 1978? Who knew
liked it more than i thought
Second Kraftwerk album this week? What interesting timing, almost as if robots and computers got involved (yes, lame German style joke, you must laugh!). This is a very clean and crisp album for an early electronic album and there's no doubt that they are amazing synthesizer players, and it is better than the last one you tried to convince me that it needs to be on this list (it doesn't). But ya, this is 3.5 or 4 star material as an average listening goes. It's just so German.
It's like listening to Flight of the Conchords but for real. It was a lot of fun to revisit this old "new" music from the 80s.
I've never really listened to Kraftwerk, but this album was surprisingly good. It has this certain electronic vibe, but still has cool lyrics. Also, this came out in 1978, what?! But for me it might not quite be a 4-star-album, 'cause im always to critical. But it's close to being one.
576/1001 2026.03.23
The original computer-generated music! Today it's commonplace, but Kraftwerk broke ground before it was a thing, and it was really cool!
Really tried to like this one but just didn’t have it in me. I liked being reminded of playing an 8bit game but I sadly couldn’t put myself in the headspace without a controller in my hand.
I can appreciate where this is coming from and where its leading to with electronic music. It feels a bit too stiff and sterile to really get into it, but The Model was alright and I could see something else from Kraftwerk maybe hitting a little better for me.
Fuckin stellar mate
Es Masterpiece und e Masterpiece band! scho es bizli veraltet aber so wegwiisend für elektronischi Musig dasi mindestens 4 Robodance geh mun
Banger
Zehr güt! Fantastic album, super catchy, and its influence on music that came after is undeniable. Simply an amazing record.
Kinda cool how modern it sounds when it was all hand made by a person. Like.... they were WAY ahead of their time. Very cool album, higher score for impact. Plus it's short and sweet
Wie sind deutsche Roboter
Classic, didn’t like it much. Origin of electronic music, eh?
Better than I expected, but still electronic music like this doesn't really impress me. Listenable though. Strange, but I enjoyed songs with robotic voice more than with real voice.
if you fear the robot, give him a smooch
Oh, to have the optimism now of Kraftwerk in the middle of the Cold War. To be able to look on humanity and to look at the future and see the Spacelab and neon lights. Anthems in celebration of mankind's slender successes. Songs in English, German, and Russian - an internationalist fantasy that seems very silly at the moment. And all in the vocabulary of 18th and 19th Century European music. It all speaks to Englightenment. It becomes obvious, when, on The Robots, the robots sing: "We are programmed just to do/Anything you want us to." Difficult not to put this in stark contrast to the women of the ACDC record we listened to a week or so back. They would do anything Bon Scott wanted or so he says. Regardless, it is all in service to domination, to one will subjugated to another. Whereas Kraftwerk's robots offer up their service to humanity, a fully-automated communist utopia. Kraftwerk reach their Utopia via Autobahn, whereas ACDC and their rockmates take the highway elsewhere. Angus Young's clear, narrow riffs sound a lot more automated than Kraftwerk's synthetic transposition of melodic hooks. There may be sequencers and drum machines at play, but it all sounds oddly human: the hesitations, the mortal mistakes, the warmth of analogue. Even if they are robots or man-machines, even if the harmonic movement is programmatic, their music is more humane than the anti-human, anti-social indulgence of ACDC. Of course, Kraftwerk throws it to the wind with The Model, a song as objectifying as anything on Highway to Hell. It happens to lack much of the warmth and gentleness of the rest of the record. Its beat martial. No gloop vocoder on the vocal. Naturally it is Kraftwerk's biggest hit. We are not deserving of Kraftwerk or their utopian aspirations. 3 Omg they actually sound like robots! or something like that; I gather that’s how we are expected to receive and celebrate this seminal work of electronic music. I was struck on this listen though, that the alienating quality that The Man-Machine undeniably possesses might have less to do with Kraftwerk’s success in successfully knitting technology and artistic concept than is traditionally supposed. It doesn’t sound to me like an alien future so much as an alien past. The preponderance of minor keys, stately (or is it merely stiff?) musical themes, the neat, rather simple decoration and development, and the mechanical repetition - which can as well allude to pre- as post-‘expression’ in musical terms - made me think of baroque overtures and dances. If you take Handel’s Sarabande from the Suite in D or even the overture to Messiah and played slow and stiff on just synths - I could drive down the motorway at night listening to that and feel like I was on my way to Blade Runner’s L.A. (2019) just as well as I can listening to Metropolis. Were Kraftwerk visionaries or merely just German? If you feed a child enough Telemann perhaps they too will intuit the alien 18th Century and mistake it for visions of robots in the 21st. Additionally - Germans say English words slightly funny and Ralf is not a good singer. Could this lot really do much less than sound like robots? 3/5
We finally know what caused it to suddenly rain men that one day. Kraftwerk was responsible for the whole thing. It was a camp old time until there were thousands of mangled bodies screaming on the concrete where they landed. Dozens of naked men spewed forth from the Man Machine only to be dashed upon the soil in a labyrinth of shattered limbs and opened skulls. Seems relatively crass to produce an album about it, but hey, it was the 70's!! The best song was the last one. Because it was the best song, and because it symbolized the end of my sleepwalk through space. THis album has the atmosphere of a space "experience" at a museum in rural PEI museum. One of those palces that had it's budget slashed in the early 80's. The year is 1971 and YOU'RE going to the MOON! I can't wait. 2 HIGHLIGHTS: Parsnip the Partridge could be a mascot. Could be for awareness of parsnips, partridges, the letter P. Possibilities are endless. Pete Possibilities? Maybe? A man can dream.
Yuck! DNF Best Song: N/A Rating: 1.5/10 Stars: 1
Vibey beats, but horrid vocals or whatever that part is considered
Like their sound just wish the beat had more of a variety across each song.
It's ok
Ok
bzzzzz beep boop robot
I previously heard Kraftwerk's Autobahn and I felt that effort was a perfect introduction to the ensemble. I've grown to love that effort, it's gotten some repeated plays, and I've recommended it because it does fit a particular vibe. That vibe is easier to get into than the one on this project. This effort is nice, if not a little undercooked. It works better accompanied. Like, I could see myself rummaging through a thrift shop with this stuff on in the background, or ordering a cocktail at a bar with neon lights, or on the credits for a retro spy sitcom. But listening to it just because of its sound makes it slow, and the emptiness in between the notes can grind on the nerves if you're sensitive to music in that way. I find it tolerable and I can understand its importance, the foundation of the sound it's laying is solid, and electronica benefits deeply for it. I found it sounded better on my ear buds, I think sound quality is important to appreciate this one. Be wary of cheap ineffective sound systems when listening to this record. Historically, I'd take this up to a 4/5 album, something I might recommend a true music nerd. This isn't getting many replays, though. 3.2/5
Good stuff! ★★★★
The first song is so fire
gross
Well ahead of its time. Good album. Particularly liked The Model and Neon Lights.
Not my type of music, but this group with it's pop themes hit the button. Quite enjoyed it. Liked The Model.
Kinda good for work. Weird. All futuristic rave.
Um, no.
Epic.
what is happening
I thought going in it would probably be a 3. I know they influenced a ton but I was surprised how well the album flowed. Bumped it up to a 4
Like listening to the background music from old video games.
The robots The man machine Neon lights
Excellent album. I've been listening to it frequently for a couple of years and both the more simple catchy tracks and the soundscapy ones are fantastic and still feel like something from the future, but not necessarily a cold and dim one.
An intriguing album. Clearly a precursor to a lot of music that came after both electronic and otherwise. I think it suffers a bit from the fact that so much good stuff has come after it that has sort of canabalized it but still good to listen to.
I respect Kraftwerk as pioneers of electronic music, but I still don’t love their output. It’s all a bit twee and awkward, particularly whenever vocals are involved. I don’t actively dislike their stuff though. This is just a middle of the road album for me.
I made some similar songs on garage band in 9th grade
I enjoy parts in theory, but mostly I appreciate it as an influence on other groups I like.
I don’t take drugs so I guess I can’t appreciate electronica stuff. Just total rubbish
leukkk, heel experimenteel met de synths
I just struggle to get into Kraftwerk. I understand they are influential, I understand it is atmospheric, but I prefer tunes and melodies.
Another band from the list that I have a sort of outsized impression of their importance in music history, but haven't actually sat and listened to much. Really enjoyed this and see so many seeds of the modern synth-pop/synthwave that I love. Honestly way more poppy and melodic than I expected, with a few individual synth lines I recognized. Kraftwerk's whole aesthetic was just cool as well, the album cover, the way they dressed, the sort of futuristic vibes they were able to conjure - I think of them as krautrock but this is honestly pretty far removed from that sound. The remastered version just sounds good from a production standpoint as well. I think the bookend tracks of the album are the best, but surprisingly I hadn't heard "The Model" despite being the "hit" on this album. Overall really enjoyed this one.
Great album that till sounds fresh and relevant nearly 50 years on. You can hear echoes of the songs in modern music still.
Neon Lights war ok. Was besseres kann ich nicht sagen.
The Model ist gut.
Fantastic. Favourite tracks: Metropolis and The Model (obviously).
Not a fun listen the whole way through but its undoubtedly iconic
I’m a big fan of Kraftwerk, Autobahn is an incredible album. This was interesting but not as good, but I would 100% revisit!
Not a massive fan of their full discography but I like this album as it seems to be the one where they decided to be a bit tuneful and groovy, as much as Kraftwerk can be such things. I think you can hear the influence of Georgio Moroder / Donna Summer I feel Love which was released the year prior in this album and it’s all the better for it. 3.4
I like what Kraftwerk have influenced a lot more than I like them. I've tried before but I just find this too boring and repetitive. And some of these songs are needlessly long.
4.5; álbum essencial para a história do synthpop e que todas as músicas são boas, apesar de uma ou outra durarem um pouco mais do que eu gostaria. A temática casa perfeitamente com a sonoridade.
Like being in a video game. Good ambient music to get some work done to.
what the fuckkkkk
Yaaaaaa
Really impressive that this came out in the 70s. Clearly very influential and parts sound like the soundtrack to an 80s sci-fi movie. A few tracks are a bit weaker than others, particularly some of the ones with vocals, but overall I enjoyed listening to this and I’m glad to have come across it.
Meh.... tiresome.
Cool concept but not music that I would seek out myself
3/6/26. First time diving into Kraftwerk. Lucky to have a couple listens over the weekend and it's hard to deny the influence this music has had on later artists, notably Daft Punk for me. Very cool soundscapes driven by synths and couldn't pick up on the lyrics as much.
Ok it was quite weird and I have no compulsion to relisten, but I was also kinda feeling it
Insipid
78 model erster einziger? Deutscher Fünfer? C
Certainly Influential and different at the time, but I don’t like it much.
4/5. One of those albums that jusy sounds like the future. Listening to it I can hear how it influenced so many groups that I love from Daft Punk to LCD Soundsystem to Stereolab and so on. It fuses together krautrock and synthesizers to create an album that is just hypnotizing, I felt like I was in a groovy trance the whole way through. Also “Metropolis”, “the model” and “neon lights” is an especially great three track run.
Kraftwerk – The Man-Machine (1978) On Day 76, I returned to the world of Kraftwerk, and unlike my experience with Autobahn, this one actually had a vibe to it. It’s much more refined and rhythmic, moving away from the "snooze fest" territory and into something that feels like it has a purpose. While it’s still very mechanical, the melodies are cleaner and the shorter runtime makes it much easier to digest. It shows the evolution from their earlier, more "ass" experiments into a body of work that actually has some atmosphere. It’s not a masterpiece for me, but it earns a solid 3/5 for actually keeping me engaged.
Like we need another one of these.
Robotastic
Cool sound. Not my vibe.
I’ll go 3.4…. Early electronic sounds that are fun for a moment, but no sticking power FOR ME (I capitalized “for me,” so don’t “at” me). I really want it to be cooler…
Sounds surprisingly modern. But it didn’t stick with me in any big way. It was enjoyable! 7/10 Quite Likeable
Not impressed
Got a little monotonous - Overall good
Best Song: The Robots. Wouldn't it be nice if the inevitable robot invasion was announced by them simply repeating "We are the robots"? Worst Song: Neon Lights. Too upper register, not enough bassy sounds. Overall: An album that is both so futuristic and so old. It feels like retrofuturism because of how dated its presentation of "the future" feels. That said, it's relatively fun, short, and inoffensive.
7 / 10 - Sehr cleane Synth Sounds - poppig und tanzbar - künstliche/robotische Musik, die dennoch sehr menschlich wirkt Favs: - The Robots - Metropolis
I was excited to get a Kraftwerk album, I’ve been looking forward to it for while because so many bands I love count Kraftwerk as a major influence. This album didn’t click with me unfortunately. Maybe not enough pop sensibility for me? Notable tracks include Spacelab and Neon Lights.
I think it would have been much more impressive in 1978
I am giving this a 3 based on it being groundbreaking for its time, it's extremely rough and not really all that enjoyable to me.
Such a fun album
original robot boys - cold machine music with the faintest beat of humanity off in the speeding night.
Not for me
It's good and very enjoyable. I think it may be a 4 it the vocals weren't so shocking.
i would give it a 3.5
A really great album when it was released. One of the big steps of electronic music. And therefore a must for this list. But unfortunately I simply don't like it.
reminds me a little of the movie hackers 1995. the song intros are good.
Gotta respect my elders, who graciously allowed my robot duo to take their gimmick
Very atmospheric music; specifically science fiction. Such a vibe and I appreciate what it provides. Metropolis is my favourite.
Heel veel beep boop
Vanguardia de la electrónica. Hoy lo escuchás y se siente pedorro, pero MIL NUEVE SETENTA Y OCHO. Una locura. Y venían de discos anteriores ya. Salía el punk, salía el post punk y los Kraftwerk en esta. 8/10
While not being specifically my taste their very clear influence on electronic music cannot be understated. Kraftwerk and specifically this album being cited as major inspiration and influence for New Order, Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails and countless others speaks volumes.
Ja… Warum nicht?
One of my favourite bands and saw them in MK 2025 , absolutely loved it and this album is one of their best
I still don’t get kraftwerk
German robot sounds from the 70s- if that's what you're into you might be a serial killer. I wouldn't like to listen again but I get why this album is important.
alien ahh beats
Listened to this one on a plane, felt fitting or maybe I'm just stupid idk. Either way as far as early electronic stuff goes not too shabby. 4/5
There are some proper earworms in here but the repetition does get to be too much. This was probably quite an interesting proposition in the late 70s and I enjoy the headspace the high energy sounds can put you in for a while, but the endless repeats get to you eventually. Nice but not quite.
Well, this is an interesting roll I am on with sampled or elec "tron" ic effects style of music. This is nothing like the recently reviewed DJ shadow as this is more an experimentation of electronic made sound rather than a sample but it's a happy divergence from my norm and a different musical bubble they exist in. I oddly resonate with this music and enjoy letting myself get immersed. It's actually to my ear quite a paired down "simple" sound. It's not without its complexity, but it's not a complex layer of sounds; it's a simple tone that changes in a very slow but deliberate way. Its clever though as its shifts allow scope for energy and theatre. Its a wide stage that gives it impact and feeling. Yes its a bit odd and whacky but that adds to its appeal and you can just enjoy it for what it is, an early experiment of sound and one I find very enjoyable.
A pretty ground-breaking band with real cultural significance, Kraftwerk were early pioneers of the electronic music that is now commonplace. I explored their discography years ago and I think The Man-Machine would rank as their best work. Now a classic, I can only imagine how futuristic and forward looking this album must have sounded to new ears in 1978. All that being said, it is now a pretty simplistic and naïve application of synthesised electronic music and modern electronic artists simply have far more sounds and layers in their arsenal. This album isn't something that would be in my regular rotation but it's a great museum piece from the first band to show that electronic music could make it in the mainstream. It's a 3* on personal taste, pushed over the line by its cultural influence.
*1978. Instrumental electronic. *Sounds like a European Mannheim steamroller Christmas album… or it could be the telephone hold music when you’re being transferred to a different department. *Only about 35 minutes, so it wasn't bad. The electronic stuff is not my vibe, but the music actually isn't terrible. RATING - 5/10
this one was fucking awesome. i love electronic music. i loved the robots, the model and neon lights. the rest of it kinda dragged unfortunately. i wanted to give it higher but it was honestly perfectly split between really really good tracks and stuff i wasn’t really into.
Great sound work but not really my vibe
7/10
A great album
Landmark stuff. Couple of weaker songs in the first half, but ‘The Model’ is exquisite.
It’s sounds really weird but it’s cool
El disco no es malo y se reconoce claramente la importancia que tuvo en la historia de la música. Dicho esto, claramente no es una obra para mi. No es la primera vez que lo escucho pero si probablemente sea la última. No disfruto el género para nada, más allá que The Model me parezca un gran hit.
Not my jam
cuando era chica pensaba en el futuro sonaba asi. pienso en el futuro ahora y no lo puedo musicalizar, no lo pienso mucho la verdad. gran álbum, me haria la Interesante recomendandolo
Masterpiece. Loved every second.
It aint Daft Punk, (these are their fathers lowkey) but its alright. 3/5 Favs: The Model, Neon Lights
Another one which is about 9/10. I'm being more brutal from now on. Great album, but how can it be 5 stars when there are a couple of Kraftwerk albums which are definitely better?
Mid 5
Almost impossible to review tbh
Neon Lights is a real vibe.
Gotta appreciate their inventiveness and dedication to style even if it gets old after a while
Is this supposed to be important? Because it's pretty mid. I got bored halfway through the first song, and it never drew me in. It's fine and dandy to put on this robot gimmick but as straight music it's just not interesting. Easy way to make 36 minutes feel like 90. I get that it's somehow synth based music from the 70s but that doesn't mean it's automatically good. It's far from timeless and doesn't stack up to even just the music of its time. Barely giving it a 2 just because it not entirely unlistenable. 1.5/5
What a great electronic album that sounds like it could have been made today. I imagine these songs are sampled.
skipped through this bc why would i waste time listening to it
a ideia é interessante mas n me pegou mto n
Kinda weird! album de jueguito definitivamente. No lo escucharía otra vez
I’ve always enjoyed The Model and this is the right length for a Kraftwerk album
absolutely not! soooo repetitive and pointless
Never heard of this guy or this album. Favorites: - Thoughts: Fuck this album too, this made me quit this thing for like a whole 2 months.
I appreciate the innovation but don’t enjoy the music 2.5
One of those sort of Ur bands that start stuff. Love all early electronic stuff.
Kraftwerk wer kennt es nicht. Live eine abnsolute Katastophe
Когда-то, возможно. это было прикольно и ново, но нынче кто будет это слушать?
my respect for electronic music has greatle decreased since I started this challenge
Pioneers for sure , still not my fav lol
A classic. I gave it 4 because I thought it fades a bit in the second half. I’ll listen again and perhaps that will grow on me.
10/10. Proper transformative stuff. This was one of the first records my Dad ever bought (he sold all of his collection before I was born, sadly), spawning his love for electronic music which passed down to me. Even now, approaching 50 years after the fact, this album sounds incredibly fresh and like it's from another dimension entirely. Yet, it's packed to the brim with catchy, minimalistic, trance-inducing robotic motifs, licks and rhythms which have never left my conscious throughout the time I've been familiar with it. It's a go to album for me when I'm looking for something soothing and palate-cleansing. I think this should be in everyone's collection.
Not a big stand out to me but I enjoyed it
I have listened to this three times in a row. I know it is restarting, yet I won’t stop it. What a great album. I guess I need to start listening to Kraftwerk. Probably should listen to Autobaun next.
You know the contrast between the original NES game Legend of Zelda and the more modern game Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild? This is basically the 8-bit version of modern EDM. I enjoy the minimalist soundscape that it transports you to. Simple hopes about technology. Too bad it didn’t turn out quite like this. 3.2/5.0
The Robots The Model Neon Lights The Man Machine
3.5
This was a funky lil album and I enjoyed giving it a shot!
Funky instrumentals
I think we lose sight of how revolutionary this is because we live in the future it imagined. The sounds that are part of every day life were not when this was recorded and what we also lose sight of is how soulful this is, and whilst it’s not as good as autobahn having had the privilege of hearing many of these songs live it’s still a hugely impressive piece of work
Simple but really enjoyable, charming and while I dont give points for this. Impressive for its time.
78 and sounds like that. Aged super well too.
Great listen
High 3. I really liked it, but I couldn't find myself saving songs or wanting to really revisit it much. Ended up listening to it a few times through and just kind of got lost in the sauce a bit.
Прикольне звучання, але нічого не міняється
I understand they were og electronic, but it was kind of boring comparatively. Interesting once, but boring
I had been pretty lukewarm on their debut album, but by this point they've really come into their own. The vibes are immaculate, I've listened to this a few times today and it's the kind you listen to the whole way through rather than pick songs from.
Felt like I was listening to a new Tron soundtrack, it's amazing. Can't believe this came out in the 70's, they were so far ahead of the game.
Electronically excuberant
It's cool. Probably would play again by accident.
Beep boop, it's crap
Pretty awesome to get to listen to an album and see the massive influence it had decades later
Fair
Not always grating, which may be the best thing I can say about electronica.
8/10 Favorite: The Model
Did not enjoy
Not Daft Punk
Trochę zbyt monotonny, tekst to parę powtarzających się słów lub zdań. Zbyt podobne do siebie i za długie. Album pasowałby jako tło do futurystycznej gry komputerowej 2D. 2/5
Det var ett album som inte föll mig i smaken. Jag gillar Daft Punk, så jag trodde nog att jag skulle gilla det här också eftersom det verkar så att Daft är inspirerade av Kraftwerk. Men låtarna var långa och repetitiva, vilket får mig att uppfatta albumet som tråkigt. Ingen av låtarna stod ut särskilt mycket, och jag har ingen tydlig favorit.
Pretty good overall, I quite liked it.
Legalzinho, não é muito meu estilo de ouvir, mas a música se encaixa muito no contexto do álbum.
not my cup of tea. weird electronic music.
I will always have beef with Kraftwerk. Don’t ask me why.
2/10 Classic Kraftwerk album from 1978. The Robots and Neon Lights are still bangers. Love this album
Movie soundtrack?
This is a really fun album. The Robots is genuinely one of the most feel good songs ever. 8/10
A pleasant way to spend 36 minutes, with The Model as the standout track.
My goodness this is a good album. It feels like something Daft Punk could have released. These guys were so far ahead of their time it's ridiculous.
Sounds like a brutalism-inspired sort of music. I'd say the middle of the release is quite okay for passive listening, as a somewhat noir-fashioned record. However, the beginning and the ending felt boring. As this is far from being something either as melodic as many Daft Punk works (even the first few disks) or as crazily experimantal as the Einstürzenden Neugebaten industrial album on the 1001 list (which I rated 1/5 anyways), I'll just give it two out of five. "The Model" and "Neon Lights" are generally not bad.
Very good, very nice. Felt a bit repetitive in some places but that's ok, I enjoyed it overall. Beep boop.
4/10 I appreciate how ahead-of-the-times this album is - very electronic, futuristic, industrial. I just don't particularly have an interest in it. I'm sick and have a headache so I may not be in the right head space for this album, so I'll give it a relisten at a later time.
The Man Machine is one of the albums that makes my vinyl collecting so worth it. Such an atmospheric, punchy, moody masterpiece from beginning to end. Sadly, no space in my regular rotation, but a high 3 rating
Erm
Music made to be mixed Model = most getmanic track of all time Nice sounds, ultimately boring. Probs will revisit 1 TA: The Model
I’d rather listen to Neil’s Transfomer.
Defined a new way that records could sound.
flawless
A groundbreaking album, more important for when it was released than how it sounds today
Absolute gas
8/10 The first thing that stood out to me about this record was how much of a fluid groove they managed to build, despite the metronomic and sequenced nature of so many of the sounds. Somehow, while creating machine music, they gave their robots a soul. It’s the layering a blending of different elements that really gives this album life. While there are some elements that could be a little on the repetitive side, they play so much with sequence length across different synth lines that it rarely becomes too static or dull to the ear. The synth sounds that they use add a decent amount of depth to the production and there are some absolutely gorgeous warm, creamy patches in play here that bathe you in a satisfying wash of sound. The composition is also great, with them building some really interesting harmonic beds, while also delivering some memorable and catchy melodic hooks. The drift into pop music territory in places, and into atmospheric ambience in others, which is a great skill for an album that manages to maintain such a coherent voice. It’s also ridiculously far ahead of its time. It’s a 48 year old album that sounds like it could have been released today, and there are clear examples of production and composition that would inspire artists and whole genres in the decades that followed. The one track that didn’t quite connect with me was Neon Lights, which felt a bit too basic, thin and underdeveloped, which was a shame, especially as it covers a quarter of the record. That’s the only thing keeping this from a 9/10, to be honest, as otherwise, this was a really fantastic listening experience that I’ll definitely adding to the regular rotation. The Robots - The sound design here is so good. Some of the synth patches and tones are great; crisp, clear and punchy. It’s a buttery smooth sound that manages to impart a really solid groove despite being so metronomic. There are some really great combinations of melodic and harmonic sequences and tonal modulations that make it feel really alive while never drifting from the robotic theme. It feels incredibly ahead of its time too. Spacelab - The juxtaposition of the urgent beat and arpeggiated synth against the drifting, dreamy lead is excellent. The filter-swept Moog tone is so beefy. There’s some interesting use of layering and the way they pull and push different elements in and out of the mix adds a rolling, adapting feel to the composition. It perhaps gets a tiny bit lost with some of the flutey synth patches that flow around each other, but it’s a minor point. Metropolis - This feels like driving through a neon-lit city at night. Again, the persistence of the beat and arpeggiated synth give this so much drive, but they’re really careful to use sounds with a slower attack against that to not make it overwhelming. They use a range of frequencies at different points to develop tonal differences over the course of the track, which is an interesting approach. Although there’s obviously a lot of sequencing work going on, they manage to use extended sequences to ensure that the track as whole never gets locked in too much of a short loop, even if some components do. It’s really clever stuff, especially with the limited technology they were working with. The Model - This is the closest we’ve come to a traditional song really. Some of the synth lines are so hooky, which is great and it’s definitely a pop song, even if it is a bit of a weird one! I’m not generally a massive fan of having a prominent instrumental part that plays the same line as the lead vocal, but at least it gets a break to do that nice arpeggiated pattern when the vocal isn’t present. As with The Robots, there’s a great groove to this, despite the metronomic nature of it. And, as with the rest of the album, the synth patches are so well matched and create a really warm tonality. Neon Lights - There’s some more nice sound design on here, but it does become a little plodding. Unlike some of the earlier tracks, there’s not as much depth in the synth layering to make this feel as fluid and broad. It all just feels a little bit too rhythmically static and repetitive, which is a shame. It’s not really bad, it’s just a little on the dull side and a bit meandering, lacking in the scope of the rest of the album. It does throw in some developments across its almost 9 minute runtime, but they’re so stretched out and even when it does develop, it feels a bit thin by comparison to the other tracks. And it’s too long. The Man-Machine - And we’re back on it again now. That atmosphere and layering brings so much more depth and there’s a pulsing groove to the rhythmic elements that creates a superb depth to the sound. You can hear how much influence Kraftwerk would have on so many electronically focused types of music that would follow, from house to hip-hop, just from this one track. It’s pretty wild for an album created in West Germany in 1978. The sound design and atmosphere to this is solid and engaging, even if the music depth isn’t quite as pleasing as the first four tracks.
I thought it was going to be a drag, but it was actually good. It's perhaps a 3.5 but I'm feeling generous and it's short enough to add it to the replay list.
I struggled to get through this.
Techno is not my jam. But I have to acknowledge that these guys are extremely influential to bands from Depeche Mode to Daft Punk. Unbelievable that this came out in 1978! Very crisp sound some catchy melodies. Great background music for me, but no one song really stood out.
Enjoyed the most popular track- the model- and recognize it’s role in music history but not a huge fan of industrial or electronic music.
Pretty amazing synth work for late 70s.
Me encanta cómo aún habiendo pasado tantos años de su publicación el mensaje sea cada vez más real. Sin duda es algo que escucharé seguido como fan de los robots y las distopías :). En definitiva esto sirvió de inspiración para el post-punk ruso.
I've known about Kraftwerk for a long time (I think I remember JB - John Buchanan - who led a band at Notre Dame when we were there, and later played with the Soul Searchers and Chuck Brown in DC, saying, maybe in the later 80s, that Kraftwerk were cool) but, for whatever reason, haven't paid them a lot of attention, or been particularly drawn to them. I think they probably had an influence on many kinds of music, like, House, techno, and hip-hop. I do own 1 Kraftwerk CD (Trans-Euro Express), but am not familiar with this one. I did recognize "Neon Lights," though, because it was covered by a Georgia alternative band from the 80s that I like, Love Tractor (I think it was a minor hit for them). I would probably rate this one about the same as The Cars album (and, I'm guessing, a lot of the 1001 albums, lol), as a solid B+, which I guess will translate to 4 stars.
🤖WE ARE THE ROBOTS🤖 Charming, silly, but lacking in funk. More rhythmic diversity would be nice. I'm guessing they get more credit (than they deserve) for being the first to do it (with synths). I do appreciate that they left a lot of space in the lyrics and arrangements for a listener's mind to run in.
I think the first track off this album really did it a disservice. Maybe they were the first ones to do it, I don't know, but singing the lyrics "we are robots" with a robot voice effect over electronic music has to be one of the corniest tropes in modern music. That opening track made me expect to find the rest of the album just as cheesy, but I do think it found its groove eventually. I still didn't really come around to liking this, but at times I felt like I understood why so many people talk about Kraftwerk.
Electronic music is one of my worst rated genres in this project, but this isn't the same boring and soulless dance beats repeated ad nauseum. Kraftwerk are the godfathers of all electronic music and somehow they managed to infuse so much warmth and emotion into their music. I also have to respect the skill it would have taken to orchestrate, perform, and record this music using the tools available to them at the time.
I love them so much.
This is exactly the sort of weird early techno synth-pop that I want the Germans to be making. The fact that half the lyrics are just repeating the title of the song over and over again would not work in most genres, but on this record it’s perfect. I can’t overstate how much I enjoy the bizarreness of this album. It’s just fun. At 36 minutes long it certainly doesn’t overstay its welcome either. I’m not sure I have anything else to say about this one, but that’s not a bad thing. 4*
When I think krautrock I think Kraftwerk, and when I think Kraftwerk I am having a good time. This isn’t my favorite album of theirs, but it’s still a really good one. It’s loopy ride of boops and blips that makes you feel like you’re stuck inside one of those computers the size of an oven with a black and green screen… but maybe you don’t want to go home.
Me ha encantado el álbum. La única pega que le encuentro es que la letra es sosa y el ritmo repetitivo.
does the creator of this list think he deserves to live?
remember kids, you don't have to listen to shit music to fit in
Saying “I am a robot” over and over again is the first thing a kid would do with that voice machine
That was bloody great. Never really gone in on Kraftwerk before, but I really enjoyed this album. Would definitely return and am keen to explore more.
I’ve never heard this…OH NOOO sike no but really I haven’t so I’ll listen back, it’s really 80s though like super, I like 80s but it was not for me too much electronic synth
Electronica is torture on my ears.
3.5 Ya know, I think this crew has come around on me a bit over the course of this list. I once referred to their music as “cold”, “industrial”, and “emotionally devoid”, and yet, I’ve found myself returning to tracks like Trans-Europe Express and Autobahn more often than I ever thought I would upon initial listen. The fact of the matter is, these guys were really on to something, and I feel like it’s especially noticeable here - like, this is borderline a Daft Punk album, and it predates the group by 15 years. It’s a little less industrial than before and a little more danceable, and yet it still does some cool, catchy stuff without being too in your face about it. I can’t really say that I had a favorite or least favorite track, but overall, I just thought this was a nice, proto-electronic six-pack of songs that didn’t outstay its welcome. There was something about Spacelab that made me think of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas every time I heard it for some reason (“as in olden days/happy golden days”), but I can’t say that it detracted from the song in any meaningful way - hell, how could thoughts of Judy Garland and home have that effect? I digress, I found this to be pretty good as someone who normally considers electronic music out of their wheelhouse - though my recent developing fandom of LCD Soundsystem has likely done a lot to expand my interest. It took a live show to fully sell me on that group, so maybe the same can be said about Kraftwerk as well. I’ll keep my eyes open for any shows happening around me in the near future, though, considering our shitty public transit system, I certainly ain’t taking any kind of Trans-Los Angeles Express to get there anytime soon. Finally, given that this may very well be our last time seeing the group on this list - I’m not a fan of the updated album covers found on streaming. I get it’s modernly minimalist or whatever, but give me the originals - I want to see my guys looking like the final bosses of The Church of Latter-day Saints. Also, if you haven’t seen it, the Always Sunny crew did a neat homage to the cover of this album in particular for a promotional still.
Dope
Beep boop beep beep. R2D2 l'album.
Enjoyed the first half more but still a great album. Ahead of its time.
Rv