Reviews (page 3 of 9)
Good for what it was but too challenging to listen to. Ok background noise.
Ei
Huhhuh, aika hevii settii. Annetaan nyt extrapiste siitä ettei tää poppoo ollu myyny sieluaan markkinavoimien painotuksen alla, vaan puhtaasti omaa polkua kulkien
Jaa-a, mitähän tähänkin nyt sit sanois.. On sitä paskempaakin joskus kuullut, mutten muista milloin. Kai tääkin sit oli pakko ennen viikatiemiestä kuulla, muuten ei ymmärrä musiikista mitään.
Tän positiivisin puoli oli se, että vihdoin sai oikeita työskentelyn ääniä omaankin työpäivään. Täytyy arvostaa, että tää pändi on julkassut yli 10 kokopitkää ja uusin on tullut pari vuotta sitten. Se fakta nyt ei sinänsä tätä sisältöö kauheesti pelasta. Toi Jet'm-koveri sentään ol ihan hauska. Eli posia siitä ja muusta hihityksestä sitten sen verran kans, että voi kakkosta leipoo.
No nyt oli tymäkkää paskaa. Aika iso kontrasti eilisen OK Computerin ja tämän välillä. Ei tämmöinen jöröjullikka kyllä ymmärrä moista menoa.
Maybe the fascists were right about abstract art
I'd never heard of this before but ended up being pretty impressed. I enjoy this kind of industrial music, musique concrete and find it strangely soothing as it forces you to listen rather than letting your mind wander. One thing that prevents Kollaps getting the full five from me is that many of the tracks end abruptly rather than merging into the next piece. This is a bit of a jarring experience when there are no traditional songs and can interrupt your focus.
It's easy to make bad, uninspired, or bland music. It's easy to make music where the lack of talent and creativity would relegate an album to the bottom of a garage sale CD pile. It's a whole other thing to make music that puts the entire weight of a city's urban decay and soulless industry into your soul, dragging you to a purgatory that you aren't fully convinced you will escape from. I did not enjoy this album at all, but it is for sure my favorite 1 star album on this list.
I’m not sure why anyone would choose to listen to this. Just awful
1.5
1.5
I can’t say I enjoyed this but I’m glad it’s here.
Welp. Can’t really get that time back now can I?
Jet'm has got to amongst the more intetesting take on Gainsbour
Aggressive lmfao Completely unlike anything ive ever heard ill give it that but like ouchy on the ears. Is it good? Idk? Is it something that you should at least experience in music" yea I guess so, just so you arent naive to know this type of music is out there. I hated listening to this but maybe thats the point? The goal of art after all is to make the cosumer have an emotional response; whether it br joy, sadness, displeasure etc. So 3/5 because simply put, fuck kid rock, he at very least needs to be below this album
Cool experimental music
Difficult to rate. It obviously is very experimental, sometimes just noise. I am German so at least I understand what they're... yelling. Did it influence other bands? Anyway. Nothing I would listen to again.
This was my least favourite album so far, as such I could not settle on one negative review and have instead written several- -This album makes me feel like I'm a german teenager in the 1980s discovering myself in a warehouse basement somewhere in Düsseldorf; and I hate it -I can very much see the appeal of industrial music unfortunately I can't hear it -ouch oof ow my ears aaaarrrghhhhhhhhhh
album #38 okay so, i didn't actually hate this. it's got a clear idea of what it wants to be, though i must admit i'm not sure what that is. i think it's a unique list entry which is what i'm here for! i'm glad i heard this before i died. it did, at points, make me think i was going to shit myself though. industrial is the new brown noise? would i listen again? probably not. but i've heard worse, and it doesn't deserve to be rated as lowly as it is, especially when nico the nazi is on the list. ꩜ average track rating: 1.8/5 ꩜ favourite track(s): kollaps, negativ nein ꩜ least favourite track(s): u-haft-muzak, schmerzen hören ꩜ album rating: ★★☆☆☆ ꩜ number of albums left to review: 1,051 ꩜ number of albums from the list that i agree with being on the list: 24 (+1 Kollaps) ꩜ albums from the list that I would consider on my list: 9 ꩜ albums from the list I won't include on my list: 29
Wow. Noise. Challenging, interesting, chaotic. A tough listen.
This is terrible
My first 1/5. Completely unlistenable. Why is this here? I think only a masochist can listen to this so they can pretend to like it and say "YOU DON'T APPRECIATE REAL ART"
Esto es lo peor que escuché en mi vida me rehuso a categorizar esto como música 0/10
One of the worst things I've ever listened to in my life.
Oh German boy, scream in my ear some more. Felt like I was entering a corrupted file or something which was quite interesting of an experience. The latter part of the album without the vocals particularly stuck with me positively, would probably listen to some parts of it again
Not my favourite German album... That of course would be Immoment by Flowin' Immo et les Freaqz. I love that album. It was pretty rough getting this within a week of listening to that Throbbing Gristle album. This really wasn't any better. I'm sure there's some artistry here to appreciate, but it eludes me without listening again - which I don't really want to do.
While this wasn’t for me I can appreciate the skills and artistry it takes to make an album like this
Not for me but I'm sure it was setting new boundaries at the time
Honestly, I wasn't sure what to think about this one. It's a collection of German screaming and noise, and is obviously very experimental. But I did find myself getting into some of the beats once I acclimatized to the sounds. It might not be your thing and it's obviously going to be controversial, but I'll always take a wild swing that misses over another safe generic album.
as an austrian this sucks
*no music - just sound effects
Well this was a thing. An hour of metal bashing and shouting. I’m sure more clever people than me will identify how this is influenced by the shadows of autocracy and the destruction of war. And there’s probably some truth there, but also I think they like shouting and bashing metal.
++: Tanz Debil, Steh auf Berlin, Negativ Nein, Schmerzen Hören (Hören mit Schmerzen), Jet'm, Kollaps, Sehnsucht, Vorm Krieg, Hirnsäge, Abstieg & Zerfall, Helga +: U-Haft-Muzak, Draußen ist Feindlich 9,7/10
I don’t really do well with “noise” or anything that is close to it. I’ll give it a 2 instead of a 1 because it seems influential.
Industrial? Idk
This is the soundtrack of the world gone all wrong. I've had the privilege of seeing them live a few times in the last 20 years and it's even more oppressive and agonizing on stage. Beautiful chaos.
Is this what Germany sounds like?
what
Not the best album to listen during a week of intense jaw and head pain. Good that it exists though
Loudest music I've ever heard. Full whack for me. Bang, no mash
много съм по странната музика, ама това ми е ту мъч
Wtf
Couldn't take it sadly
AUGHGHGH
It took me some extra time to get back to but it really hit on my second attempt. Hit the same parts of my brain a hyperpop song would
So this is one of the worst rated albums on this. And I understand why. I like listening to music because I connect and create to the music or because the voice, instrumentals and production a good and nice to listen to. And this album didn't do any of it. However it was so different from what I expected and I had more fun listening to this than some other albums on this list because it was so different and I refreshing. In addition my ability to speak German might be the reason my experience is a little better than others because I know what they are saying.
Worst shit I’ve ever heard
LOUD NOISES BUT AT LEAST IT'S NOT ANOTHER BRIT POP/ROCK ALBUM
It is for noise lovers.
Esta es la cosa mas pretenciosa que he escuchado en mi vida, no tiene sentido que esté en una lista de los mejores de la historia. Horrible, ni siquiera lo pude terminar.
It 1001 you need to HEAR, note LIKE. And I’m glad I heard it. And I agree — Kid Rock’s shitty opus is undeniably worse. Not cause of him, it’s just an awfull work.
absolute time waste, 1.6 if being generous
I honestly found this pretty compelling. So many unique, abrasive, and industrial sounds here, and I love how they were combined with some "normal" instrumentation. And then, the howling vocals were there to bring it all together. I can definitely hear how this has been a basis for more contemporary noise (and non-noise) music, and what they did here definitely sounds intentional. Obviously not something I'd want to hear all the time, and I definitely have to be in the mood for it, but this was really interesting to listen to. Favorites: Draussen ist Feindlich, Kollaps, Sehnsucht, Hirnsage, Futuristischer Dub
Somehow never listened to this despite being a big fan of noise music and the more abstract corners of industrial music. This rules so much. Can't imagine how it felt throwing this on in 1981. Still feels raw and transgressive. So much of this was shaved down and shaped to build a ton of more successful mainstream acts, but give me the uncut stuff baby. Do I want to listen to this all the time? No. But when I'm feeling a certain way, only stuff like this can scratch the itch.
Wtf. Tried getting through it but had to give up. I think this list could be conflating weird/experimental with good. Not only the worst album of this list but truly might be the worst album I’ve listened to in my life
If I could rate 0, I would
shit emoji 💩
trochę tragiczny, kompletnie niezrozumiały dla mnie
This is exactly what I imaged German industrial music to sound like.
soundtrack for eastern european horror porn
Clank bang clonk bonk. IT WAS PRETTY NEAT.
Soul sucking. Soul crushing. Just..... why?
A rough listen, mostly in a good way. I understand why it's in the bottom 20, but personally I'd disagree with that placement.
Stop shouting
finally. yeah like a million years ago i was in my nick cave phase and then i got into einstürzende neubauten and fast forward to my post-nick cave phase and you know what? i went to human head records in brooklyn last summer and crate digged and then i saw a fucking first pressing of kollaps in the "rare shit" crate and then i thought "well as i somehow still digs neubauten why dont i buy it and -- cue metal noises and blixa's screaming -- fifty dollars gone. btw the median price of the pressing on discogs is fucking 70 dollars so that means its like such a fucking deal! and during my nick cave phase i wrote this absolutely horrid review for kollaps which is basically me apologizing to blixa for hating this album: "Es tut mir leid, Blixa. Although I love the stuffs that you did together with Nick Cave, i think what you’ve done on this album was somehow pretty terrible. Maybe it’s because I can’t comprehand German, and Nick sings in English. Or maybe its because there’s no clear melodies on this album. I think that there’s also this possibility of me hating on this album because of how those metal pipe noises are combining with your scream, which, although worked very well on songs like “Stagger Lee”, really, REALLY feels horrible when blended with those metal noises. And, I think this album is the best literal “Thrash Metal” album that I’ve ever heard, because it’s just you guys thrashing on metals, and it may be better than Metallica. Sorry for that terrible pun. and at times, this album has this cotrolled kind of chaos that makes me feel not so uncomfortable and sounds ok. And i’d like to say “es tut mir leid” to you again, Blixa. Because for the scoring, i’d like to give this album a 2.5, and change it to a 3.5 and rounds it up to a 4 because of your friendship with Nick, some beautiful moments on the album, me suddenly deciding on repeatedly playing it because of wanna know more about you guys which makes it sounds better. And, If you’re not satisfied with this, I am willing to put myself on the mercy seat and shock myself to death." but honestly i think they would just laugh at it. but seriously kollaps is one of the msot awe inspiring, primal, and hard to listen piece ever, it inflicts emotiong never present and could work miracles from time to time with the unorthotox arrangement. there are some easy listeners but you have to wait till later second half while thats something else to talk about. a sincere 4/5 this time.
Industrial horror - the only thing more terrifying than the despair of clanging machinery is the howl of post-industrial collapse, the looming void, the creeping rust, the screaching noise of iron wrought from itself. I can't watch any more of these German sitcoms.
Ok. I need to think about this. I don’t want to sound like i’m trying to be interesting but there was something about this. It’s just so interesting the way that this was music in every way except how it sounded! For so long i thought hmm but im never listening to this again but now idk! The early tracks a bit too screamy but once we got industrial things started happening.
This has an elements of things that I like, like strong beat and percussion, variety, creativity. But I am def not Berlin enough for this
In 2022, I was sad and lonely in Rome, and in a desperate bid at connection I followed someone’s recommendation to see a video exhibition at some random gallery. I remember it was a public holiday so I got in for free but I was completely perplexed as to why anyone would recommend it, because /nothing/ was getting through to me, so in addition to being sad and lonely, I was now frustrated and a little mad. But then I wandered into the back of the gallery, and there was this massive projection of what could only be described as a German Expressionist film noir video game? And folks I cannot explain why but THAT was the installation that hit me, and this album would have been the perfect accompaniment to it. So yeah wow I loved this? Like all power to ya fellas, I’ve got no idea what’s going on but it made me feel something and that’s enough for some stars! I did NOT like the moment in Abstieg and Zerfall where the voice came through exclusively in my left headphone and made me jump out of my skin thinking that some man had randomly appeared in my apartment but on the whole this was a real experience and honestly, we’ve listened to much worse.
We’re not getting better song names than Kollaps, Schmerzen hören (hearing pain), Negativ Nein, Mikrobendub, Draussen ist feindlich (the outside is fiendish). It wasn’t really like anything I’d normally listen to or plan to again, but what a cool project and this was certainly a collection of sounds I haven’t heard in this way before. I want to lift it out of last place on this site because it’s far from the worst album I’ve heard
I like how sometimes it would lull you into a false send of ‘hey this is a fun beat’ before hitting you with the drills. This was noisy and uncomfortable and fun and I’ll never listen to it again.
Fucking terrible. The worst thing to ever pull, extremely stressful while in a 20 person line at Sephora under fluorescent lights. Poop from a butt.
Wtf?
Exécrable
Obviously this is not going to be for everyone. The band goes far out of its way to be abrasive and alienating. Through texture, rhythm, and an uncompromising aesthetic they create a whole other world for you to feel uncomfortable in. This is what I signed up to this project for, not to hear Hotel California for the thousandth time
1/10
This is the kind of music that you know exists somewhere, which maybe.02% or less of the population actually listens to, and which less than .002% of that set actually enjoys, but that you know must have a presence on this list due to the fact that stuff like this is expected on said list. I felt for a short time like a sculptor, goggles on, buzzsawing steel and enduring the onslaught of sparks flying into my face. This is heavy-duty art-making music. In the end, I guess I liked it more than Tori Amos.
This mf just put anything on this list, huh.
Music to get hurt to. Distinct from music to hurt yourself to. This is the soundtrack to getting a brake disc thrown at you, and then poking the tender skin until it gets inflamed. This is soundtrack to getting your teeth knocked in with a utility chain. Beyond daring (if the band's live shows were any indications) this is some of the rare music that might be positively, *gloriously* dangerous. This is spiritually the grandfather of Yamantaka Eye, as well as Facade (a band I caught at a noise festival who dumped a bunch of lightbulbs all over their drumkit, destroyed an 8-pane window, and played until their drums were unusable, after which they constructed a kind of sculpture with the remains). Yes, it's loud, and it's abrasive, and abstract, but that's because it is supposed to hurt, at least a little. It's a celebration of noise as music, music as noise, noise as noise, and found, industrial objects as strange little art pieces, in and of themselves. Besides, if you really dive in here, I honestly think it's more tuneful than people are willing to admit. These are still structured like songs, there's a strong rhythmic center at pretty much all times, and the vocals make some level of sense. There *is* stuff to latch onto, even if it is, admittedly, abstract. What really pulls this ahead to me is imagining how this is it's stubborn singularity. On later Einstürzende Neubauten albums, the band is still frightening, but they also resolve into something that makes more sense within a broader experimental music context. After they get a couple of albums out, you suddenly have some context for the band, and this is magnified for someone like me, who can listen to this and find everything about the band, their history, their techniques, their philosophy on the internet. But, if you found this in a record store in 1981, you wouldn't have any other album from the band to compare it to, and you could only know what the liner notes tell you. This *sounds* like it could have feasibly been recorded by like a junkyard punk cult. This sounds like it comes from the fringes of society, and even though we now know more about the band, Kollaps' sound is powerful and uncompromising enough that this illusion kind of persists. This *still* sounds alien and dangerous, more like genuine found footage than an artistic endeavor. The overall experience is truly exhilarating, and wildly unique.
I understand this album’s purpose on this list, but can’t say it was a fun listen.
Meh. Didn't care for this too much.
Dit ga ik niet vaker luisteren, maar vond het wel cool om gehoord te hebben. Vooruitstrevend, en nogal zichzelf.
no entendí pero me gustó
Now this is actually interesting. Punk-y a bit with electronic vibes. Almost industrial punk.
Not often there is German music. Experimental west-berlin punk, how very niche. I seriously doubt I'll listen to this again. The use of jackhammer is interesting.
Wildly low-fi, underground German percussive noise. The only track that resembled music was ‘Sado-Masodub.’ I had to skip through every track to get through this disaster.
WTF?? Noises.
Nope, sounds like smashing trash and yelling
I never thought I would hear something worse than MJ Cole. My sincere apologies to him because his music is like water in a desert compared to this awful noise. This damaged my hearing on the lowest volume. I think this music -if you can even call it that- I think has the ability to convert its victims because imagining hell without this playing in the background constantly is impossible and I couldn’t think a more effective way for someone to extract government secrets from me the making me listen to this longer then four seconds. I understand that some of these albums are on here because they are so different and unique that you’ll remember them on your death bed. I can promise with utmost confidence that I will one hundred percent remember the time I waisted on this album and weep knowing I threw away time I could be doing much more enjoyable things. For example swallowing glass, a root canal, open heart surgery, or murdering a family of adorable kittens in cold blood.
Another win for the deaf
So bad. Jangly banging noise and yelling.
Well, that’s certainly a way to start a morning. This is the second worst-rated album on the whole list, and it’s easy to see why. This is a lot of industrial noises (power tools grinding on metal, sheet metal banging together, nails being used as drumsticks, etc) and literal shouting in German; very little of the vocals are not angry yelling. There’s not much actual music going on, at least in the traditional sense. There were one or two songs that had a coherent beat and rhythm to it, and if they leaned more into a softer experimental style like that, this could have gone somewhere. As it is now, this is just a ton of abrasive noise that you don’t need to listen to. The lowest of 2/5, just for the sheer gall to put something like this on wax, but make no mistake: this is NOT nice music.
Dog shit.
Did I try? Yes. Am I glad I tried? Yes.
This isn't music, it's art! (Not in a good way)
What the hell, It feels like I'm listening to random noise. It's veeery loud and for me very hard to listen on headphones, and definitely I can't listen to it while doing something else. It's just too disturbing. I don't like it and feel it. Maybe just not my type.
poronguita
Awesome and voting high moves Kid Rock to its correct location as worst album (because it is)
Good noisy nihilism for the whole family
#890. This is like some abstract art kind of shit. Like the musical equivalent of Jackson Pollock or something. I get it, I just don't like it. 2/5: they tried
Noisy and jangly
Tanz Debil
Really enjoyed it. The second track was a standout, all of the vocal performances were really impactful and I loved the literal take on industrial music.
Industrial noise-punk. It's apparently a groundbreaking and very influential album, but it's not something I enjoy listening to; in fact, I'd classify most of it as "actively unpleasant," which may be the point. Great potential for horror movie soundtracks, but it's not going on my playlist.
Eu queria dar zero, mas não tem essa opção 🥲
It scared my dogs. Artistry is important and should exist.... doesn't mean I have to gravitate to it.
German industrial? In this economy?
I get why this album is on the list, but I can’t imagine actually listening to this on a regular basis
I did not realize that I too could be an accomplished musician, worthy of international acclaim. I have produced all of these sounds at some point in time in my house and in my garage. If only I had recorded them and muttered inane things while doing so.
sorry, I'm sorry. I wanted to like it. maybe on more listens.
German banging, boom.
Heavy proto industrial german art music - its dated by industrial standards but the fact this was recorded 45 years ago is a testament to their skill
Again, how do you even rate something like this. Industrial German Music is the genre I've been least familiar with of everything, so far. Yet, this is a record I'll definitely find myself going back to. The first track is definitely an inspiration for Yeezus. Last track is such a heater.
such a wild listen. not something that I put on for casual listening, but always a fantastic spin whenever it starts. difficult to tell a lot of the times what exactly is creating the noise you're hearing. they took the more out-there elements of the kosmische music that had been explored in Germany through the 1970s and dug deeper, bringing it back down to earth with metallic clashing and electronic sounds. without this, it's hard to conceive of entire genres of hardcore and industrial music later on. Trent Reznor would not have been able to repeatedly declare the final Nine Inch Nails tour for well over a decade (just to tour again a few years later) without Einstürzende Neubauten laying this musical groundwork.
When I visited Joe a couple years back, we watched two movies over the course of that long weekend: '2001: A Space Odyssey' and 'Jackass: Number Two.' While I laughed hysterically during the latter, the former engenders a more existential laughter, a laughter of nervous dread, or perhaps of seeing the vision of a deranged genius pulled off with overwhelming skill and ambition. I'm not sure exactly why I find '2001' so funny throughout, but I found myself laughing in much the same way throughout Kollaps, a wide grin eking out from deep within my Self.
A little too aggressive without melodic balance.
I tried it, I understand why it’s on here. It’s bad
That's the biggest load of rubbish I've ever heard. Take ten Aspirins straight away.
I get why this is the lowest ranked album on here. But to hear the first album in a new genre is important. More of this, less Beatles
This was... not as bad as I was expecting -- and yet still pretty abrasive. Overall, this was a pretty burdensome listen. Maybe it'd be cathartic for others, I don't know. It was rough. The plusses: 1. The tracks without screaming were actually not too miserable, and to their credit, they did tend to maintain a steady beat on most of the tracks. 2. Influence: Henry Rollins has a Einstürzende Neubauten tattoo, so clearly I can quantify it, in some objective way that makes sense to me. Ergo, we can scrape by with a 2. Barely.
About a year ago, just one week after having started this project, I gave the infamous Throbbing Gristle my first 1-star rating. I was absolutely appalled by the cacophony they presented. Yet here I am, a year later, honoring a similarly cacophonic album with a pretty good grade. How so? What changed? I must assume that after being subjected to many dozens of forgettable and utterly indistinguishable indie rock bands, I learned to appreciate a project that attempts something that had never been done before, even if the result is not pleasant. I can't deny that it is somewhat interesting that this exists; therefore, I am glad to have listened to it. That can not be said about many other entries in this list.
You know, I'm a pretty open minded guy. I listen to things like Merzbow on occasion, so I get the concept of Noise as a genre, but this was particularly grating. I thought this was going to be my first 1 star review, but after giving the album time to breathe I found a few pathways in and started to understand the point of view a little more. There's definitely some interesting ideas here, amidst the chaos and screams. One track reminded me a lot of the Velvet Underground. The version I found on Tidal included several "dub" tracks at the end, which I actually really enjoyed, but those weren't part of the origin album release so I won't include them in my review. I certainly wasn't prepared for this album,and it's not something I'm going to revisit (except maybe the dubs?) 2.5/5 from me.
416/1089 - Some of the rhythms were fun but it's a bit one-note overall up until the ending "-dub" songs.
Insoportable. Discos como éste hacen que uno quiera mandar la escucha de la presente lista al carajo.
Please don't do this to me. 0 starts should be an option.
Oh dear, just oh dear. Sounded like the band went out and just recorded things happening around them like smashing stuff up, drilling stuff, shouting etc and then put some "vocals" over the top of it. Very strange, didn't really enjoy it but I can say I tried..
I have absolutely no idea what to expect from this. I did a little bit of research on the band so I know it's probably going to be a bit noisy but otherwise who knows what I'm about to hear. An interesting tidbit I did discover is that Blixa Bargeld, the lead vocalist of this band, was a member of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds for 20 years, and I just so happened to listen to Henry's Dream yesterday. I'm probably not going to like this as much, but that's a fun coincidence • From the first couple of tracks, this album is *loud*. Tanz Debil builds to a very loud climax and immediately Steh auf Berlin starts with a jackhammer blasting your ears out. Blixa Bargeld is also absolutely screaming into the microphone, which is peaking with every word. • I'm now up to U-Halt-Muzak and I think this is the most tempted I've been to stop listening to an album so far. This song is probably the best so far, purely because it's an instrumental, but it has almost nothing going on outside the constant kick drum and occasional ear-bleedingly loud noise • Off the bat, Kollaps is the most musical track so far. It doesn't really develop much for the rest of the song. It's probably the best song so far, but that's a pretty low bar. It's also by far the longest, so it's a bit impressive that it doesn't ever devolve into chaos like many of the other songs have. • Sehnsucht features a chord in the background that reminds me a lot of the Mother Brain boss music from Super Metroid. The main key note that plays throughout it sounds like it was played without a metronome or anything to keep it anchored to a tempo • I just finished listening to Helga, and that's where the original track list finished. I really considered calling it here, but at this point I've already listened to 35 minutes of this, I may as well see it through • Rohrbomb is definitely the most rhythmic track on the album, it's almost a shame it's not developed into something further • Futuristischer Dub sounds evil This album was unique. It's industrial in its purest form, without question. I never want to hear anything from it again. I've never been so tempted to turn an album off, and I'm actually a bit surprised I managed to make it all the way through. There's definitely a different vibe in the Stahldubversions tracks (Rohrbombe on) that works a lot better for me than the base album did, but unfortunately that's not enough to save Kollaps. From looking through the reviews, this album used to be the lowest rated on this site, an honour now held by Throbbling Gristle, another industrial group. From this listen, I can't say Kollaps was undeserving of that title. I'm sure there are less interesting albums on this list, and for some people uninteresting can be worse than bad, but clearly there's something with this album that didn't work for over half of the people that reviewed it. I think Kollaps is deserving of its place on the list, but probably not for the reasons it actually landed here. It sounds nothing like any other music I've listened to, and I appreciate its work in expanding the list's genre pool (again, I can't stress enough how unique this is compared to the first 60 albums I've heard). I will never listen to it again. Favourite track: Kollaps?
No me gustó
Is it interesting, yes very. Will I listen to it often, no , no I won’t. Still it gets points on vibe and originality.
not my vibe :)
No, I can't enjoy that. Is it music? Others can decide that. Is it worth listening to? Yes; but once suffices. I give it 3, because it is different, and I believe, they make this art not out of anger or destructivism, but they feel it.
1,001 albums that should never have been made. 0.00
Was zum Geier istd as??
Tétrico
Please make it stop ....
So much noise.
Not my jam
Bro zici că-i muzica de satanisti ceva rituale îi foarte ciudat albumul
Well it was interesting at least, not sure if I'd willingly put this on though. This is definitely only good for a one time listen.
This is a lot of noise but I did find myself leaning in at some points. Sado-Masodub is playing with sound a lot but at least pulling in into something with some structure. This isn't a blast to listen to but if you're going to listen to 1,001 albums to look at what music is, this is worth an hour of your time more than U2.
I was worried that this would all be haunting noise, but there is some music. Better than most stuff released by U2. Except maybe that song they did for Batman Forever.
One of the few albums I couldn’t get through. Cool that it came out so early, that I’m sure it influenced industrial which I quite like, but this is just too much noise and not enough song for me.
El album 'Colapso' por 'Edificios Nuevos Derrumbándose' contiene motosierras y metales golpeados. Dicho así suena demencial y mola mogollón y así es
Inténtalo Apaga este motor en movimiento Mi fábrica de baile No cabe en tu corazón pequeño (#78 dos 1.001 discos que escoitar antes de morrer: 4/5)
Vi a Einstürzende Neubauten sin saber bien de que iba a la vaina en el FIB de 2004 y me volaron la cabeza (y eso que venía de ver a Wire). Pero, aunque es un grupo famoso por su directo –y no es para menos si sacas de paseo una puta turbina de avión– tienen discos fabulosos como este, donde el ruido resulta, incluso, sensible. Una puta pasada. PD: Lo he escuchado hoy mientras hacían por ahí una obra y se integraban de forma muy orgánica los taladros y martillos neumáticos.
If you haven't listened to this yet, it obviously isn't the worst thing Germans have ever done (it's slightly less obvious if you have listened to it), but it's the worst thing that isn't related to that particular series of people and events. Unless it is actually related to that which would somehow make sense. I will say that it's sort of ignorable in the background. I attribute this to the fact that I'm an American and the Japanese have not joined in this aural attack yet.
I love weird shit man
This is not music. It's just a collection of random power tool sounds. Really taking the term "garage band" to the next level. Awarding one bonus star for creativity but man this one is a stinker.
Entertaining, didnt hate listening, would not listen again tho
This one is a strange one for me. On one hand it's not good. On the other it's actually something I might return to to explore more later. So it's a 2 on my scale, but also kind of a 4. But it's 100% not just the average 3. A lot of the tracks give me some almost ambiance vibes, even if that ambiance is a german factory or a hardware store being torn apart. The opening track reminded me a bit of 'Hell March' from the Red Alert soundtrack. When this project comes to an end I'll have forgotten more sixties psychedelic rock albums than I even know I've listened to. This one I'm sure I'll probably always remember - and no album in recent memory has caused this much talk in my group. I'd say that's worth something too... Standouts Tanz Debil Steh auf Berlin 2(4)/5
Extremely tough going. Tbh, i couldn't listen to it for more than a few minutes, it was just too confrontational and experimental for me. I respect it for what it's doing, but this is not for me. 1 star seems unfair, so I will rate as did not listen.
A very strange record but entertaining none the less.
The nicest thing I can say about this album is that it definitely keeps you on your toes.
I’ve listened to 1,027 albums, every single track. But forty seconds into “Steh Auf Berlin,” I had to stop. It’s the first album I simply couldn’t continue. Trash. Deserves negative stars.
Just noise, not music
Come on
So wegweisend. So inspirierend für so viele Künstler. So experimentell. So anders. So unhörbar.
Hab ich ausversehen was genommen?! Hätte ich besser?
I'm gonna be honest. I'm only giving this a 4 out of pettiness. There's no way the average rating of this is lower than Kid Rock. I won't say it's the greatest album ever, but it's way more interesting than so many others that are on this list.
German industrial music! I am going to be so for real this is really bad study music. Very interesting! But bad study music. I think I am currently listening to a power drill?
I have immense respect for this band and for Blixa Bargeld. They have released some of the most beautiful songs I have ever listened to. This record is not an example of that. It's too experimental for me to be comfortable giving it a higher rating.
On one hand this is a hellish soundtrack to a bizarre time in Germany. On the other hand it was one of the least enjoyable things I’ve ever listened to
Utter pish And absolute struggle
This was a hard listen. Barely music, it's industrial, mechanical, and abrasive. There's moments that are cool, like the backing of Kollaps, which doesn't really need to be 8 mins, and Jet'm. But overall, I would have difficulty recommending this to anyone in any practical scenario. As much as I try to give everything on this list a chance, my head was definitely hurting by the end of this one.
pra ouvir furadeira eu escuto a obra do meu prédio
This album isn’t for me, and I’m not convinced that it’s for anyone else either.
Ion get it
1981. Noise music that made my ears bleed.
Interesting and glad somebody made this cause it's art but very primitive. There needs to be some first lowest form of sounds and music. This is as good of non-music as there is I guess.
No one should ever have to listen to this. Pure dreck.
I'm a fan of industrial music, so i knew what i could expect to hear, as I've heard a couple of EN songs, but never a whole album. I'm happy to report that I ended up enjoying this album quite a bit, and even found it very *listenable*! I do think it helps before going in knowing that its going to be a difficult listen (Schmerzen Hören, if you will), but if youre in the mood for this, it can be very enjoyable.
Nahhhh sorry this is a little too creative for me
Too dross even more me
There is more method to the madness here than the Residents album I had 2 days ago. It sure sounds industrial because half the album sounds like the construction site next door. But in like, a cool way. The drills and drums make for a pretty good album to listen to. It does lull a bit more at the end, but only relatively. I really like how bizarre this is.
I made it a 1.75 songs in and it was a valiant effort, if I do say so myself. I'm good.
Congratulations, this is the worst album on this list! I’m only a little over half way through and can say that definitively.
better than expected
what the fuck????????????????????????????????????
Even I found this to be a bit much...I'm all for weird german electronic music, but I'll take Can and Neu! before this...
1 star any% wr
Listen once, skip through, never look back. If I could give this negative stars I would.
The best way to describe Einstürzende Neubauten debut, 'Kollaps', is essentially industrial music, but not the tuneful kind of Nine Inch Nails or Ministry, oh no, literal industrial sounds including power tools, tinny steel clangs, broken electronic sounds and random German wails from Blixa Bargeld and his band of noise terrorists. The sounds bounce off the walls in every direction, the band use whatever's available to them (metal plates, random drums, pots and pans amd countless other items) to bang out some semblance of a beat, and the guitars occupy a rather sparse space in the mix, eschewing chords in favour of eerie drones and squeals. 'Kollaps' is not an easy album to digest. In fact, many are going to hate its seemingly random soundscapes and uncomfortable atmosphere; however, these glitchy sounds are what would eventually become the building blocks for the industrial music scene as it developed throughout the 80s and achieved its height in the 90s. Is it going to be an album I'll listen to again? Probably not. But can I respect the impact it had on the development of the industral genre? Absolutely! Also, Bargeld joined The Birthday Party, and eventually Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, on the back of his work with Einstürzende Neubauten, so this album does deserve some semblance of credit where its due! Best songs: Not exactly sure if I can call the material on this record songs, they're soundscapes, and cathartic ones at that.
It's definitely something alright.
This morning I listed to the album and went to the DMV. The DMV was the more enjoyable of the two.
I can totally understand why this album is one of the most disliked projects on the entire 1001 albums to hear before you die list because this thing is out there. Arguably even moreso than the Throbbing Gristle pick that is on the list, but some will definitely not agree with that. This album feels like the ramblings of a schizophrenic man that was locked in a studio as he banged on just about everything he could to get out of the room. While this may be one of the shorter entries in the whole 1001 list, it definitely felt like one of the longest because of how bad it was. I get that you can call this "experimental" or "avant-garde" but I can also call you a snobby little shit for trying to convince me you even want to enjoy this. If you couldn't tell I thought this was a waste of my time and not something I could see myself ever really returning to ever. Happy I am done with it and I hope the people that do enjoy this seek help immediately because they are wrong.
Kooked
Never listened. Expectations: None - Verdict: Good - Ok, so I have heard of these guys and now realise it's Blixa from The Bad Seeds. This is an interesting one as it's noisy but not the kind of noise I'm usually into. Walls of feedback and distortion are replaced by harsh percussion and punky rants. The title track wouldn't be out of place on a Swans album, great stuff.
Feels like I am cast in a horror movie and this is the soundtrack
This sounds like Martin Bormann got high as fuck on uppers, broke into a Black n Decker factory and let his rage spill out...
1.54
Noises, 0 value of music.
Absolutely not. The sounds made my brain want to stab and murder. Awful.
RIP to people listening to EN for the first time. It's not my first rodeo but I genuinely don't know why Kollaps was chosen for the list instead of Halber Mensch. I guess Kollaps is more "industrial" in its purest form. Definitely not an album I'd go back to or listen to casually but I'm here to make their average a bit higher, at least for that random Serge Gainsbourg cover 2/5
Incredibly interesting listen, if at the same time truly aggravating. I wanted to dnf like 50 different times because my headache was impossible. Uuuuh ambience of an abandonned warehouse filled with teens destroying the place, maybe a construction site of some sort. Expected more yelling. Was crying, was laughing, was crying with laughing. It's a recommend to at least listen to once and then never again.
1/5 Deadass the funniest ear-torture I've ever been subjected to. I love the ambient neighbor waking you up at 7am with a drill noises, those were my fav. I'm sorry, I'm not enough of a music snob to appreciate this.
I mean.... come on. Is this even music?
No
No
German (pejorative). It's just noise. Unpleasant noise.
Brilliant - just one or two songs I have to skip because of my stupid migraine disorder. Such interesting songs and they really hold up
I lasted 30 seconds into the first track. Not for me.
This is a hard one to rate. On the one hand, I appreciate the experimental nature, the successful creation of a dystopian soundscape, and the influence it had on later electronic/industrial bands I like. On the other hand, it is brutal and I never want to hear it again. The latter half of the album is easier to listen to than the first.
Album 1043 of 1089 Kollaps - Einstürzende Neubauten (1981) Rating : 1 / 5 This one came about as close to a waste of my time as anything I’ve encountered during this project. I understand experimentation and I’m open to challenging listens, but this felt like electronica for electronica’s sake - noise without payoff. There was nothing here that pulled me in, nothing that made me curious to see where it was going, and nothing that rewarded sticking it out. Instead, it felt aimless and exhausting, with each track increasing my awareness of how much longer it had left to run. I know this album has historical significance for some and is admired for its industrial experimentation, but enjoyment-wise, it offered me absolutely nothing. I listened. I tried. I waited for it to click. It didn’t.
Doing my part to move Kid Rock to the worst album slot! 🫡
It's a little too "noisy" for my preferences...
Remember in the 80s when CDs first came out and they said you could eat your dinner off them, drive a steam roller over them and chuck them in the sea? I bet if you did, they would sound exactly like this. It’s not for me, but the world needs artists that plough their own furrow, and if you listen carefully to this album, you can hear their tractor.
There's a theme here, you'll never guess... I first heard Einsturzende Neubation (Collapsing New Buildings , I think?) on the radio courtesy of John Peel. They scared me then and scare me now. Listening to a song like Negativ Nein or Kollaps is a disturbing and unnerving experience, which is worth repeating. Before "industrial" became a thing here they were sounding like.... collapsing buildings burying people alive. If you like a melody and a Stock Aitken and Waterman hook you will either switch it off very quickly or have nightmares. I like that very much about this. Would I want to listen regularly ? Probably not but I totally enjoy where it's coming from.
6/10
Favorite track(s): Tanz Debil, Steh auf Berlin, Kollaps, Abstieg & Zerfall What I had hoped this list would've been full of, no wonder so many people hate it.
my ears having been training for this moment. absolutely insane music. super noisy, my ear hurt but i think it sounds cool so it ok. glad i found this now and not while i was in highschool, cuz this deadass probably would've been casual listening for me back then, im not joking idk what was wrong with me
People will listen to modern hip-hop and say that it’s experimental. If you haven’t listened to an hour’s worth of metal pipes, sewing machines, hammers, and drills, you still have a long way to go. This barely listenable record is the ultimate raw industrial experience. It's an interesting work that becomes progressively more challenging with each song - at least until my mind finally gave in and numbed itself. The standout for me was the song "Kollaps".
215/1001 Einstürzende Neubauten - Kollaps Heard before? ❎ Revisit? ❎ Couldn't make it past 3 songs....
Went into this with no idea what to expect. Its a little much for me - I love experimental music, and some of the sounds were interesting. But not something I can see myself enjoying casually (or at all, I had to turn this one off).
Honestly kind of dig this
Not good.
Well I can't say I enjoyed listening to it all that much, but the innovation is there and that deserves an extra star. 2/5
I…loved this? Do I…like noise? I had a similar reaction to the John Zorn record. Expected to hate it, found it oddly refreshing. It’s just nice to hear something you’ve never heard before. Now, of course this is a totally anguished and harrowing listen. It’s kinda like the audio version of making yourself sit through a really fucked-up movie. It’s not pleasant, per se, but it does something novel to your soul. I’d actually keep this on the list, personally. Must-listen #291.
It's a neat album if only as a precursor to later industrial music. However, music bordering this close to noise just bounces off me. A couple cool ideas scattered here and there but they get lost among the rest, and the awful low budget production does not help. 4/10.
i like to think that i "get" this kind of music that said, this sounds pretty bad
I don’t think it makes sense to rate this one way or another next to Fleetwood Mac. This is clearly an artistic statement. It sounds like a missing link between Krautrock and Industrial music. I must admit I have more interest in the former than the latter. In this case I don’t think it’s useful to ask if it’s good or bad, but rather is it successful. I think it is.
Cool art project, bro. Who exactly is the audience for this? Who wakes up and is like, I’m gonna listen to this shit today? IDK, definitely unique.
Groupthink is real 1. There is no way that 50% of people think this or any album is unlistenable garbage 2. It's not even unlistenable garbage
Well, it's not boring. But also, what the absolute fuck??
This is a tough one. I appreciate the experimentation. I appreciate the boundaries being pushed, and it’s nice to break up the typical list-listens with something so extreme. The line from this to a lot of music I love, Ministry, early NIN, Skinny Puppy, Rammstein, etc, is obvious and direct. But on its own this is still a tough listen that I did not give repeat spins to. For way too many minutes it’s just the sound of power tools. 2.5
Power tool ahh song
7/10 Favourite: Kollaps Least Favourite: Draussen ist feindlich
Pretty sure I heard a danke schoen in there
Sånn passe, bedre enn ryktet sitt
Didn't like it, noisy chaotic. Appreciate the novelty tho
Definitely not for me.
Nah
i'm sure this was very influential but this album did actual psychic damage to me.
0/10
This is a very primitive album, actually. What I would say is pure industrial music. Not much of my taste, but I've enjoyed listening to it, which is something I didn't expect. Of course, it's a very experimental form of music, playing with sounds and, mostly, rhythmic instruments. I wouldn't listen to this music much but, honestly (and with no pretense), I consider it pretty interesting. The song I like the most is the title track, which is very tribal and, well... good. This album is pretty atmospheric, and it builds very well its aura, being enigmatic and very addictive too.
It was so interesting and weird, an experience for sure, that I give it a three even though I don’t need to listen to it again.
Wasn’t sure if noise cancelling was broken in the middle of London. Lots of scattered ‘ideas’… maybe. A tough listen at 8am.
I make one joke about the German language in my reviews and I'm rewarded with an album fully in German. Gave me a headache regardless Fave track: Schmerzen hören. Rough translation based on my A1 German level - it hurts to listen. Didn't like the track just thought the name was fitting
Random ah noises. 2/5
I love music that challenges me and takes me out of my comfort zone. Often times I find myself fascinated by the creativity of more experimental albums and artists, with a lot of it being actually really enjoyable. A lot of the time I also find industrial/noise music to have weirdly cathartic qualities. So what's wrong with this album? Well, it just sounds really amateurish. It's like this band's first attempt at making an industrial album (which might be the case, it's their debut afterall) and it just sounds like they told themselves: okay, let's just throw a bunch of harsh sounds at the listener and call it a day. I do think it picks up in the 2nd half with some more ambient-like textures, but I can't say this is something I would listen to again. I do think the band got better after tho.
I respect this bands legacy & all the have influenced in this genre but they are not my cup of tea. That said im glad I did enjoy this album. I could hear the blueprint to so many bands I'm into. In my opinion a very bold first album.
Listens: 1.5 Standout Tracks: I would say probably one or two tracks could constitute as "standout", but I couldn't point at them given the German song titles, and with the album being 20+ songs and almost an hour, I couldn't keep track of anything. I am pretty surprised to not see this on the bottom 20. Oh nevermind, I just looked it is there at second worst album on here. So yea, this was terrible. It barely constitutes music. I can hypothetically get on board with the idea of making music using unconventional musical instruments. I have some experience with genres like glitch hop, and I am a big fan of the industrial rock genre, but there's a huge gap in what music from those genres is representative of, and whatever... this is. And with this newish feature on the site of being able to see your next album before submitting your review, I now have the pleasure of reviewing two bottom 20 albums in a row. Next up, The Birthday Party's Junkyard.
Awful, not my type of thing at all, literally headachy, pretentious hipstery artsy punk but jesus, maybe because i don't speak German but I cannot listen to this.
Will I ever listen to this again? Probably not. Did I find it intriguing and enjoy hearing the genesis of a lot of "noise" music? Yes.
Not too bad i guess
jumpscare music - worst shit I’ve ever heard
There is something wild and imaginative in this album i just couldnt find it
7/10 This was an incredibly interesting album, especially considering its vintage. It’s equal parts abrasive, creepy, menacing and aurally offensive, but as I ran through my three listens, I found myself more and more engaged and intrigued by it. Don't get me wrong, this is not mainstream music by any stretch of the imagination, but what it does is it pushes boundaries and opens the floor for others to step on to. Do not come here for melody or harmony. Do not come here for easy listening. Do not come here unprepared for a challenge. If you accept this album as an experience, you may well still not enjoy it, but you will get way more from it than if you approach it like you would a Stevie Wonder or Fleetwood Mac album. This pushes at the edge of music as art and needs to be embraced as such. It’s abrasive, harsh and intense, but it has a certain something about it that draws you in. The place it draws you in to may be part fabrication plant, part concentration camp, but it’s certainly evocative. I personally found this to be darkly hypnotic and, while doing a focused listen, I did have to take pauses now and again due to the stark intensity of it, but overall I felt it was an experience worth having. An album like this may push at the extremes of what music can be, but I feel like it paved the way for a great number of bands who would tame the edges of what this is and create innovative, evocative music that walks somewhat in the footsteps of where Einstürzende Neubauten first walked. Would we have Sonic Youth, Rammstein, Nine Inch Nails, Death Grips, even the more extreme ends of Aphex Twin and Autechre without these guys forging a path? Maybe not. And although I suspect it’s unlikely that I’ll listen to this many times again, if ever, I think that pushing of the boundaries is a significant enough act to give this the rating that I have. Tanz Debil - This is certainly not an easy listen, but is also quite rhythmically hypnotic in its very own way. There’s something about it that takes it away from just being noise to being something quite artful, in that it evokes a visceral emotional response. Interesting. Steh Auf Berlin - We’ve moved from the metal fabricators workshop onto the building site. The metallic percussion here is great, the vocals distorted, aggressive and mentally imposing. From a sound palette point of view, there’s something really engaging about this, but it’s so stressful and anxiety inducing too. The central rhythm holds it together, and you’re never sure when the next moment of audio aggression is coming from and what form it will take. Negativ Nein - There’s something kind of revolting about the wetness of this as it starts. Again, it becomes quite hypnotic as it progresses with the persistent tonal line and the pulsing delay on the vocal. It’s certainly intense and musically limited, but it continues to be evocative. And some of the sound design is so, so brutal. U-Haft Muzak - Another sparse and monotonous yet hypnotic rhythm augmented by distant screams and whistling with the occasional flurries of noise and chaos. It keeps you on the edge of your seat and your sanity, but it just leaves you hanging there. Draussen Ist Feindlich - This feels like a snippet of audio snatched from an old grimy family super-8 film that they’ve worked their rhythmic, sound design brutalism over the top of. Creepy and weird. Hören Mit Schmerzen - The pace here is slow and brooding, but the intensity of what they weave in over the top is savage. More abrasive brutality in the sound design, but again, there’s somethingcuriously engaging about it. Jet'm - A random cover (sort of) of a Serge Gainsbourg track? Why not. It’s thin and abrasive and weird, but it’s actually less engaging than the rest of their more intense stuff. Kollaps - Interestingly, tonal music actually starts to creep in here. It’s an interesting development of what's come before. Sparse, hypnotic and still maintaining that edge of insanity. It’s long form and persistant but has a brooding, menacing intensity. It does drag on a bit too much without any tonal variety, but I think that’s kind of the point. Sehnsucht - The dissonance of the tonality and the inconsistency of the rhythm here gives such a creepy, unpredictable vibe. And it’s over in an instant. I’m not sure how long I could have stuck with it, but as a brief moment it was interesting. Vorm Krieg - An interlude of sorts. Wacky and deranged sampling of some old records. Hirnsäge - I like the rhythmic fading of the static noise here. There’s an interesting clash of rhythms and the creepy vibe is solid. It’s sparse but what’s there is sonically weighty and impactful, and the build of intensity in the rhythm to the end is good too. Abstieg & Zerfall - A droning, tonal intro and some really nice sound design that ebbs and flows over the top. It’s another brooding, menacing effort and that increased presence of tonality helps it to have a little bit of a different feel to it. It’s sonically intriguing and has more than an echo in music that would follow it. Helga - A strange bit of sampled audio and then… Silence. Time to think about what you’ve just experienced. But you might need more than 30 seconds for that.
6/10
Car crash underwater Blending silverware
Omg no what is this 😭 seriously the worst album I’ve ever heard in my life
Terrible, erratic, jarring noise. Hated the echo. Would not listen to again.
No va
Viel Lärm, aber ein interessantes Hörerlebnis.
Bunnings Warehouse - The Album. Truth is this is maybe a 1.5 star but I will round up because why not. The start of this gave me a headache which is unfortunate as I think the rest of the album is not as harsh as those opening few tracks and actually has some interesting stuff. The first half of this album is genuinely just some German dudes rocking up to the plumbing section of Bunnings and hitting record, but after that they realise that they left their instruments in the car outside and they bring them in which makes things a bit better. I just don’t think this type of music is for me. There’s some interesting rhythmic notes here and there but man, it’s just a German guy yelling over hardware sounds at points. Also weirdly Hells Kitchen ass violin noise on one track. Very unforgiving. The title track, however, is excellent gear. Arguably the most musically interesting track on the album.
Angry, raw and abrassive but overall very unapologetically chaos. 6/10 [KEEP*]
Kamala.
I was worried after reading some of these reviews. This type of experimental music usually isn't for me, but I wanted to go in with an open mind. Folks, this is a tough listen. Very noisy -- lots of shouting in German. But, to my surprise, as I continued through the album, it developed a sort of hypnotic sensibility. The second half of the album is *far* more cohesive than the first -- and a lot less shouty. I'm not saying that I'm going to put this on repeat or anything. It *is* better than Metal Machine Music, for sure. A lot of folks will just dispense with this and I can see why. Definitely rates higher than a 1.
Muito barulho de ferro velho. Deve ter uma turma que gosta, mas não me agradou.
Jesus... this was a hard listen. I understand the importance of the album, but similar to Lou Reed's Metal Machine Music, it's very rough, with exception of some glimpses that have interesting ideas. I recognize I'm not much of an avant-garde music person, so take this with a grain of salt.
It is impossible for me to read this album as anything less than a complete triumph for music. No matter what Einstürzende Neubaten throw at it – what trickery, insult, mocking or violence then concoct – music survives. It remains there, somehow stronger for its disfigurement. These are songs, songs as worthy of the word as anything by Sinatra and Jobim, or Madonna or Can. They’re equally desperate to tell you something, equally vital. It’s a precarious vitality, though – characterised by spasms of apoplexy and forced moments of grit. It isn’t that tha thrills me most, though. It’s the space they make; space in Einstürzende Neubaten functions like it does in Rothko. The emptiness is the meaning; what thin scaffolding supports the space is their only submission to formalism. Tediously for them perhaps, it’s also our only hope of gaining an equal footing. Quite apart from joking on the polluting, eschatological effluvium of industry, I find an immense joy in this album. Music survives. Fuck, man. It survives.
The sound of a band trying to find their sound. Full disclosure: I love this lot more than most - especially Blixa, but this is a hard listen in the main. And is likely meant to be so. To me, this is the logical place for punk to go at that time. No need even for guitars (in the main). Just get the ideas out there in the most direct way possible, with whatever comes to hand. However, the depth and variety of their work is not yet fully realised here, only Sehnsucht really hinting at what was to come. But it's fun to revisit this very early stage of an outfit that have changed music far more than many perhaps realise. They are - and always will be - to me one of THE benchmarks for industrial - and atmospheric - music then and now.
Unlistenable. But I think that's the point. I pressed on, all the same. I quite enjoyed the rhythmic nature of it all. Plus some of the samples. Water drips against an industrial backdrop on Negativ Nein works well. Three stars for an unlistenable album is not bad going.
Hard pass
This album doesn't deserve to be rated so low. Is it everyone's vibe? DEFINITELY not. Not my favorite "industrial" album by a longshot even as a fan of the genre, but I can ABSOLUTELY admire its influence on many artists I love and still would throw it on if the mood strikes. I can't give it five stars, but I at least want to do my part.
This is what we fought two world wars for?
I felt each crumble of whatever is kollaps-ing and don’t really understand at the same time, till the silence at the very end
Not their best work, but remarkable nontheless.
Often said to be the pinnacle of industrial, which is the art of banging on shit that sounds cool and setting it to some form of music. You may argue that Einsturzende Neubauten doesn't quite accomplish the second thing (on this album, at least, they would get more conventional on future releases, the sellouts) but some of the rhythms are pretty cool, you can see a semblance of a structure on some tracks, and Blixa Bargeld's voice has a visceral quality I enjoyed. Up to a point, anyway. By the end of "Helga," I had enough and since the rest of the CD tracks weren't on the original release, I stopped there. This is the kind of music I signed up for, to broaden my horizons a bit, and while I didn't mind taking the plunge in this case, I doubt I'll be wading in these waters very often.
Morgenohrenschmausüberforderungverordnung. c
girl......... if i could give it a 0 i would.....
I came upon this album organically maybe a couple years ago. Love. Not sthg I listen to often, but it’s absolutely sthg to throw into the random mix. To my limited understanding this came up towards the tail end (& relative fringe) of the krautrock scene/era that I've studied over the last couple-three years. Rating this one’s a curious predicament. I don’t think it’s “fair” to try & position it on the same overall rating scale that I use to judge sthg vastly sonically different (re: traditional, melodic, “pretty.”) So I want to consider it more in its own context. I think, that in their corner of the music universe, this album must be about a 7 or 8 out of 5. But also my experience with this particular corner is so limited that I want to allow space for those unknown unknowns. Then again, what in holy hell could possibly surpass it? Final judgement: 4&1/2 stars plus an asterisk noting it’s qualified transcendence
Of all the albums to go into completely blind it’s the one that feels as though it could have left me deaf. This is the hardest time I’ve ever had listening to an album. Genuinely terrifying at times and psychologically exhausting. I can say with absolute certainty I will never revisit this. If anyone ever asks me again what my peak “scaring the hoes” album is it will without a doubt be this. I have to respect the vision and effort that must have gone into creating something that can illicit such a visceral reaction in the listener but ultimately I was just so happy when this was over.
Barely made it though this... Two people bang trash cans together while Hitler yells at me... No fucking thank you.
I mean….I get it. It’s abrasive and noisy and all and I think the back half of the album is at the very least listenable. But those first five or so songs are genuinely unlistenable.
Y'all, this is pure and unapologetic and I love the way it makes me think and feel about music. I might not be compelled to listen to it on regular rotation but I am so glad that I got to experience this album.
This was really interesting. Idk if I'll ever listen to this again, but I am going to check out their other work.
Influential and interesting.
This is an avant garde industrial art installation. Interesting textures, harsh sounds, hypnotic thuds, bare vocals, unsettling vibes. I hear the foundations of so much industrial music in this noise. Pretty neat.
To be honest I have absolutely no idea how to rate this. I'd heard that this was one of the worst albums on this list, but I *think* I disagree. Yes it is very weird and at times difficult to listen to, but at least it's much more unique than a lot of the other ones on the list. It kept me wondering what the next track would sound like, so I'm just going straight down the middle.
I liked the background instrumentals I’ll give it another try
1 Star (2/15)
I give this zero stars, even though the app forces me to give at least one.. It isn't even music. It's just a terrible noise.
Drill sounds, and only mentally disturbed people like this.
2 for pity's sake
I was bracing myself for this one. Heard nothing but bad about it. Honestly, it wasn't any where near as aweful as others seem to find it. True, it's not something I'd listen to again. Not exactly melodic, low budget noise. But I didn't mind the listen. I guess all my years of listening to other bizarre, crass, barely musical stuff has prepared me for this one.
Yes! Early industrial! Of course the album everyone hates, I enjoy. But then again, I enjoyed Throbbing Gristle. Sure today, anyone could make an album like this on their computer. But back in 1981, you did it with self made music machines, electronics, and just scraps of metal.
That was.. something
So I looked at my 1 star ratings, which include Coldplay, Beyonce, Janet Jackson, and U2... This is way better.
This one was tough to listen to. The tracks with industrial noise were a slog, and even the actual songs were hard to want to finish. This has got to be one of the worst albums on this list. 1/5 Definitely won't listen again
I don't think this is EN's best album (I would have to give that honor to Hais der Lüge), but there's no doubt that it's their most influential. This is so unabashedly, purely industrial, it really is a genre defining album. While I understand why a lot of folks don't like the album, it's hard to image the list without it.
Fascinating.
Overall I like the concept, and the full detour from common popular music harmony.
This is the first album I've ever played that freaked out my cats. Like 20+ years of playing new music almost everyday and this one finally did them in. Clearly not intended to be fun or easily enjoyable, is it interesting? If anyone was asked to describe this music cold, industrial would probably be a common description. Not in reference to the genre, but strictly the sound. After several listens, I think I'm glad I listened, but equally glad I don't have to do it again. Especially considering the year, this was produced, I applaud the ingenuity. Also, fuck you generator for making this my first album of the year. My wife hates me. My cats hate me. Can you get your random shot together, please? Edit: It isn't just the cats, my son just came into the room and said that the music was stressing him the fuck out. He has never, in 20 years, asked me to turn off music with a look of stress in his eyes. Crazy! I guess it is safe to say that the music is emotionally impactful.
Einstürzende Neubauten let me "Schmerzen hören" untill it felt like "Hirnsäge". It only took a few minutes to "Kollaps". My "Nein" for this album is really, deeply "Negativ". I'm glad I found that the original 1981 album was only 38 minutes instead of the 56 listed on spotify.
Hey. This bold piece of art moved music forward and gave a lot of subsequent people ideas they never would have had otherwise. But you don't need to hear this.
Noise. Not a good listen. If I could give this zero stars I would
construction noise I was not ready for
A difficult journey into experimentation with sound. Industrial music stripped down to just noise. Like a soundtrack to a headache factory.
What the heck was that???? I can’t even call it music.