Communication (Limited Edition) [Digipak] - Karl Bartos

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Communication was his third solo album released in 2003 and the limited edition came in a digipack which is almost impossible to open. It typically goes on eBay for around about 30 quid, but rather luckily I got it on eBay for about 9 quid. The bonuses you get is a QuickTime video for the single "I am the Message" which is respectable, and a weblink to download remixes of this song by Orbital and Felix The Housecat. ...
...is filled with perfectly crafted prices of techno-pop like "The Camera" which uses a Kraftwerkesque rhythm track with layers of synths on top of it, and heavy use of the vocoder. The same can be said for the most of the album, it come across as sounding like Kraftwerk throughout, with the emphasis being on short pop songs rather than the extended techno soundscapes. The other highlight of the album being "I am The Message" a steady ... more

Karl Bartos was one of the electronic percussionists with Kraftewerk during the first electronic Quartet period. For many fans of electronic music Kraftwerk were the Beatles, even though the Beatles sucked. However using that analogy you can say that if Ralph and Floridan were Lennon and McCartney then Karl Bartos was definitely George Harrison and Wolfgang Flur was Ringo, even though Wolfgang is yet to publish a very surreal and entertaining website, or do the voice over for Thomas The Tank engine.

Communication was his third solo album released in 2003 and the limited edition came in a digipack which is almost impossible to open. It typically goes on eBay for around about 30 quid, but rather luckily I got it on eBay for about 9 quid. The bonuses you get is a QuickTime video for the single "I am the Message" which is respectable, and a weblink to download remixes of this song by Orbital and Felix The Housecat. Surprisingly the link still works.

The album is filled with perfectly crafted prices of techno-pop like "The Camera" which uses a Kraftwerkesque rhythm track with layers of synths on top of it, and heavy use of the vocoder. The same can be said for the most of the album, it come across as sounding like Kraftwerk throughout, with the emphasis being on short pop songs rather than the extended techno soundscapes. The other highlight of the album being "I am The Message" a steady metronomic rhythm track fleshed out with eerie synth sounds and treated vocals.

Where the album fails is that it at times lacks the depth that Kraftwerk had both lyrically and musically. Remember that Kraftwerk almost single-handedly invented techno pop and predicted a world dominated by the computer, amongst other things. I had expected more than just a collection of better than average techno-pop which a lot of the material on this album is.

For a fan of Kraftwerk this album has lots of stuff on it being somewhat lighter and more human that Kraftwerk's last album "Tour De France Soundtracks". However I'd suggest that Kraftwerk's recent live album Maximum Minimum is a far better purchase, being easier to get a hold of, and being considerably cheaper.
 

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