Queen of Cans and Jars

Another instalment in what is gradually turning into a saga - a stubbornly recurring effort to cross-pollinate Guided by Voices and Kraftwerk. Is synth-pop a sign of mid-life crisis?

Neon Lights

I don't know why, but sometimes I get musical ideas in my head which just won't go away, and this is one. I am a huge fan of both Kraftwerk and Guided By Voices, and sometime back I had the crazy idea to put together "A Salty Salute" and "Neon Lights," and so here it is. I really like it.

The Man Machine

In sixth grade, 1974 at MSU Campus School (where I saw Al Jackson many times, without having any idea who he was), our much-harassed music teacher (whose name I can't remember) would let kids bring a record in to play for the class. This didn't happen much, and when it did, it resulted in some predictably dire selections. However, one week, a boy named Robert Grey brought in "Autobahn" by Kraftwerk. I remember a lot of groaning from the class, but I thought it was really cool, and I'd never heard anything remotely like it. It's hard to imagine a world without Kraftwerk, and I guess it's easy to overlook just how profound their influence has been. This two-part documentary brings it all home.

Part 1




Part 2

Different Trains

I just returned from a two-day business trip to Germany, where I always feel compelled to listen to Kraftwerk or "Krautrock" if I have occasion to ride a train. I know that's a painfully embarrassing cliche, but judging from taxi rides I've taken, and the muzak in the hotel I tend to stay in, it seems like the locals prefer 80's rock anthems and the theme from "Dirty Dancing," so I'm happy to let them have their Germany while I keep my own private version to myself. Anyway, I like the incongruity of this mash-up, and the scenes along the railway leaving Victoria are still eerily familiar after all these years.