Editorial Review:

Amazon.com:
It's ironic that electronica's forefathers include two German bands whom, at least on the surface, were polar opposites. On the one hand, there was Can--shaggy, Stockhausen-trained advocates of trance improvisation--and on the other, Kraftwerk: clean-cut control freaks and masters of the pristine machine groove. Yet, even at their most robotic, Kraftwerk manages to locate the soul of the machine, as they demonstrate throughout this 1977 outing. Hell, the mannequin manifesto 'Showroom Dummies' alone is worth the price of admission. For a band so closely tied to technology, it's a testament to Ralf and Florain that their music continues to sound fresh more than two decades down the autobahn. --Bill Forman









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Disc 1:

1. Europe Endless
2. The Hall Of Mirrors
3. Showroom Dummies
4. Trans-Europe Express
5. Metal on Metal
6. Franz Schubert
7. Endless Endless

Rating: - * Trans-Europe Express ... During the 70's Kraftwerk released records at a much quicker pace then they have been doing the last 20 years. Trans-Europe Express was their 1977 release and their 6 th release that decade alone. The sound is truly timeless and to listen to synth sounds that have not been surpassed even today is quite remarkable. This record starts out with several hidden gems. Europe Endless and The Hall of Mirrors. The track Trans-Europe express is such an amazing track and verily one of Kraftwerk's magnu opus. The lyrics are quite good, and much of the singing is done without the vocoder which shows that they are much better vocalists then many give them credit. Rating: - * dull \"music of der future\" ... There is something inherently prosaic in this dead dull "music of der future". Fortunately, man has still some sense of individualism, but barely, and Kraftwerk's fascist goal for music has not rendered vocals obsolete. Listening to this, it harkens back to the techno geek 1970's when Germans laden in neo-fascist uniforms with thin ties and a pound of grease on their hair, showed no emotion on stage, acting like machines. Most of them wore leather pants so tight that they froze while playing, hence the dumb and inarticulate Krautbot look. They copied architecture chic from the 1930's, added some 70's porn montage and called it "modern" 1970's and praised the revolution of robots and computers. Not only is that very idea horrifying, but it is also silly. "Kraftwerk" means "cheese plant" in German and they are very cheesy. The CD is probably one of the most horrible things I've listened to. If you can get to the end of it, you'll find all sorts of unwanted electronic noise, Krautbot voice dubs, electro fuzz, beeps, computer konks, repugnant computer-generated vocals, static, repulsive synthesizers, and extremely unpleasant clamor that goes on forever, that you'll soon be reaching for a hammer to crush the CD. In my estimation, all crap. A few American bands at the time tried the stale trend with deadly results, Gary Numan The Pleasure Principle (1979), Styx Kilroy Was Here (1983) , both tossed their careers away because of it. You'll be reminded of foolish telephone companies, lumbering computer screens, electronic wires and moronic techno cabarets in dark German cellars. This is the 2nd album by these Krautbots in 28 years, so be glad their production output has ceased. Rating: - * pure magic ... i received this album as a birthday present 3 years ago. its changed my life drastically since then... not just with music, but how i vision my existence as well. it also changed my entire group of friend's lives too. none of us have really been the same since this album (and this band) entered our lives. i've listened to it sober, and i've listened to it altered. either way, the album itself is a living, breathing entity. trans europe express isn't just a brilliant lp, its a place to visit. from the opening trainride to germany on "europe endless" to the emotional drop of "endless endless", you feel like you've just went on vacation to a magical world of happy plastic flowers and scary baby jane movie stars... buy the ticket, take the ride. Rating: - * Superb Music !! ... Superb Condition. Excellent quality of music. Perfect packing and forwarding. Got in perfect condition. Cheers.. Recommendable to others defenitely !! Rating: - * all bow to kraftwerk ... to borrow a line from wwe brett hart / they were,are & will be the best that ever was. this was the last one missing from my collection & boy was i happy to find it.everyone in the music at sum point used sum sample from kraftwerk from hip hop to trance & techno once again i say everyone bow to kraftwerk. enough said.