Cluster II

Cluster

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 11, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 1972
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Revisited / Brain Records
• ASIN: B000QUCNK4
• Also Available in: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #204,721 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. Plas 6:00

2. Im Süden 12:50

3. Für Die Katz' 3:00

4. Live In Der Fabrik 14:50

5. Georgel 5:25

6. Nabitte 2:40

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The most important and consistently underrated space-rock unit of the '70s, Cluster (originally Kluster) was formed by Dieter Moebius, Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Conrad Schnitzler as an improv group that used everything from synthesizers to alarm clocks and kitchen utensils in their performances. Continuing on as a duo, Moebius and Roedelius eventually recorded many landmark LPs - separately, as a duo, and with all manner of guest artists from Brian Eno to Conny Plank to Neu!'s Michael Rother - in the field of German space music, often termed kosmische. Cluster also continued to explore ambient music into the '90s, long after their contemporaries had drifted into tamer new age music or ceased recording altogether.

Cluster's second album as a duo is a January, 1972 recording that is similar in style to their previous works. Cluster II is mostly an album of drones and industrial atmospheres; an ambient album before the label began to be applied to music. For the first time Cluster broke down their sound experiments into some bite-sized pieces that reflected their strange kind of humour.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a sound 30 years ahead of its time, December 27, 2005

By	W. T. Hoffman "artist and musician" (Pennsylvania, United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Cluster II (Audio CD)

Cluster is a fun band to explore. Partly perhaps from the total pain and sacrifice you go thru, trying to locate their CDs. I have the early KLUSTER cds, but not Cluster 1, so I am not sure how they got here, but the sound overall is just so advanced. The formal connections to Tangerine Dream from that period, and perhaps KRAFTWERK I & II can be discerned. Nevertheless, there is something here, some formal structures, and attempts at various sounds, that really makes this title an early example of KRAUTROCK, and electronica in general. I've read some reviews of HARMONIA, that suggests that those titles are perfect examples of KRAUTROCK, and are a MUST. Well, if that's the case, then you have this title as a MUST as well.
PLAS, the first song, starts out like an ambient soundtrack to a film about Dante's Inferno. Next, IN SUEDEN (in the south) finds our ears treated to nearly 13 minutes of the same four note ascending melody, floating in a atmosphere of constantly pulsing and morphing sounds and eventually, even a bit of countermelody. Naturally, the connections to Philip Glass, and minimalism are being explored. But the fluidity, and liquid shimmering of the backing for these notes, goes far beyond the very tight structures seen in the highly composed pieces by Glass from that period. FUER DIE KATZ' (For the Cats) again seems like film music for dancers from the Adromedia Galaxy. Lots of random, microtonal, swirling sounds, create an atmosphere of total sonic abandon, as opposed to the four note structure of the previous song. On what must have been the first song on side TWO of the LP, we get LIVE IN DER FABRIK. (It's a famous place to gig in Hamburg. Embryo as a live CD from that place too.) If this song is completely live, then I'm just floored. It pulses with energy, that sends you to some kind of transtemporal, metaphysical sonic extraterresial world, you never want to leave. In fact, the song seems to go on forever (nearly 15 minutes), but it doesnt get boring. The next song, GEORGEL, is dark, deep, mystical. If this is a film soundtrack, its one for a trip next to a galactic black hole. Finally, NABITTE, starts out with piano and some voice, but then takes off into the same strange atmospheres that are explored in the other songs. I will say this. If you listen to this album, recorded in January 1972, you really see how ENO, or the Berlin period BOWIE, recieved their influence, and from there, everyone else into electronica, from the overdubs on New Wave bands like TALKING HEADS, right up to the present day bands like ZERO7, or AIR, or THIEVERY CORPERATION.
So, is this an essencial purchase? Well, in the arts, two things are important. Who started a style, and who perfected it. With maybe ALPHA CENTUARI being the only other work, that seems to be in this vein, I would say that this is important. Because unlike TANG DREAM from the 1971 period, CLUSTER had no use for percussion of any type. Since CLUSTER ONE is coming out on CD, and CLUSTER AND ENO just was released, I would guess that this might be rereleased soon, if you want to wait, and get CLUSTER ONE first. But, if you have the money, and can't wait, go for it.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Their best!, January 28, 2008

By	Lovblad (Geneva, Switzerland) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Beautifully recorded and very influential. Very special also. You can see why Brian Eno would work with them.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extremely influential, October 15, 2006

By	Lovblad (Geneva, Switzerland) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Cluster II (Audio CD)

I got into the music of cluster through Julian Cope's book of course. However I was not expecting it at all to be like this. This is actually the kind of German rock that influenced everybody back in the 70's: Eno etc would follow these footsteps a few years later. This group really laid the foundations for ambient music in a way that I did not really expect. It is much different from the Kluster stuff that has not aged so well. However even if it is slightly pricey today it is worh the effort to look into.