Ikarus. 1971 Germany

Ikarus' sole work is one of those albums you could hold up as a representative of an entire genre. And that would be the 1971 Krautrock scene. Heavy organ, loud guitars, challenging material, gruff vocals, woodwinds, and an active rhythm section. Honestly, what more do you need in life? There are 4 long tracks here, not densely composed mind you - no one would ever accuse the Krautrock scene of sounding like Van Der Graaf Generator - but rather plenty of space is left for a jam or 3, the longer (and louder), the better. The Long Hair CD even adds Ikarus' original debut recording, when known as Beatique in Corporation, taken from a 2 LP compilation live set called (unimaginatively) Pop & Blues Festival '70. This 15 minute track would have fit perfectly on the album proper, though the unnecessary drum solo could have been left off (can't they all?).

 

Ownership: CD: 2015 Long Hair. My introduction to the album came via the Second Battle LP upon release (1995), and I also picked up the digi-pak CD, which served me well for over 20 years (I sold the LP years ago since it was superfluous). While the sound on both are about equal (and very good I think), the Long Hair version gets the edge due to the historical liner notes and the aforementioned 15 minute bonus track. An original would be awesome to have, but isn't imperative.

1995; 8/4/17 (new entry)