Grobschnitt. 1972 Germany

The German group Grobschnitt were one of the more famous bands from the classic 70's Krautrock era. They had a long and varied history that spanned over 20 years and were quite popular in their native Germany. Their music was characterized by theatrical sequences, space rock jamming, a large dose of humor, along with creative songwriting.

Grobschnitt's self-titled debut was a dynamic opening for the band, and is simply a superb slab of heavy prog rock. Hard psychedelic driven guitar and Hammond organ lead the instrumental parade, whereas the crack rhythm section push the proceedings along with constantly changing and complex rhythms. Guitarist "Lupo" has a very sharp edged sound and plays in a constant fiery/heavy blues mode, while drummer "Eroc" is a master of creating and maintaining the tempo for the complex yet energetic compositions. The four tracks contained within recall other heavy German bands of the day like Orange Peel, Prof. Wolfff, 2066 and Then, and even Inside era Eloy. Had this been Grobschnitt's only album it surely would've gone down as one of the great one-off Krautrock classics. As it turns out, it may very well have been their shining moment, though no doubt much great music was to appear in their future, including the can't miss space rock suite 'Solar Music'.

Ownership: LP: 1972 Brain. Gatefold. Green label with Metronome. Online acquisition (2000).

CD: 1998 Repertoire. Jewel case with liner notes and a 29 minute bonus track.

My first copy came from a record store in Lucerne while traveling in Switzerland for the first time (1987), and was the single sleeve copy on Brain (black label). Such was the situation in 1987, where an album like this was impossible to find back home in Texas, and yet it was something of a commodity in Europe at the time. Indeed, Grobschnitt's debut was in print for the entire duration of the Brain label. 

5/27/87; 2000; 1/17/01 (Gnosis); 4/15/18 (new entry)