Computer World
Product ID: 4074170
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This is the album pundits like to point to when they accuse Kraftwerk of being digital-age visionaries; an all-too-easy assessment to make in the face of tracks such as "Home Computer" and "Computer Love" ( not an ode to one-hand typing!). But to saddle the band with the reputation of sages is to completely miss the low-key wit and all-too-human playfulness of this album. "Pocket Calculator" and "Numbers" (the lyrics: numbers one to eight--period) could be read as tongue-in-cheek ripostes to too much bad "educational" programming, but that would smack of creeping punditry. Computer World is Kraftwerk's most lovable bundle of contradictions: at once its most technologically obsessed album and its most human. --Jerry McCulley The surprise album from the German electronic pioneer scientists surfaced in 1981, three years after their final monumental "Trans Europe Express" album. In the US, they shifted gears by electing to record for Warner Bros after many years with EMI (where they remained outside the US). "Computer World" was a revelation in that the band's sound was so totally refined and perfected, sounding almost other worldly for the times....and that notion still holds true on listening to it today, as the tracks seem to have a cryogenic quality to them, sound fresh and modern. The flow and sequence of the songs is like an elaborate electronic symphony that is playful, intense, tongue in cheek and ultimately exhilarating. Review: I’ve been looking for this for years! - Nice album. Mint and previously unopened. But I thought I was purchasing a special edition — yellow disk with inserts. Sorry, no. Just the standard black vinyl. My own fault for mistaking the high price for something special. Apparently, this album is hard to find because it hasn’t been rereleased in the US. Review: A great record. - I guess I gotta put my opinion in here about the sound quality of the remasters. While I really like the remasters from TMM and TEE this one is definitely bassier than the German counterpart and way bassier than the very weak original, yet I don't inherently find it to be some kind of awful thing. I like bass, and Kraftwerk albums always needed a bit more oomph. This certain remaster is also the most compressed of the new bunch, but it also must be said that the old CDs had weak scans, -4 to -6 dB peak levels that didn't even use the CD, and were inherently just not very involving on the low end. The American version to me is indispensable because of songs like Pocket Calculator that just don't translate nearly as coherently on the German version. A lot of the camp and humor seems lost with the tone of the German language. That isn't to say I dislike those versions. I like them both. The US version here might be from a different source, so I am not quite sure why the sound quality is a bit different. At any rate I didn't really find it to be insanely bothersome, and overall the two remasters are still very close. I guess I don't hold these albums up as a something that can only be heard in one way. I also listen on neutral headphones, so that does make it fairly balanced compared to what bassier setups might sound like. I have never listened to the record with a large sub or anything like that. And I only have fleeting moments with the old 80s CD, which never sounded right to my ears. All told I still have to recommend this. People need to hear these records. I don't care how you hear it. But Computer World is always going to get five stars from me. It's one of their big three records and a major part of musical history. I still think it holds up today just as much as it did back then.
S**D
I’ve been looking for this for years!
Nice album. Mint and previously unopened. But I thought I was purchasing a special edition — yellow disk with inserts. Sorry, no. Just the standard black vinyl. My own fault for mistaking the high price for something special. Apparently, this album is hard to find because it hasn’t been rereleased in the US.
C**K
A great record.
I guess I gotta put my opinion in here about the sound quality of the remasters. While I really like the remasters from TMM and TEE this one is definitely bassier than the German counterpart and way bassier than the very weak original, yet I don't inherently find it to be some kind of awful thing. I like bass, and Kraftwerk albums always needed a bit more oomph. This certain remaster is also the most compressed of the new bunch, but it also must be said that the old CDs had weak scans, -4 to -6 dB peak levels that didn't even use the CD, and were inherently just not very involving on the low end. The American version to me is indispensable because of songs like Pocket Calculator that just don't translate nearly as coherently on the German version. A lot of the camp and humor seems lost with the tone of the German language. That isn't to say I dislike those versions. I like them both. The US version here might be from a different source, so I am not quite sure why the sound quality is a bit different. At any rate I didn't really find it to be insanely bothersome, and overall the two remasters are still very close. I guess I don't hold these albums up as a something that can only be heard in one way. I also listen on neutral headphones, so that does make it fairly balanced compared to what bassier setups might sound like. I have never listened to the record with a large sub or anything like that. And I only have fleeting moments with the old 80s CD, which never sounded right to my ears. All told I still have to recommend this. People need to hear these records. I don't care how you hear it. But Computer World is always going to get five stars from me. It's one of their big three records and a major part of musical history. I still think it holds up today just as much as it did back then.
B**6
Quirky, but very good
I have only heard of Kraftwerk in the last couple of years, even though they are a comtemporay of one of my favorite groups, Tangerine Dream. Someone had been in my lab, while I was playing a TD cd and they mention that I might like Autobahn, which I did. So I started looking for other Kraftwek CDs and found some. There was some misses, but Computer World was not one of them. It is very dated, though. Those who have grown up with computers all over the place would probably miss the concept of this album, but I remember buying my first Texas Instrument scientific calculator for about $100 dollars, when calculators were just coming on the market. And who could forget RadShacks TRS computers? When I got my TRS with 64k memory, I thought I had the power in my hands. Who would believe that you could use up 64k of memory? So this is sort of the world that this CD is talking about. One of the songs is talking about how great it is to have a pocket calculator! The first song, Computer World, sort of gives the ominous thing about the use of computers to track people and money. It mentions the FBI, Interpol, DeutschBanc, etc. It is basically a good early electronics type musical album that is probably as good as Autobahn
D**E
Kraftwerk at their best!
Great CD. Kraftwerk Computer World is a project that was before it's time sonically and lyrically. Computer World is considered by many as Kraftwerk's beat over-all project. Elektra has done an excellent job of retaining the original analog sound of the original vinyl. Not to take anything away for the vinyl versions (I have both), Computer World on CD plays well because it's one of those projects that's best played undisturbed from beginning to end. If you're new to Kraftwerk, Computer World is the best starting point. Get Kraftwerk Computer World on CD, you won't be disappointed.
T**E
A modern classic
This is a masterwork of the modern musical era. It sounds as futuristic today as it did 30 years ago. It's the original vinyl master which will sound like it's lacking low end to today's listeners. Solution: turn up the bass.
A**L
This infectious classic is impossible to become bored of.
Great album by the OGs of electronic beats. Very danceable and simultaneously atmospheric. When I bought this on vinyl (back around 1981 or 1982?) I love it, but I thought Computer Love was sort of a weak spot. Now I am finally bale to see how brilliant, like the rest of the record, it really is. I have heard innumerable samples from this used by dozens of electronic artists from Afrika Bambaataa and LCD Soundsystem, to Psychic TV and DJ Shadow, and they do it because every snippet of this record is compelling.
C**S
Perfect!
Perfect condition. Great album!
J**S
Amazing Product
I knew this album would be great. But I did not know the seller, Vinyl Renaissance & Audio, would have been so amazing. They included a protective cover to the album and packaged it perfectly. I will be buying from them again. They also included a Christmas Alvin and the Chipmunks sleeve for protection. I actually love that sleeve. Now to the get record.
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