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8-Bit Operators: The Music of Kraftwerk

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: Astralwerks Records
Released: 2007.02.06
Time:
 60:30
Category: Electronic
Producer(s): See Artists ...
Rating:
Media type: CD
Web address: www.kraftwerk.com
Appears with:
Purchase date: 2012
Price in €: 1,00





 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] The Robots [Die Roboter] (feat. Bacalao) - 3:29
[2] Pocket Calculator (feat. Glomag) - 3:54
[3] Computer Love (feat. Covox) - 3:40
[4] Showroom Dummies (feat. Role Model) - 3:59
[5] The Model (feat. Nullsleep) - 3:57
[6] Radioactivity (feat. David E.Sugar) - 4:12
[7] Kristallo (feat. Oliver Wittchow) - 4:22
[8] Spacelab (feat. 8-Bit Weapon) - 4:54
[9] Computer World [Computerwelt] (feat. firestARTer) - 4:26
[10] Electric Café (feat. Neotericz) - 4:03
[11] Trans-Europe Express (feat. Receptors) - 4:02
[12] Tanzmusik (feat. Herbert Weixelbaum) - 3:58
[13] It's More Fun to Compute (feat. Bubblyfish) - 3:52
[14] Antenna (feat. Bit Shifter) - 3:48
[15] The Man-Machine [Die Mensch-Maschine] (feat. gwEm and Counter Reset) - 4:06

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


Bacalao - Performer, Producer
Glomag - Performer, Producer
Covox - Performer
Role Model - Performer
Nullsleep - Performer
David E.Sugar - Performer
Oliver Wittchow - Performer, Producer
8-Bit Weapon - Performer
firestARTer - Performer
Neotericz - Performer
Receptors - Performer, Producer
Herbert Weixelbaum - Performer
Bubblyfish - Performer
Bit Shifter - Performer
gwEm and Counter Reset - Performer

Johan Kotlinski - Producer
Jeremy Kolosine - Executive Producer
Allan Tucker - Mastering
Tom Ohmsen - Mastering
Nick Clift - Project Manager
Errol Kolosine - Design

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s


2007 CD Astralwerks - ASW 71189

A various artist covers compilation, featuring interpretations of classic Kraftwerk songs, arranged primarily on lo-bit handheld gaming devices, vintage video game consoles and obsolete 8 bit home computers ( such as Game Boys, Ataris, Nintendo systems and Commodore 64's ) now revered for the rich and distinctive sound of their lo-bit microchips. This video game-influenced branch of electronic music, sometimes referred to as ‘chiptune’, ‘bitpop’ or just ‘8-bit’, has developed a flourishing international live scene, and is one of the first new genres of music to use the internet to its fullest advantage, with the advent of home-brewed synth cartridges and hacker influenced musical tools.

The 8-BIT OPERATORS collection features some of the top 8-bit artists from North America, South America and Europe, a selection of the best musical innovators, and several of the inventors themselves.




 Here we have Kraftwerk songs, covered by artists whose instruments of choice are handheld gaming devices, old computers, and other assorted lo-res electronics. I can't help but think it represents some sort of dream realized for Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Kraftwerk's relationship to technology was always complex, pointing to a bright future while remaining wary of humanity's ability to make the most of its tools. But at their most optimistic, Kraftwerk saw technology as a powerfully democratic tide, and they hoped to see a day where powerful, portable, and ultimately useful machines would be found everywhere.

And here we are. It's at times striking to realize how closely these 8-bit artists with their Gameboys and Commodore 64s can come to Kraftwerk's sound when so inclined. Though Kraftwerk were committed to acquiring the latest technology when it became available in the 1970s and 80s, Moore's Law means that those machines could eventually be roughly approximated for very little cost.

The fidelity is especially noticeable on the material from Computer World, not surprisingly the Kraftwerk album best represented here. Though the fuzzy edges around each synth line give away the bit depth, Glomag's version of "Pocket Calculator" almost sounds like a 4-track demo version Kraftwerk themselves might have laid down before heading in to their Kling-Klang studio. "The Robots", even with a cut-up beat informed by drum-and-bass, recreates the tonal proportions of the Man-Machine source material with surprising accuracy. And the timbre of the snaking synth line through 8-Bit Weapon's lovely version of "Spacelab" remains true almost to a fault.

Still, occasional overfamiliarity isn't a complaint. The songs are too good, and too well suited for this environment to mount much criticism. Some of the non-vocodered vocals are annoying, but the reverent and respectful readings generally work well. That said, the real highlights come when interpreters opt for an imaginative twist. Nullsleep's dense, lumbering, and distorted take on "The Model" alludes more to Big Black than Kraftwerk's elegant original. And Herbert Weixelbaum gets the prize for originality of song selection, choosing to transform "Tanzmusik", a delicate exercise in repetition from Ralf & Florian. The 1973 track was led by a soft, almost new age piano, but here, Weixelbaum transposes the acoustic keyboard's notes to a blocky synth that would have grated in the 70s but now scratches a peculiar wooly itch for everyone raised on videogames.
And that's a huge part of the fun in this thoroughly enjoyable, if predictable, project. As forward thinking as Kraftwerk were, they also had an enduring fondness for the pleasure of nostalgia. And the music here draws from that well, adds a twist, and finds a way to look to the future and the past at the same time.

Mark Richardson - February 12, 2007
© 2015 Pitchfork Media Inc.




This compilation features a selection of the best musical innovators, and several of the inventors themselves. These are not merely faithful reproductions of Kraftwerk songs, but truly inspired re-interpretations that use a relatively limited technological framework to its furthest reaches. 8-bit festivals like NYC's Blip Fest and live events around Europe have started an underground scene that is ripe to expand globally and '8-Bit Operators' is a fascinating document of a creative force that continues to attract new fans through the gaming world and online channels. Conceived and compiled by long-time electronic artist and 8-bit composer Jeremy Kolosine (a.k.a. Receptors), the 8-Bit Operators collection features some of the top 8-bit artists from North America, South America and Europe.

Amazon.com



8-Bit Operators: The Music of Kraftwerk was released in 2007 by the group 8-Bit Operators  on Kraftwerk's US homelabel Astralwerks and EMI Records worldwide. It features cover versions of Kraftwerk songs by several prominent chiptune artists. Inspiration for the project as quoted by Jeremy Kolosine (credited as Executive Producer of the release, and noted founder of the early 80's electronic group Futurisk and chipmusic band Receptors.) "Well the first thing that comes to my mind when I saw a gameboy show was Kraftwerk's Computer World Tour from 1981, where four of them played various handheld devices during the song 'Pocket Calculator'. Plus it came up in a print from a Glomag quote, and an 8 Bit Weapon April Fool's joke that backfired.." This Kraftwerk covers compilation was somewhat unique in the fact that Kraftwerk's Ralf Hütter selected the final track line-up, "So Jeremy was a little nervous when meeting Kraftwerk's Ralf Hütter after a concert by the group in New York last year. He passed along to him a sample of the compilation. Later Hutter said he enjoyed it and even offered some editing suggestions" In a subsequent interview, when asked about the 8-Bit Operators release, Ralf Hütter responded, "It is mind stimulating, the minimum/maximum coming from sound levels and thoughts and ideas. Like Autobahn and Trans-Europe Express are very basic and elementary ideas, but they offer a pattern or concept for improvisation." In March, 2007, the CD release reached as high as number 1 on the CMJ RPM (North American college Electronic) charts.

A vinyl 12-inch single version was released on 24 February 2007 as a precursor to the full-length CD, and reached as high as number 17 on the Billboard magazine Hot Dance Singles Sales Chart. Side A of the vinyl consisted of 8-Bit Operators' “Pocket Calculator(Megamix)"' version by Glomag,(featuring 0x7f, Bit Shifter, Bubblyfish, firestARTer, Hey Kid Nice Robot, Ladybug, M-.-n, Nullsleep, Psilodump, Random, Sidabitball, and David E Sugar). Side B was an alternate cover of Kraftwerk's "The Robots" by the Los Angeles chipmusic rap group 8-BIT.

Wikipedia.org
 

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