Krautrock - La Düsseldorf aimed for 2000, but are we now dreaming of 2050?

Hello, this is Munou.

Once in a while, let's escape from this muddy world and immerse ourselves in the world of music.

First, some of you might not know Krautrock, but in other words, Krautrock is German rock. Rock from Germany.
The first Krautrock record I ever bought in my life was "La Düsseldorf".

That being said, I'm 22 now, but back then, when I was about a sophomore in high school, the only German music I knew was NEU! and Kraftwerk.

Just because "La Düsseldorf" was the first Krautrock record I bought, I have a special attachment to it, but the truth is, I, ignorant and foolish, initially bought it thinking it was a NEU! record.

It Started with the Liner Notes

One of the joys of records is the booklet inside, so when I checked it, I thought, "Huh? It's not NEU!"
That's when I realized it.

And since it was a Japanese pressing, the original Japanese liner notes included a handwritten "Krautrock family tree" that looked like it was made by an otaku of that era.
When I first saw it, I thought the person who made it back then must have been crazy. The lyric sheet used fonts, but the original Japanese liner notes were a copy of a handwritten document, you know?
The love for music from the people who produced the Japanese pressing back then was truly conveyed.

The first one I got my hands on was this VIVA.

After checking the liner notes, I saw that Kraftwerk and NEU! members were also involved, so I thought it was good that it eventually led me to discover a new path.

The Origin Was Yura Yura Teikoku

At that time, I was obsessed with Yura Yura Teikoku and Shintaro Sakamoto, so when I learned that NEU! was an artist who greatly influenced them, I started getting into German music.
Also, the owner of the coffee shop I used to frequent told me about CAN. My interest grew exponentially from multiple sources.

My image of Germany is that it's a powerful industrial nation that has developed its own unique culture, with a strong reputation for high-quality products, not just in the camera industry (which I also love), but also in music, as I once bought a German pressing of The Who's record and was struck by its excellent sound quality, high sound pressure, and powerful audio.

Also, when I was in my second year of high school, I mysteriously took a picture with someone at a camera shop in Akihabara, but I've forgotten the circumstances...

La Düsseldorf Dreamed of the 2000s

Now, back to the main topic, the La Düsseldorf record I bought contains a message for the year 2000, which was about 20-30 years in the future at the time, as evidenced by the song "Cha Cha 2000".

I can see paradise
But the terror will grow
And the world will explode
Into a new moral code

Can see paradise
But the terror will grow
And the world will explode
Into a new moral code

Just when you think it's a bright message, a sense of fear for the future emerges.

We all need to change
And care
For the weak
And share
With the poor
Where will he lead us from here
Will it be drama
Or cha cha Belleville

Perhaps they were feeling despair about the global recession that began in the 1970s and the replacement of humans by mechanization.

Get out of your car
And walk on your feet
And move body move
Life is more
Than just eat
And stop drinking hard
And smoking and doping
You better start thinking
And you better start working
Deep inside yourself

Given that drug culture feels quite deeply rooted in Germany itself, perhaps this was also a message to those living a life deviating from society.

Technology sympathy
Economy sympathy
Fantasy
We've got it all
But we don't know
Yet
So watch it
Your problems will grow
And break all over you
And then
You fall
Into a deep dream

Technology sympathy
Economy sympathy
Phantasy phantasy
We’ve got it all
But we don’t know
Yet
So watch it
Your problems will grow
And break all over you
And then
You fall
Into a deep dream

It's a warning about the narrowness of the world you see and how you're breaking down without realizing it.

Step into the sun
And feel it
Feel it
How it could be
And then
And then
Let's walk towards the future
To the future
Cha Cha 2000
Cha Cha 2000

And step into the sun
And feel it
Feel it
How it could be
And then
Do it
Tanz auf die Zukunft
Mit mir
Cha Cha 2000
Cha Cha 2000

And your
Laser blue eyes
Can see paradise
When the wars have all gone
And the future is filled with love
And we care for the weak
And we share with the poor
2000
For our homeland

And your
Laser blue eyes
Can see paradise
When the wars have all gone
And it’s futur d’amour
And we care for the weak
And we share with the poor
2000
Steht vor unsrer Tür

Precisely because Germany experienced World War II as a tumultuous era, one can hear a call to persevere again, now that they have emerged from despair.

Ultimately, it means praying for a bright future and walking towards it.

Are We Imagining 2050?

It seems that technological advancement and the fear associated with it are always the same.

It's strange, but back then in America, there were future-oriented films like Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey, and in Japan, works like AKIRA and Ghost in the Shell that evoked a near-future feel. I feel like there aren't many such works now, but is my world just too narrow?

Are they what we call AI works now?

I believe it's only about adapting to the times, thinking about the bright things that can be found there, and believing in them.

What will our world be like in 20-30 years?
My prediction is that banks as we know them will disappear... but I can't imagine anything beyond that... Will past artists be fully resurrected by AI in video form and perform live?
Will America as it is now remain as it is, and what about Japan itself?
Indeed, what will happen?

It Started with the Liner Notes

The Origin Was Yura Yura Teikoku

La Düsseldorf Dreamed of the 2000s

Are We Imagining 2050?

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