For more than two decades, the US magazine Musician covered a broader range of music and genres than any other publication of the time. While Rolling Stone was […]
Watch Michael Rother of Neu! and Dieter Moebius of Cluster live in Tokyo 1999
Two legends of German music deliver nearly two hours of improvised bliss.
In 1999, two towering figures of electronic music, Michael Rother and Dieter Moebius, stood onstage in Tokyo surrounded by the instrumental tools they first started harnessing 20 years prior in Düsseldorf, Germany. Rother was an early member of Kraftwerk and co-founder of Neu!. Moebius cofounded Cluster with Hans-Joachim Roedelius —- and Harmonia with Roedelius and Rother.
Which is to say, by ‘99 they’d been tunneling through electronic circuitry together to mine the beguiling sounds within for most of their adult lives, and witnessed generations build on their remarkable accomplishments – and miraculous music.
Across nearly two hours, Rother and Moebius improvise their way through a phenomenal set. Uploaded by the great L.A. writer John Payne, the single-camera recording isn’t much to look at – two men working nobs, switches and keys – so it’s fine to minimize your YouTube screen and focus solely on the work (at high volume).
And: 2022 marks the 50th anniversary for the self-titled debut, Neu! – Rother and Klaus Dinger – which is an essential addition to any collection. To mark the date, New Order’s Stephen Morris and Factory Floor’s Gabe Gurnsey remixed Hallogallo. Hear it below.
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