Friday's Playlist: Kraut Rock

The theme of this Friday's Playlist is a much maligned Prog-Rock sub-genre rather offensively known as Kraut Rock. Would it be known as Wop Rock if it came from Italy? Or Gook Rock if it came from Asia? Of course, for some listeners the name is the least offensive thing about this genre. Yeah, this is not exactly pop music. Don't expect verses and choruses. Don't expect a format, either. Just let the music take you on a journey.

Labels of course are reductive and deceiving. There are no real connections between those bands except for geography and a disdain for formulaic music. The tracks in this playlist draw from Psychedelia (Message), Folk (Popol Vuh), Electronic Music (Tangerine Dream), Ambient (Faust), Avant-Garde (Can)... Some is even almost entirely improvised (Amon Düül II).

Partaking in artificial recreational activities (the likes of which are still illegal in most places,I can not stress this enough) might help appreciate the grooves, but we wouldn't know anything about that.

Check out our previous Friday's Playlists HERE.