Autobahn at 50: How Kraftwerk defined modern music

<p>50 years ago this month the German band Kraftwerk released Autobahn –&nbsp;an album that not only marked a dramatic departure in their sound, but went on to change the entire course of contemporary music.&nbsp;</p><br /><p>With the title track, a 22-minute ode to the German motorway, Kraftwerk’s founding members Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider forged a modern musical language, using electronics to articulate a new and optimistic vision of the future.</p><br /><p>To discuss Autobahn’s genesis and enduring legacy Tom Gatti is joined by Jude Rogers, journalist and author of <em>The Sound of Being Human: How Music Shapes Our Lives</em>, and Uwe Schütte, author of <em>Kraftwerk: Future Music from Germany</em>.</p><br /><p>Read: <a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/music/2024/10/how-kraftwerks-autobahn-remade-pop" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">How Kraftwerk’s Autobahn remade pop</a></p><p><strong>LISTEN AD-FREE:</strong></p><p>📱<a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2022/06/newapp" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Download the New Statesman app</a></p><br /><p><strong>MORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:</strong></p><p>❓ <a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/podcasts/2022/10/you-ask-us" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ask a question</a> – we answer them every Friday</p><p>⏰ <a href="https://morningcall.substack.com/subscribe" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Get our daily politics newsletter</a> every morning</p><p>✍️ <a href="http://saturdayread.substack.com/subscribe" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Enjoy the best of our writing</a> via email every Saturday</p><hr /><p style="color: grey; font-size: 0.75em;"> Hosted on Acast. See <a href="https://acast.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: grey;" target="_blank">acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>