Wolfgang Flur Interview

The Agency invited Nico Demonte to submit questions for the Wolfgang Flur interview. Wolfgang Flür (born 17 July 1947) is a German musician, best known as a member of Kraftwerk, the electro-pop group, from 1973 to 1987, playing electronic drums. Flür also built much of the group's studio and stage equipment in his workshop below the band's Kling Klang studio.

Previously he had played a conventional acoustic drum kit in the Düsseldorf band The Spirits of Sound. (Another member of this band was guitarist Michael Rother, who also spent a few months as a member of Kraftwerk in 1971, before forming Neu! with then Kraftwerk drummer Klaus Dinger.)

Flür is now the founding member of Yamo, who released an album Time Pie in 1997, produced in collaboration with Mouse on Mars. Flür's next release, the 12" and remix 12" "I was a robot" climbed to number 6 in the German club charts. Collaborations with Pizzicato 5 and Der Plan founding member Pyrolator have been announced, and the lyrics to the song "Greed" are in Flür's autobiography, but this material remains unreleased.

Flür also wrote an autobiography, published in the year 2000, called I Was a Robot, showing the inner workings of Kraftwerk from the beginning. This book met with hostility and litigation from his former Kraftwerk colleagues Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. The original Hannibal Verlag edition was soon withdrawn, following an injunction, but the book was republished in English and Japanese, with removal of a couple of embarrasingly homoerotic photos of Schneider and Emil Schult and re-wording of certain sections, for instance, Flür no longer claims that the composition "Metal on Metal" was his idea; the idea was "probably" Hütter's, and he must have got the idea when he heard Flür banging away building stuff. However, most of the court attention centered around the recording of the song "Autobahn", and this point was decided in Flür's favor: The German court found that Flür did play drums on the Autobahn album. It is odd that Hütter and Schneider would take offence at this claim, since they credited him for doing so on the original edition of the album, and even later, credit-less, editions carry a band photo with Flür and his drum kit center stage.

WOLFGANG FLUR INTERVIEW:


How did your musical career start?

With music, music copying, music listening and practicing drumming.
In fact it was classical music which inspired me first, then pop music

Which musical composers and artists were your favorites growing up as a child?

Abram Khatchaturian, Bedrich Smetana, Boris Ravel, George Gershwin, The Beatles, The Who,
King Crimson, Emmerson, Lake and Palmer, Jimi Hendrix and Katja Epstein.

How did you join Kraftwerk in 1974?

I was invited by the duo. This already happend in 1973 during my education for interior architect.
I can recall it was during one of the hottest July days in the early seventies

What was your inspiration for building the instruments in the Kraftwerk's Kling Klang studio in Dusseldorf?

I didn't want to play on their tiny children's drumkit at public appearances but their lovely rhythm box instead.
I just had to think how to play it like drums.

You worked with custom-built drum controllers, containing 6 metal pads and drum-sticks with wires attached to them,
which by the way was an ingenius idea, for that time! [Machine Music]. Who came up with the idea?
How did this unique idea work and evolve over the years?

It was my idea in fact, and Florian followed it. I built the drum pads board then in a cellar of the BERGER ALLEE 9.
I didn't build the rhythm box, it already existed.

What were your favorite songs playing on stage in the 13 years, you were part of Kraftwerk?

"Autobahn", "The Model", "Trans Europe Express", "Tanzmusik", "Computer World",
"Computer Love" and last but not least "Pocket Calculator".

No doubt you must have a "museum" of old synthersizers, hand built equipment and precious "artifacts",
people want to know everything about. Could you give the reader a glimp, what kind of equipment you have in your vault[s]?


You will not believe it: I have nothing at all! Today I'm more the visionary in Yamo and songwriter.
I'm not so much the sound builder, this is more my partner Stefan. We have a genious partnership [as I always wanted to]:
Stefan has all old and new devices in his computer, software and hardware next to the desk, and we discuss every tone and
sound very extensivly. Mostly I sing the sounds to Stefan or into the microphone and he can realize all I have in my mind.
I'm a perfect synthesizer...

Since you are one of the few people who changed music and the way we look at it
What is your opinion on today's music industry and the "switch" between "Analog" and "Digital"?

I have no doubt at all. We take what we need - digital and analogue. Analogue has more pressure and is most interesting,
but we also use samples and loops for Yamo productions besides of naturally sung words.
I love to be vocodered in Stefan's style with the Variophrase 9000 for example. Can you hear it out?.

What decided you to write your book "I Was A ROBOT" [ Ich war ein ROBOTER. Mein Zeit als Drummer bei Kraftwerk ]?

It was a matter of my soul. Otherwise it was the U.S journalist Dave Johnson [Goldmine] who begged me to write
all my stories down for the rest of the world. For myself I had to make a cut between the old times and the new.
With a finished book you can leave so much behind - good AND bad.....

The book brought me most interesting contacts with journalists, all kinds of media, the record industry and fans worldwide.
Seen from my side, it was good to write the book. Otherwise I know that there are people out there, who can't stand that I gave
them a look behind the scenes, they more love to preserve their defined look.


Back in the days, when you were still in the group, you all visited "The Evoluon" in Eindhoven, The Netherlands several times.
[ "The Evoluon" was kind of a Philips museum of "old" equipment ]. What inspired you to go there?


That's interesting that you know of "The Evoluon" and that we went there for several times.
Eindhoven is just around the corner of Dusseldorf and we all loved to watch these technical developments of the Time, our time!
We loved technology. We were German boys, children of Grundig, Siemens, Werner v. Braun, AEG!

I have heard that you have "unique" 8MM film footage, that was taped during the first U.S tour in 1975 of Kraftwerk?
How did you get it? And what are your thoughts in general, looking at this footage? Since it is from 30 years ago!

In fact it was my own idea to film our first U.S tour in 1975. I filmed it with my fathers tiny hand held 8MM Bell & Howell film camera.
I love the images from then very much and all our fans do when watching them during our Yamo-Spectacles, now touring in Germany.
These films were digitalized on DVD by a Dutch TV company for their culture channel RAM. We show this film in our show too.

What is your opinion on "royalties"?

Royalties are good, Royalties are important! Especially for musicians and producers. From what should we live instead?

Seen from my side - when working with my partner I love to be quick.
And I find that this is the most interesting aspect on today's musical software - quickness!
We can work so fast, finding sounds and effects for our productions. It is a blessing to our genre!

Your working with independant young artists and musicians, what inspires you to do this?

Freedom! Artistically freedom which I never had in Kraftwerk. Just listen to our next results and anyone can find out.
I'm most happy these days. Happy with Yamo and my literature project. All my partners are younger than me - much younger -
even my wife [me lucky guy]. This is a very good co-operation. I learn from them, they learn from me. It keeps me young.

What's your opinion about producing a song or demo? How does it have to sound before sending it to an A&R,
and finally get noticed among thousands of demo's, which are sent in each year? Can you give some tips?

That's a most difficult question. First it has to sound unique! Uniqueness is the most important thing of all!
Then the theme must be different and should refer to the topical scene and surrounding. Reaching an A&R is very difficult too.
[ An A&R -Artist and Repetoire - is someone who works at a record label, who listens to demo's that are sent in ]
There are so many songs that have passed and went left because some A&R's didn't hear a song,
because there is so much garbage sent out. This because most A&R's are overwhelmed by the delivery every day.

Unfortunatly, it also has something to do with luck a person has when going to be heard.
Best is to have personal contact with an A&R, before sending a demo through post [snail mail] or e-mail.
Sending in demo's through e-mail, is not a wise thing to do. From my experience this doesn't work.
Contacts - personal contacts bring it the best.

As most grand inventions, the internet has his goods AND his bads....

From the "Analog Era" to the "Digital Revolution" in 30 years.
From using custom built "Machines" in the past, to the i-pod, mobile phones, mp3 players, etc of today.
When you look back, what is your opinion on the way technology has developed over the years?

The good thing is that everyone can purchase "digital revolution", technique and play / work with it.
Nowadays, devices are tiny and light weighted. Musicians don't have to pay extra's during flights because of the overweights.

When I think of the past, and what we had to transport across the globe! For instance our first SONY video projectors...
Unbelievable.. heavy like washing machines, and we had four of them! Look at a video beamer today!
Look at the first portable CD [also SONY] and compare it with the latest i-pod, isn't that great?

I love progress any kind. The bad thing is that mankind seemingly doesn't make progress.
Not in it's behaviour and not in it's social consciousness. The young generation is being left on their
computer games, i-pods and soap opera's / tele novels on TV.

There is nothing that can educate children better than reading a book. The fantasy comes to grief.
And one who has no fantasy - what could he / she do with modern technology?
The digital revolution will bring them nothing. We in Kraftwerk had to build lots of things on our own..
And this brought fantasy in masses!

I don't really understand your question about knowledge in general [ as you always say ] but from the German meanings
I could imagine that "knowledge" is a part of doing / starting something and getting into action, of experiencing a thing / work.
To be a part of a just happening occurrence can bring knowledge and understanding. I had the great luck of sharing
the beginning of Kraftwerk's activities. It brought me knowledge for my whole life.

It was not only music, it was life itself, which brought vision. It helped me until today, lifted me up onto the Yamo scenes.

On your project Yamo - "Time Pie" [1997], you worked with Andy Toma of Mouse On Mars. How did this project evolve?

I was with "Little Child" on my way in a studio where Andy was copying something on a 24 track recorder machine.
I had problems with the result of my own work of new songs after the children's project. Andy listened to it,
and came out with the offer for a remix he wanted to do on the song I was currently working on [ my inner voice ].
What Andy did was a great result to me. And it was the beginning of a whole new project of something special,
The Yamo Music Project and the TIME PIE album.

Will there be a new Yamo album in the near future?

Of course there will! My new partner Stefan Lindlahr and I have a nearly finished album - ELOQUENCE - on our table.
I'm just dealing with a well-known London label for it's publication. The English release is very delicate to me because
England always was the country of pop music. The British love their musicians and stars.
In Germany it is difficult with this profession and the public, even in my own family. [ read my book ].

We are envitd to co-produce the new THE GRID album of David Ball.
I have already written a pop song for a soundtrack of THE GRID. It is called "Saturday Girl".

Otherwise we love to co-opertae with Marc Almond and his new album. Marc wants to make a remix,
of our "I was a Robot" song which was already in the Top Ten of Deutsche Club Charts.
Marc wants to make a special version for the gay scene and clubs.

Otherwise I have my literatur project here in Germany and love touring with my Yamo-Spectacles,
which is a mix of new Yamo songs, book chapter readings, video projections, lightenings and
dance performances by our sexy dancer Cindy Gunawan. On our website www.yamomusic.de
under the link "watch", you'll find some snippets of the Yamo-Spectacles

Recently you wrote a new book called: "neben mir - läuft wie verrückt".
What is it about and what inspired you to write it?

The book is not yet out but the manuscript ["next to me – running like crazy" ] is ready to read.
We bring different parts in our Yamo-Spectacles and our audience loves the scenes which I read to them.

The manuscript tells about very special people in our Rhineland region. "Poor" in this cohearence shall not mean
the loss of money but loss of luck, success, love and education. The short stories are mostly dragic comedy
and last about fifteen minutes each story [ seventeen all together ].

Do you have anything to add or say to your "fans" across the globe?

Yamo sends everyone who is of good sense our Guiding Ray for his life plans.
If you find time, in your busy schedule: please visit our website on: www.yamomusic.de for news and releases.
I myself say "hello".

Questions: [2] - [4] - [14] asked by Nico Demonte.