TOUR DE FRANCE SOUNDTRACKS

"Tour De France - Soundtracks" is the 10th full-length studio album by German experimental electronic pop/rock act Kraftwerk. The album was released in August 2003. It´s been a 17 year recording break since the release of "Electric Café (1986)" and "Tour De France - Soundtracks" is quite the surprise comeback album by Kraftwerk. Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider are the usual suspects while Fritz Hilpert and Henning Schmitz are the new boys in town.

While the music on the album holds some of Kraftwerk´s trademark elements, like the simple synth themes and processed robotic voices, there are also changes that provides this album with a very different sound compared to other Kraftwerk albums. Most notably the techno beats that are featured on most of the songs. While the quality of the music is high throughout the album, "Tour De France - Soundtracks" is the first Kraftwerk album (from their electronic pop period) where I´m not instantly reminded of the fact that I´m listening to Kraftwerk. I can´t say my knowledge of techno music is very extensive, so I´m not neccessarily the right person to comment on references but "Tour De France - Soundtracks" doesn´t sound very original to my ears. This is the first Kraftwerk album where the group sound like a follower and not a leader. The album is 55:56 minutes long and that´s too long IMO. While the repetitive beats and the soothing and pleasant synth sounds makes the album a laid-back and pleasant listen, the album becomes a bit trivial and longdrawn after about half the playing time.

To my ears "Tour De France - Soundtracks" is the least essential album yet by Kraftwerk and while I personally enjoy this album more than the early krautrock albums by the group, "Tour De France - Soundtracks" just isn´t as groundbreaking or interesting as those early albums. A 2.5 star (50%) rating is warranted.