Dieter Moebius, Electronic Music Pioneer, Dead at 71

New submitter Lawrence Bottorff writes: Dieter Moebius, who is credited as a founder of the late-sixties Berlin 'Krautrock' scene, has died at age 71. Krautrock, of course, was hardly rock music, but the protoplasm of a uniquely German avant-garde industrial ambient electronica. Probably his best-known work was with Brian Eno on their famous Cluster collaboration albums. Many believe Cluster (Moebius, Hans-Joachim Roedelius, Conny Plank) cemented Eno's path on his laconic, melancholic, New-Age-free ambient sound back in the mid- to late-seventies.

Comments

Now is the time on Sprockets where we dance!

[CajunArson]

Put Autobahn on an infinite loop for your dead 1-dimensional strip Kraut homie!

Re:Now is the time on Sprockets where we dance!

[Anonymous Coward]

You may NOT touch my monkey!

City Orchestra

[Anonymous Coward]

When the all of the parents of the electronic music have passed, perhaps city orchestras can find the music classical enough to be rearranged and played. Death to Beethoven! Oh, wait..
  Such cultural phenomena can apparently only be seen due retrospection. One could only hope we have something cooking right now for the future generations to appreciate.

@anonymous, statiscally zero

[Anonymous Coward]

You mean statistically zero people know of him? Now you made me LOL.

Correction

[Anonymous Coward]

Cluster (and Dieter) are Krautrock and Dusseldorf School, not Berlin. Dusseldorf is Can, Cluster, Kraftwerk, et al. Berlin School is a more ambient/spacey scene that included Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze and that crowd.

Re:Correction

[borgauf]

The Der Spiegel article has details of his times in Berlin and all the things he did there. I think he was around Conny Plank in Duesseldorf as well. But again, Krautrock was never any sort of rock as we knew it. I remember hearing about Kraftwerk's first American tour (after the "hit" "Autobahn") and how audiences were frustrated with them not playing anything to "boogie" to.

Re:Correction

[Anonymous Coward]

Berlin School and Dusseldorf School aren't about where you're from, it's about the kind of music you do. They're genres of music. Yes, they got their names based on the general area of origin but just because someone comes from Berlin doesn't mean they do Berlin School. That's like saying everyone from Nashville performs country music.

Dieter?

[Elder Entropist]

I was wondering why his weight loss strategy was relevant...

Re:Who?!??

[Anonymous Coward]

Maybe if you'd stop listening to Nickleback...
 
Meanwhile I know plenty of Americans who listen to Krautrock. So go jam it, skippy.

Dieter

[operagost]

Your life has become tiresome. Now touch my monkey.

Moebius

[Anonymous Coward]

Seemed rather one-sided.

Re:Who?!??

[Anonymous Coward]

You may wish to read your sentence again. I do not think it means what you think it means...

So

[mattack2]

I guess he's now going to be laying in a strip.

Never heard of him

[Threni]

Did he make any music? Or was he just a journalist's best friend? Talking of which, what's Brian Eno got to do with Krautrock?

Re:Never heard of him

[Gibgezr]

Moebius made lots of music, which folks who were into 70's electronica loved. Eno helped bring the German electronic music scene into focus for people outside of Germany, working with Moebius and Roedelius on two very important albums, "Cluster & Eno" and "After the Heat", and then hooking up with a fourth musician, Plank, to make some more albums together.

Anyone who was listening to Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze was familiar with Moebius/Roedelius/Plank. "After the Heat" was in Sam the Record Man etc. in Canada, you could pick it up anywhere.

Re:Never heard of him

[Anonymous Coward]

If you don't know what Eno has to do with Kraut then you might think twice about talking about the genre and subgenres of Krautrock... and Eno for that matter.

Re:Who?!??

[rgriff59]

Such a sad comment on both statistics and music history awareness.

I am a person, and in the US, and this story means quite a lot to me.

If Dieter Moebus' only accomplishment was to have influenced Eno, he still earned a place in modern music history. He did much more.

I would encourage those who cannot appreciate this loss to use it as a cause to stop and explore what they have missed. First step would be following those links, but queue up some #DieterMoebius for ambience while you read.

It really is a shame

[Pathwalker]

I saw him a couple of years ago at the 2012 Sen Francisco Electronic Music Festival; it was an amazing performance.

I had hoped he would make another US tour at some point; that had been his first solo tour in the US.

Re:Roland Piquepaille: LET US NEVER FORGET!

[HornWumpus]

Can we put up a kickstarter to have Bennet killed?

If that makes /.ers uncomfortable, I suggest framing him for a 20 year federal crime. /. has enough feds posting (and hopefully willing to help) it should be easy.

try this piece..

[Anonymous Coward]

Title piece from the LP Grosses Wasser , by the group Cluster, of which he was half with Han-Joachim Roedelius

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYACy-lY6dg

If at first it doesn't grab you, put on as background music. Maybe for Thanksgiving dinner?

You've got to admit

[Anonymous Coward]

He created an amazing band.

Very Sad

[Anonymous Coward]

I do not approve. Musicians should be immortal. Eno, Moebius, Roedelius are awesome. Rest in peace, Dieter.