Harmonia

Though Harmonia began as a sideline excursion for Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Dieter Moebius of <a href="spotify:artist:5mNY0NPszdalbrb4ITO3M8">Cluster</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:4njCJpFlUJkSmFRj6vDZ9D">Michael Rother</a> of <a href="spotify:artist:2CqEOngQOOMstJupNn6Hmf">Neu!</a>, the group became one of the most legendary in the entire Krautrock/kosmische scene with the release of several mid-'70s LPs. After two studio albums recorded as <a href="spotify:artist:5mNY0NPszdalbrb4ITO3M8">Cluster</a>, Roedelius and <a href="spotify:artist:0ctLTKGS1coZsfRHZw48tC">Moebius</a> moved out to the German countryside to build their own studio in the village of Forst. After several disappointments in his attempt to expand <a href="spotify:artist:2CqEOngQOOMstJupNn6Hmf">Neu!</a> into a live unit, <a href="spotify:artist:4njCJpFlUJkSmFRj6vDZ9D">Rother</a> retreated to <a href="spotify:artist:5mNY0NPszdalbrb4ITO3M8">Cluster</a>'s studio for a series of relaxed, improvisational jam sessions that wedded <a href="spotify:artist:5mNY0NPszdalbrb4ITO3M8">Cluster</a>'s exploratory space music with the chugging rhythms and guitar sense of <a href="spotify:artist:4njCJpFlUJkSmFRj6vDZ9D">Rother</a>. The debut Harmonia LP, Musik Von Harmonia, appeared in 1974 (with an accomplished live track, recorded in Amsterdam). Though <a href="spotify:artist:4njCJpFlUJkSmFRj6vDZ9D">Rother</a> also continued with <a href="spotify:artist:2CqEOngQOOMstJupNn6Hmf">Neu!</a> to create another Krautrock classic, Neu! '75, Harmonia remained his focus for another LP, 1975's De Luxe. <a href="spotify:artist:7MSUfLeTdDEoZiJPDSBXgi">Brian Eno</a> had proclaimed Harmonia "the world's most important rock group," and he eventually joined the proceedings for several 1976 sessions -- the legendary results of which lay unreleased for over 20 years, until <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Rykodisc%22">Rykodisc</a> acquiesced with the release of Tracks & Traces. Though <a href="spotify:artist:5mNY0NPszdalbrb4ITO3M8">Cluster</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:7MSUfLeTdDEoZiJPDSBXgi">Eno</a> continued their collaboration during the late '70s, <a href="spotify:artist:4njCJpFlUJkSmFRj6vDZ9D">Rother</a> began a solo career with 1978's Sterntaler. ~ John Bush, Rovi