Kraftwerk
October 5th, 2015
Detroit, MI
Masonic Temple
16 Bit

Equipment: AT831a (4.7k mod) + CA-9100 (Roll of on) + Sony PCM-M10 (24/48)
Taper: RyanJ
Location: M3, Row CD, Seat 127 K (4th row, right below left stack)
Lineage: WAV > audition 3.0 (normalize to -0.1 db, convert to 16/44, fades) > CD Wave (tracking) > xACT (FLAC)


Setlist:
Pre-Show/Intro
Numbers
Computer World
It's More Fun to Compute / Home Computer
Computer Love
Pocket Calculator
Metropolis
The Man-Machine
Spacelab
The Model
Neon Lights
Autobahn
Airwaves
Intermission
News
Geiger-Counter
Radioactivity (Fukushima Version)
Electric Cafe
Tour de France 1983
Tour de France Étape 1
Tour de France Étape 2
Trans Europe Express / Metal on Metal / Abzug
Encore Break 1
The Robots
Encore Break 2
Aéro Dynamik
Planet of Visions
Boing Boom Tschak
Techno Pop
Musique Non Stop

Notes:
What can I say? This is by far the BEST Kraftwerk show I have ever attended, and probably the best audience for any Kraftwerk show, period! Detroit has always been special to Kraftwerk and Ralf has stated that Kraftwerk and Detroit have a “spiritual connection.” As Detroit Techno (and techno itself) was heavily influenced by Kraftwerk, this was almost as if it was a homecoming for the godfathers of electronic music. This performance was very special.

I had tried to record their performance 10 years ago (jeez time flies!) at the last Detroit gig, but sadly, I was unaware at the promptness of Kraftwerk starting their performance. With no openers and right when the ticket time says! So long story short, I missed a full hour of the show and taped what I could with a sour taste in my mouth. Tonight I was going to do better.. I had a 2nd row seat almost right in the middle of the floor, but I knew that this was going to be a problem with getting the best sound. I then started to look for someone who was in direct line with the stacks to see if they’d swap me seats in order to get the best audio recording possible. I told them I’d be taping and I’d give them my “better seat.” This said person, ironically, is on DIME as well! So I hope you enjoy this tape, because by switching seats, I was able to pull the best recording possible for this show. I was 4th row and directly in line with the left stack. I pointed the mics a bit more upwards and I was blown away by the sound. Literally, Kraftwerk’s sound is by far the best out there… Crisp and clean with no distortion on the bass. I left my earplugs out for this one and my ears did not fatigue. Each bass snap was like a kick to the chest, I loved it! Everything about this performance was perfect. Although the setlists have been the same throughout the US Tour, Kraftwerk played almost 2.5 hours! I don’t know if that had to do with playing in Detroit. But I want to think so.

Prior to the encore, everyone was sitting in their seats. I think this had to do with not knowing what they should do (to sit or stand) while viewing the performance. Once the curtain came up for “The Robots,” no one was sitting. People moved up into the aisles dancing. It was a sight. Ralf even gave a few smiles here and there! In terms of crowd, this was the loudest Kraftwerk concert I had been to. It was just a fantastic night, then ended the night at Juan Atkins, Kevin Saunderson, and Derrick May at MOCAD for the Kraftwerk afterparty until 2 am. All the members of Kraftwerk did make an appearance there, which was really cool! All in all, just a great day to celebrate Kraftwerk and Detroit techno.

In terms of recording, I am pretty pleased with the outcome. You can hear a sample below. Enjoy the recording if you grab it!