Pocket Calculator - Kraftwerk

Today was the last day of the college term so I had three students for one of my classes and six for the other. It made the day easy for me, but it will just make things more hectic after the holidays for the students.

In the half hour between the classes I had to nip to the materials shop to buy the subject of today?s blip. Thankfully the prices are good in there so it only cost me 55 pence. Then it was a trip back to the light table in the photography department for a place to shoot, job done. Sadly this one doesn't play a little melody.

Only one more day of random tunes now, I'm sure I'll end up being at a dead loss for stuff to blip when I'm done.

Today?s track is the first Kraftwerk track I have a memory of hearing. It was THE big track at either the primary five or primary six disco when I was at school. Robotics was the big dance craze at the time and this track seemed to be the robotic dancing anthem, at least at my school anyway. As soon as it came on the entire dance floor was filled with bad mime robots. I always had a soft spot for Kraftwerk after that. This shot, as well as being homage to Kraftwerk, is also homage to that period in my life where the first two numbers you put into a digital calculator were 5814 and 58008. I think only Scottish, or possibly even Edinburgh, people might get the significance of the first number though.

I remember being gutted when I didn't have the cash to go and see them in 1991 when they played at the Edinburgh Playhouse. I thought after that I'd not get another chance to see them. Fortunately I finally got to see them live at the Carling Academy in Glasgow in 2004 which was attended by at least 2 other blippers that I'm aware of. We almost didn't go due to money again but in the end there was no way I was missing it. And what a show they put on. The only disappointment was that despite doing a really dancey set not many folk danced. Me and a friend were getting stared at like we were abnormal (well more abnormal) for having the audacity to dance at the gig.

there's loads more I could say about Kraftwerk including going into their classical training or how Wolfgang Flur was hugely influential in shaping their sound yet got shafted by Ralph and Florien, but if I'm not careful I'll end up with an essay rather than a blip, so here's the live version of the track from that 2004 tour.