Rocktrospectiva: The Futuristic "Computer World" Turns 45

Released on 11 May 1981 "Computer World" was the 8th., studio album by German electronic band Kraftwerk, the album spawned four singles "Pocket Calculator", "Computer Love" which was a No. 1 in the UK, "Numbers" & "Computer World". 

The album themed around computer technology and its rise within society. In keeping with the album's concept, Kraftwerk showcased their music on an ambitious world tour. As was the case with the two previous albums, Computer World was released in both German- and English-language editions. 

 

According to Ralf Hütter the band's mastermind: "We live in a computer world, so we made a song about it." Computer World has been described as a futuristic conceptual work that predicts the presence of computer technology in everyday life. Featuring themes such as home computers and digital communication, the album has been seen as both a celebration of computer technology as well as a warning about its potential to exert power on society with social control and digital surveillance. Despite its theme, the production of the album was completely analogue and did not involve any computer technology.

Even the cover album stick to that concept by showing a computer terminal displaying the heads of the four band members. The inner sleeve artwork, created by Emil Schult and photographed by Günter Fröhling, depicts four slightly robotic-looking mannequins (representing the band members engaged in studio activities: performing, recording, mixing), similar to the artwork of the previous album, The Man-Machine, also created by Fröhling. In two photos, the mannequin representing Karl Bartos is seen playing a Stylophone, an instrument which is featured on the track "Pocket Calculator".

The album peaked at No. 15 on the UK Albums Chart. The track "Computer Love" was released as a seven-inch single in the UK in June 1981, backed with "The Model", from the group's previous album The Man-Machine. The single reached No. 36 in the charts. In December 1981 the two songs were reissued as a double A-side twelve-inch single, and reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in early February 1982, although "The Model" received the most airplay. "Pocket Calculator" was released as a seven-inch single in the USA by Warner Brothers in 1981, pressed on a fluorescent yellow/lime vinyl matching the color of the album cover. The flip side featured the Japanese version of "Pocket Calculator", "Dentaku". "Pocket Calculator" charted at No. 38 in the UK Singles Chart.

The album was ranked No. 2 for the 1981 final countdown by NME, however some other contemporary critics were unimpressed and described the content as "predictable" and "gimmicky" and not the presumed step forward by the group.

Even thought Computer World maintains a distinct influence over subsequent releases across a multitude of genres; this influence is particularly noticeable in early and contemporary hip-hop and rap. In 1982, American DJ and rapper Afrika Bambaataa wrote the song "Planet Rock" and recorded chords inspired from Trans-Europe Express. The song's lyrics also included the Japanese number counting "Ichi Ni San Shi" from Kraftwerk's "Numbers".

Cybotron's 1983 release "Clear", from the album Enter, contains multiple auditory elements of Computer World: the musical refrain closely resembles parts of "Home Computer" and "It's More Fun to Compute"; additionally, the track contains musical allusions to other Kraftwerk tracks.

Señor Coconut y su Conjunto, an electronic project of German musician Uwe Schmidt which initially covered Kraftwerk's songs, published a merengue-styled version of "It's More Fun to Compute" on their first LP El Baile Alemán, wrongly labeled as "Homecomputer" on the sleeve. La Roux used the main riff from "Computer Love" in their 2009 song "I'm Not Your Toy" from their self-titled debut album. "Home Computer" is used as background music in the Young Sheldon episode "A Computer, a Plastic Pony, and a Case of Beer".

LCD Soundsystem took "Home Computer" throughout the track Disco Infiltrator. Neil Young's 1983 electronic album Trans was influenced by Computer World.

Computer World Track List:  

 

1. Computer World (Computerwelt)

2. Pocker Calculator (Taschenrechner) 

3. Numbers (Nummern)

4. Computer World 2 (Computerwelt 2)

5. Computer Love (Computer Liebe)

6. Home Computer (Heimcomputer)

7. It's More Fun To Compute