Krautrock Album Database

Necronomicon were formed in 1971 in Aachen, the Western part of Germany near the Belgium and Netherlands border. They took their name from the infamous H.P. Lovecraft novel. The group played had a unique progressive rock sound which mixed of classic, jazz, folk, and rock with 'Polyphonic' vocals (as described by the band back in 1973). The music is full of garage-like distorted guitar, 'cheesy' organ and political awareness lyrics. Although the band only survived for two years and managed to record 1 album, their legacy lives on to this day. Their only album 'Tips Zum Selbstmord' (How to commit suicide), recorded in 1972, is quite possibly the most sought after German record for collectors and is valued around $1000! It was originally released with a multi-fold-out cover in the shape of a cross in a print of only 500!

Albums

Tips Zum Selbstmord 1972

Tips Zum Selbstmord (Best Prehodi 1972)

Album Legnth: 45.08

Genre: Progressive Rock

Best Song: 'Requiem Der Natur' and 'Requiem Vom Ende'

Release Info: 1991 CD Reissue Little Wing

Tracks:

1. Prolog 7.32
2. Requiem Der Natur 10.49
3. Tips Zum Selbstmord 4.46
4. Die Stadt 7.18
5. In Memoriam 6.57
6. Requiem Vom Ende 7.46

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Overview:

The six songs on this album range from great to weak. The first track, 'Prolog' begins with cheesy-babbling vocals which one would expect to hear on a Grobschnitt album followed by a guitar solo from the abyss with the reverb cranked to 11! The rest of the song is a typical heavy-progressive rocker with rough production and cheesy organ, one of the weaker tracks on the album. 'Requiem Der Natur', the longest and strongest cut on the record, starts with echoes and organ noises followed by a beautiful ballad-like accoustic guitar complete with lyrics on how man represses the beauty of nature. The track slowly evolves into a sinister riff led by heavy guitar and weird choruses. Another break brings a little bluesy riff with guitar, organ and bass solos, which gets a little Amon Düül II-like in the end. Getting quiet again, the track reprises the sinister riff from the second part, with even more chorus and guitar-freak out in the end. 'Tips Zum Selbstmord' is a 'Floh De Cologne'-like rocker complete with high pitched vocal scream predating Iron Maiden. Again, the lyrics in this track deal with ecological problems. 'Die Stadt' opens with accoustic guitar and tells of millions of people who are imprisoned in their concrete buildings. The lyrics are half sung and half narrated (reminding me of the vocals on Gaa's 'Uranus'). 'In Memoriam' should have been entitled 'Percent', for it basically entails a leftist political rant about percentages of people living in misery. "Sixteen-percent of the world population use up eighty-percent of consumer goods. Fifty-percent are disposed of in North America. etc. etc." 'Requiem vom Ende' is the end of the story, or the result of the lyrical content of the previous 5 songs: The End of all time. The song has the most sinister atmosphere of all 6 songs and the content is much more evident when you understand German lyrics. Musically it's the most attractive songs to me (DJM).

"Riesige schwarze Wolken hängen über uns"
(big black clouds hanging above us)
"Seit Monaten scheint die Sonne nicht mehr"
(the sun doesn't shine for month)
"Die Menschen liegen auf der Erde im Dreck"
(all people are lying on the ground in the dirt)
"Manche beten, manche schreien"
(some pray, some cry)
"Alle sterben"
(all are dying)

"Sie fühlen das alles Leben zuende geht"
(They feel all life going to end)
"Sie versuchten den Untergang aufzuhalten, es war zu spät"
(They tried to stop the fall, it were too late)
"Sie hatten keine Zeit gehabt ein wenig nachzudenken, über die Gefahren des Fortschritts"
(They did not have time to think, about the dangers of the progress)
"Auf ihrer herrlichen Welt gibt es nichts grünes mehr"
(there is no green on their wonderful world anymore)
"die letzten fressen den Dreck, denn anderes gibt es nicht"
(the last people are eating the dirt, there's nothing)
"Die Chancen des Fortschritts waren zu hoch, doch Ihre Überlegenschancen klein"
(the chances of progress were too high, but their life-chances too small)
"Sie verrecken"
(they perish)

"das Ende ist da"
(the end is there)
"Es gibt kein Leben mehr"
(there's no more life)
"Die Zeituhr schlägt, direkt zum nichts"
(the time tends towards nothing)
"gewaltige Explosionen erschüttern die Erde, um die Reste zu zerstören"
(enormous explosions shake the earth, in order to destroy the remainders)
"Damit es nicht nach Verwesung stinkt"
(So that it doesn't stink after decay)
(Review contributed by Dirk Jan Mueller) [3/5 Doug]

Musicians:

Walter Sturm - Guitar, Vocals
Norbert Breuer - Guitar, Vocals
Harald Bernhard - Drums
Bernhard Hocks - Bass, Vocals
Fistus Dickmann - Organ, Synth, Vocals