Frumpy
Frumpy2

THE REVIEW

It is now well known that the period between the late 60s and early 70s was marked by the undisputed dominance of the United Kingdom and the United States. However, the value of that musical movement that emerged in Germany and soon coined with the (arguably somewhat derogatory) name Krautrock is equally recognized.

Essentially, within this movement there were bands dedicated either to the most avant-garde and futuristic experiments and often almost entirely emancipated from what was happening in the rest of Europe or the world, or bands that more openly took inspiration from their British cousins.

Frumpy certainly belong to this latter category. The album I am talking about is their best, characterized by a very hard and dark sound similar to that of the British contemporaries Stone the Crows. It contains 4 long tracks with abundant instrumental parts dominated by the French organist Jean-Jacques Kravetz, supported by the mainly solo contribution of the guitarist Rainer Baumann, under which the bassist Karlheinz Schott and drummer Carsten Bohn excellently perform the accompaniment work.

But what makes the difference is definitely the magnificent voice of the singer Inga Rumpf, endowed, in my opinion, with one of the most beautiful and interesting female voices of all time: with a very masculine and scratchy tone, the interpretations offered in this album are truly first-rate. The jewel in the crown of the album is the ride "how the gipsy was born" with an excellent vocal performance and an interesting instrumental part with a very Nordic sound (there is also a beautiful video on YouTube), followed by the excellent and vaguely Spanish-sounding "Take care of your illusion" and the perhaps slightly lengthy "Duty" which, however, possesses a beautiful melody.

This album was followed by another album in 1972, "By the way", which, however, failed to replicate the good levels achieved by this one, and the breakup of the group was inevitable due to a lack of interest from the public.

In conclusion, not a fundamental band in the history of German rock but nevertheless a group worth noting, especially for the beautiful voice of the singer.