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Rating: Kraan is a German band that has been active since the early seventies, known for their brilliant jazz-rock with a devastating funky undertone.
In 1975, the record label Speigelei released their fourth effort (reissued by EMI in 2000), a live album recorded in Berlin the previous year, simply called "Kraan Live". It is most likely the group's most representative work, as it serves as a container of all the kaleidoscopic facets that have always distinguished the sound of the German combo. These are centered around instrumental improvisation (a beloved aspect of the krautrock era), with each track lasting more than ten minutes, allowing all the musicians to fully express themselves: Johannes Alto Pappert's sax, sometimes a skillful crafter of harmonious melodies, sometimes a devastating destroyer. Following the same path is Peter Wolbrandt's guitar (also a vocalist), precise and dreamy in solo parts, wild and uninhibited in alternating accompaniment. Ever-present and granite solid is Hellmut Hattler's bass, an authentic rhythmic machine. Finally, the drums of Jan Fride, distinctly of a jazz background.
The album is ideally divided into two parts, the first including the tracks "Jerk of Life" (opening), "Nam Nam", "Holiday Am Marterhorn" and the reprise of the demo recorded in 1971 "Sarah's Ritt Durch Schwarzwald". These have a strongly rhythmic structure, highlighting the cohesion of the collective and the technique of the individuals.
The second part includes: "Andy Nogger", "Andy Nogger Gutter King", "Hallo Ja Ja I Don't Know" and "Lonesome Liftboy". Very detailed pieces, with a meticulous improvisational geometry, almost liturgical at times. Special mention goes to the ending "Kraan Arabia", a track with a distinct ethnic "flavor" (very reminiscent of Xhol Caravan), which retraces the rhythmicity of the first part, establishing a sort of conceptual circularity.
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