Witthüser & Westrupp
Bauer Plath

The melancholic duo composed of Walter Westrupp and Bernd Witthüser belongs to the German folk-rock scene of the miraculous '70s; unlike other German bands dedicated to this genre (Ougenweide, Hölderlin, Schmetterlinge, etc...), their records easily crossed national boundaries to end up on turntables around the world, even though their entire repertoire is strictly sung in German. Both multi-instrumentalists, highly skilled especially with acoustic guitars, lack the distinctly baroque talent and the "progressive" deviation of more carefree and sunny bands like Ougenweide; what makes them unique is the skillful transformation of folk music through various contaminations and difficult-to-define stylistic innovations. Some have spoken of "cosmic-folk", others of "cosmic music", certainly the fact that they were the precursors of a new genre that ranges from the acid folk of Bröselmaschine to the space-ambient acoustics of Emtidi, up to the visionary electroacoustic experiments of the supergroup Cosmic Jokers (including albums under the name Sergius Golowin and Walter Wegmüller).

These two shady characters began collaborating in June 1969, first in Witthüser's apartment in Essen and then in a studio in Berlin (March 1970) under the protective wing of producer Peter Meisel for the compilation of the album "Lieder von Vampiren, Nonnen und Toten", a work macabre in references, satirical in content, slightly politicized, and still firmly tied to the pre-war German cultural repertoire. The musical instrumentation they boast of using is vast and includes, besides the genre's classics: ukulele, zither, guitars, harmonica, drums, winds, chromatic accordion; also common household items like "iron board". After this first collaboration, Walter Westrupp bonds with Rolf-Ulrich Kaiser (they have a fairly similar vision of society, regarding rampant banality and tyrant consumerism) and the duo comes under the artistic control of the well-known producer. Already from the second album (Trips & Träume), considered by knowledgeable critics as their best recording proposal, folk becomes ethereal, contaminated by blues, ethnic music, and hypnotic and abstract sounds created with keyboards and Mellotron. This is followed by "Der Jesus Pilz, Musik vom Evangelium" inspired as much by the psychedelic worldview hypothesized by the sketchy Timothy Leary as by the heretical literary work of John Marco Allegro. However, I have decided to review their penultimate album (last recorded in the studio), titled Bauer Plath, because the knowledgeable critics have considered and classified it as the worst among the duo's five albums; personally, I find it to be a complete, exciting, stimulating, thoroughly enjoyable, extremely original work with a strong iconoclastic charge.

Bauer Plath was released in 1972 also produced by the good Kaiser; it is to be noted that Witthüser and Westrupp are the composers of all the tracks but are assisted in performances by other external musicians, and it is perhaps for this reason that the music now seems more complete and better arranged, living off influences from both the progressive of Wallenstein by Jürgen Dollase and the extravagant space diversions of co-producer Gille Lettmann (Kaiser's partner better known as "Sternenmädchen"); prominently in quadriphonic view is also the sound engineer Dieter Dierks who on this occasion plays the Mellotron creating three-dimensional strings and choirs. The tracks that immediately stand out are the two medium-length suites "Der Rat der Motten" and "Das Märchen vom Königssohn". In the first, the text with a partly bucolic and rustic flavor, partly nocturnal and esoteric, is accompanied by a graceful introduction entirely acoustic; the accordion outlines a new harmony while the voice enunciates a proclamation, keyboards (organ and synthesizer) gradually rise and the music becomes sophisticated in the rhythmic flow of its niches that seem only at first listen linear, in reality it is a work in crescendo towards an accelerated and almost symphonic peak. Beautiful!!! and it matters little if the meaning of the words often escapes, the sounds guide the listener to a distant, arcane, and fairy-tale place. In the second, all the stylistic traits to come are enunciated, especially in Kaiser productions reserved for Golowin (Lord Krishna von Goloka) and Wegmüller (Tarot); the title seems almost a play on words, a tribute to Kaiser himself, Witthüser tells of visions, fairies, and a King. Sad and vaguely nostalgic melodies are created with melodic guitar and organ arpeggios, electronic effects, and synthetic choirs; the voice continues to recite in this ancestral ascent until a merry interlude breaks the poignant prayer. In closing, it resumes the moving chant of the beginning with a decidedly more marked tone thanks to the massive use of well-measured piano and synthesized sounds that create textures between space-stamped ambient music and sacred music. The other tracks, while retaining the bitter (Vision 1), sweet (Zu den Jahreszeiten), sensual (Die Schlüsselblume), and "rustic" (Bauer Plath) atmosphere, can more easily be likened to a classic folk music created, however, by post-nuclear troubadours ready to engage not only with guitars, vibraphones, percussion, harmonium, ethnic flutes, etc., but also and especially with modern instrumentation like electric bass, electric guitar, and especially electronic keyboards. It is quite challenging to find correlations with other non-German folk-rock groups, any attempt soon proves futile; Witthüser and Westrupp remain today one of the most interesting formations, in my opinion, among those born across the early '70s, and conveniently pushed into the krautrock pot.

The duo, still awaiting full recognition from specialized progressive rock and old underground critics, disbanded in 1973 after several concerts in Koblenz. Walter Westrupp (still active today) returned to skiffle music, while Berhard Witthüser, after forming the "musico-treatrante" duo Otto & Barnelli (see some old shows conducted by Renzo Arbore for Italy) returned to properly make folk music, especially during costume events in his dear and beloved Germany.