Biography
Klaus Dinger (24 March 1946 - 21 March 2008) was a musician and songwriter from Germany most famous for his contributions to the seminal Krautrock outfit, Neu!, and his invention of the Motorik beat. Less known is that he was the former percussionist and founding member of Kraftwerk. He died March 21, 2008, three days before his 62nd birthday.
Dinger emerged on the German music scene as a drummer for Kraftwerk, along with Ralf Hutter and Florian Schneider. He was brought in to replace original drummer Andreas Hohmann on Kraftwerk's debut album. Hutter temporarily left, and Michael Rother was brought in to replace him. This incarnation of the band appeared on Beat Club, which became the only official recording of this line-up. Hutter returned later that year, but by that time Dinger and Rother had decided to leave and form their own band.
In 1971, Dinger and Rother formed Neu! and quickly recorded their self-titled debut. Perhaps the most prominent feature is Dinger's signature Motorik drumming style, best showcased on the 10-minute "Hallogallo". This propulsive almost surf-like repetitious groove has had a profound influence on a huge range of artists such as David Bowie, Radiohead, Damon Albarn, Primal Scream, Stereolab and Brian Eno.
Neu! would release two more canon albums, Neu! 2 (in 1973) and Neu! '75 (in 1975), which respectively contain two of Dinger's most famous songs, "Super" and "Hero".
Dinger's most famous, successful, and acclaimed post-Neu! act would be La Düsseldorf. They would release a string of successful albums (with sales totaling over a million) in the late 70's and early 80's: La Dusseldorf, Viva, and Individuellos.
La! Neu? is a later project that Dinger headed. The name itself a reference to Neu! and La Dusseldorf. Through the mid-90s, the group released albums on Captain Trip Records, the label that also issued the "in name only" recordings Neu! 4 and Neu! '72 Live!.
Discography
with Kraftwerk
* "Kraftwerk" (1970)
with Neu!
* "Neu!" (1972)
* "Neu! 2" (1973)
* "Neu! '75" (1975)
with La Düsseldorf
* "La Düsseldorf" (1976)
* "Viva" (1978)
* "Individuellos" (1981)
* "Mon Amour" (2006)
with La! Neu?
* "Düsseldorf" (1996)
* "Zeeland" (1997)
* "Cha Cha 2000 - live in Tokyo" (1998)
* "Goldregen" (1998)
* "Year of the Tiger" (1998)
* "Live in Tokyo 1996 Vol. 2" (1999)
* "Blue (La Düsseldorf 5)" (1999)
* "Live at Kunsthalle Düsseldorf" (2001)
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