Born in the beautiful German village of Berchtesgaden in 1952,
sound, music and culture have been a lifelong fascination for Karl.
He studied at the Robert Schumann Conservatory in Dusseldorf,
played at the Deutsche Oper am Rhein and was in several
experimental bands before he joined Kraftwerk for their American
Autobahn tour in 1975.
He co-composed tracks and performed with the band until 1990 and is
featured on the seminal albums Radio-Activity, Trans-Europe
Express, The Man-Machine and Computer World. Later Karl worked on
Electric Cafe (now known as Technopop) and The Mix. After leaving
Kraftwerk, he first formed the band Elektric Music, releasing two
albums (Esperanto and Electric Music), collaborated with Bernard
Sumner (New Order), Johnny Marr (The Smiths) and Andy McCluskey
(OMD), and released two critically acclaimed solo albums,
Communication and Off the Record.
Showing his versatility as a thinker and communicator, Bartos was
also guest professor in Auditory Media Design at the University of
the Arts Berlin from 2004 to 2009. In 2021, Karl Bartos was awarded
the Early Influence Award/Kraftwerk as a member of the 'classic
line-up' and inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
'Full and frank disclosure of life in the world's most influential
electronic band... Karl Bartos' enjoyable tome.' Record Collector,
4*
'A full blooded insider's account of life inside the Kling Klang
studio. This is a must read for the robots' fans.' Prog
Magazine
'Funny, cultured, detailed.' Classic Rock, 8/10
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