As Kraan set about making its fifth album longtime saxophone player Alto Pappert left the band. Rather than find another sax man Hellmut Hattler and company brought in keyboardist Ingo Bischof, the guy often credited with expanding the unit’s sound and its horizons. Originally released in 1977 “Wiederhören” sees Kraan blending jazz and popular music in a way that arguably helped shape the earliest New Age acts.

Hattler’s longstanding and ongoing fascination with danceable grooves becomes apparent on “Let’s Take A Ride,” where the band sounds like Steely Dan taking a drive with Curtis Mayfield into the heart of the city, and “Just One Way,” which may or may not be a disco track in disguise. Jan Fride’s melodic sense of drumming helps propel the album to victory, even if it does seem a little more pop than power at times. Elsewhere, Peter Wolbrandt’s laid-back vocal style reminds us all of the good times supposedly going around in world discos circa1977 while more serious influences, including Frank Zappa, creep into the gorgeous, standard-esque “Rendezvous In Blue.”

“Wiederhören” may sound dated to some listeners today but it’s never anything less than the sound of a band doing its best to break new musical ground and entertain a fan base that had little choice but to love the lovely “Yaqui Yagua” and the closing title tune.

A bonus live track, “Ein Wiederhören Mit Einem Bass Solo,” closes out the album and at nearly 20 minutes it’s not a second too long.

Review by Jedd Beaudoin
August 31, 2005