Necronomicon

A group like Necronomicon typifies some of the mystic and magic around a lot of early 1970s Krautrock in the way they take the idealism of the late-'60s hippy era, and filter it through a Teutonic angst that has more in common with late-'70s punks and more recent movements like grunge. The title of their one and only record, Tips Zum Selbstmord (How To Commit Suicide in German), certainly seems more in step with punk's nihilism, even as it raised a few eyebrows when it came out in 1972. In early 1971 the group formed in Aachen, Germany, near the borders of both the Netherlands and Belgium. Taking their name from an H.P. Lovecraft novel, the initial group consisted of Norbert Breuer on guitar and vocals, Harald Bernhard on drums, and Walter Sturm on guitar and vocals. They soon recruited organ-and-keyboardist Fistus Dickmann and bassist Detlev Hakenbeck and constructed an elaborate live repertoire of heavy progressive rock songs with long, complex structures and arrangements. Whereas many German bands at the time sang in English, Necronomicon sang in German, and their lyrics dealt with environmental problems, air pollution, the nuclear arms race, and the suppression of women. With over-the-top acid guitar riffs and more Pink Floyd-ish psychedelic moments, the group's music was dark and powerful. By February of 1972 Bernhard Hocks had replaced Hakenbeck on bass and the group received financial support to record an album. In that month or March 1972 they entered a semi-professional studio in the Netherlands to record Tips Zum Selbstmord. The record was self-released not long after that, in a limited edition of 500 copies with an elaborate multi-paneled cover that folded out in the shape of a cross, with illustrations done by drummer Bernhard depicting nightmarish images...