Band:	Die Krupps
Album:	Too Much History
Style:	Industrial metal
Release date:	2007
A review by:	Jeff

Disc I [The Electro Years]
01. Machineries Of Joy
02. Für Einen Augenblick
03. Volle Kraft Voraus / Goldfinger
04. Gladiators
05. Der Amboss
06. Germaniac
07. Hi Tech Low Life
08. Alive
09. 5 Millionen
10. The Great Divide

Disc II [The Metal Years]
01. Metal Machine Music
02. The Dawning Of Doom
03. Crossfire
04. Fatherland
05. Bloodsuckers
06. To The Hilt
07. Isolation
08. Scent
09. Odyssey Of The Mind
10. Black Beauty White Heat
11. Ich Bin Ein Ausländer [Pop Will Eat Itself cover]
12. The Great Divide

I've never been too much into the music of Die Krupps but I have a lot of respect for this band and "Too Much History" (a new compilation with a new production) proves me that in the end, I can enjoy a lot their music. If you talk about Industrial music from Germany, everybody will talk about Rammstein or maybe Oomph! but can you tell me where those bands were when Die Krupps released their first CD "Stahlwerksinfonie" in 1981? I know it wasn't really Metal back then and the first albums of the combo were really Electro "à la sauce 80's" but the band has released also some cool Industrial Metal albums and this compilation will be a perfect way to discover the 25 years of music of this excellent band. I really hope that this CD will be like a revelation for some you, the band deserves it!

"Too Much History" is a really good compilation which nicely describes the long career of the German combo. Of course, some songs are missing etc, but if you have a look on the whole discography of Die Krupps, you'll probably understand that it was impossible to put all their best songs in two CDs only. Though at least you'll be able to listen the first musical period of the combo which is clearly influenced by the Electro of the 80's and of course the Indus Metal period that we were able to listen to on an album like "Paradise Now". If you like to listen to Industrial Metal and if you're not afraid of Electronic sounds, I'm sure that you'll enjoy a lot the songs of this compilation. The funny thing in the end is that you'll probably understand that a lot of bands (Manson, Rammstein or even Paradise Lost with its electronic period) were influenced by this combo (just listen to a song like "Fatherland" recorded in 1993 and you'll understand what I mean?) which is, sadly, not so well known by a majority of the Metalheads.

All the songs have a new production and I think that it's not a bad idea. The charm of the recordings of the 80's is maybe not here anymore but all in all it's really good too to listen to a part of the whole discography of the combo with a really good sound. You know what, the more I listen to this compilation, the more I think that this band was so Avangardist that their songs still sound modern and aren't out of date. The music of Die Krupps is not outdated and I'm sure that some of you will discover a great band through this release.

"Too Much History" is probably not a must for the old fans of the combo who probably already have all the albums of the band anyway but it's a must for all the ones who want to listen to some cool Industrial Metal and want to finally know how sound Die Krupps. The band has split up in 1997 but when you know that they're doing some "25 Anniversary" shows nowadays maybe that we will have a really nice surprise in a near future who know?