Songs from the commune — Kraan’s autobiographical second album. Wintrup is named after the country house where Kraan lived and rehearsed communally, and much of the album is a warm, autobiographical celebration of that shared life. Released in 1973 as their second record, it finds the original quartet refining the raw jamming of their debut into something more crafted and song-shaped, without losing their adventurous spark.

The short version

Kraan’s second album, recorded at a Munich studio in late 1972 and released in June 1973 on Spiegelei; six group-composed pieces, around thirty-seven minutes. The original quartet, Peter Wolbrandt on guitar and vocals, Hellmut Hattler on bass, Johannes Pappert on alto saxophone and Jan Fride on drums, wrote and produced it all. Named after the rural home where the band lived together, it refines the debut’s blend of jazz, funk, psychedelia and Eastern flavours into sharper, more song-based writing. A key part of their classic early run, it is Kraan growing into their songwriting while keeping their playful, exploratory edge.

Songs from the commune

The album takes its name from Wintrup, the country house where Kraan lived and rehearsed together as a commune, and much of the record is openly autobiographical, its English lyrics celebrating the freedom that shared life gave them, a pointed contrast to the more conventional upbringing of their generation. Musically, Wintrup builds on the raw, jam-driven debut but pulls it into tighter focus. The songs are more crafted and riff-based, the arrangements more considered, yet the band’s core blend of blues and heavy rock, funk, psychedelia and Eastern modalities is fully intact. It is still the original four-piece, a few years before keyboards would join and reshape their sound, and it captures them at an early creative peak, confident enough to write real songs but still happy to stretch out and let each player solo.

The sound

Refined Krautrock jazz-rock, blending heavy rock, funk, psychedelia and Eastern colour with an off-kilter groove all their own. Where the debut ran on long, loose jams, Wintrup leans into sharper riffs and better-crafted songs without losing the adventurous spirit underneath. Hellmut Hattler’s fluid, singing bass remains the band’s driving force, locking in with Jan Fride’s drums and congas, while Johannes Pappert’s alto saxophone and Peter Wolbrandt’s guitar trade melodies and solos over the top. The English vocals are playful and sometimes gleefully odd, adding character rather than polish. The music shifts easily between tight, riffing rockers and relaxed, jazzy workouts, giving every member room to shine, and the result is warm, energetic and distinctly Kraan, a band refining a sound already very much their own.

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The songs

The album opens with Silver Wings, a sharp, psych-tinged rocker built on a crisp riff, and the seven-minute Mind Quake, an epic of youthful rebellion complete with a calm, mellow break in its middle. Backs is a heady jazz-rock piece that gives Pappert’s saxophone plenty of room, while Gut und richtig, meaning good and right, is an archetypal Kraan track: relaxed, playful and chanted, with intricate percussion and space for every member to solo. The title track Wintrup is an English-sung ballad about the band’s communal home, complete with a folksy midsection, and the riff-driven Jack Steam closes the album on a tighter, harder note.

Reception and legacy

Wintrup is regarded as a strong second album and part of Kraan’s classic early run, the first three records that many fans hold dearest. Admirers praise the way it consolidates and refines the debut, balancing crafted, riff-driven songs with the band’s trademark jazzy jamming, and single out Gut und richtig as a definitive Kraan performance. Its warm, autobiographical spirit gives it a distinct charm, and the musicianship, above all Hattler’s bass and Pappert’s saxophone, is consistently excellent. If it is a touch less celebrated than the breakthrough Andy Nogger that followed, it remains a beloved and rewarding record, and an essential step in the story of one of Krautrock’s most distinctive bands.

The verdict

A warm, characterful second album and a key part of Kraan’s classic run — refined jazz-rock blending heavy riffs, funk, psychedelia and Eastern colour, wrapped around an autobiographical celebration of commune life. Come to it for the sharper songwriting, the interplay of saxophone and guitar and Hellmut Hattler’s superb bass, rather than for the raw sprawl of the debut. Play Gut und richtig and Silver Wings. Then the debut for their rawest form, and Andy Nogger for the refined peak this points toward. Kraan growing into their songs — playful, adventurous and utterly their own.

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