Radio-Activity  by Kraftwerk

Radio-Activity is the fifth album by the German band Kraftwerk and was released in 1975. The German pioneers of electronic music continue to build their legend here step-by-step. The album was recorded at the Kling Klang studios owned by Kraftwerk.

The idea for the album's title as well as for its entire concept was born in the minds of its creators during their tour in the United States of America the previous year in order to promote their music there. Radio-Activity was used as a title due to its dual meaning. On one hand, it was a clear reference to radioactivity and its use, and on the other hand, there was the concept of radio and its operation, as Kraftwerk gave countless radio interviews in the U.S. during that period. The title track, Radio-Activity, was the album's single and became one of Kraftwerk's most iconic songs. In 1991, in the collection The Mix, Kraftwerk changed the entire context of the song, both musically—as a techno beat dominates—but mainly lyrically, as the song starts with the phrase Chernobyl, Harrisburg, Sellafield, Hiroshima, areas where radioactivity has brought utter devastation.

Radio-Activity and its impact at the time of its release was not particularly high. The French were those who honored it more than the Germans. In France, it reached No.1 and sold 100,000 copies. In the U.S., it reached as far as No.140 on the Billboard.