Necronomicon -

Necronomicon was the German Krautrock band behind the 1972 album Tips zum Selbstmord. In 1990, the album reappeared in Vier Kapitel, a four-album set with two discs of archival 1971 material and a fourth of 1974 demos.

Members: Walter Sturm (guitar, vocals, 1970-73, 1974-81, 2010-present), Norbert Breuer (guitar, vocals, 1970-76, 2010-present), Gerd Libber (bass, 1970-71, 1973-76, 2010-present), Harald Bernhard (drums), Fistus Dickmann (organ, synthesizer, vocals, 1970-73), Detlev Hakenbeck (bass, 1971-72), Bernhard Hocks (bass, vocals, 1972-73), Dieter Ose (keyboards, 1973-81), Bernd Opitz (bass, 1976-81)

Background

Necronomicon formed in Aachen, West Germany, in the summer of 1970 when guitarist–vocalist Walter Sturm and fellow guitarist–vocalist Norbert Breuer teamed with bassist Gerd Libber and drummer Harald Bernhard. They soon added organist Fistus Dickmann and adopted the name Necronomicon after the fictional grimoire (textbook of magic) in stories by American horror writer H.P Lovecraft. However, they sought to expose real-world horrors rather than evoke cosmic fiction.

Their early sets featured covers of English blues rockers (John Mayall) and post-psych acts (Pink Floyd, Deep Purple), but by late 1970 they shifted to original material with English lyrics. Detlev Hakenbeck took over on bass in 1971, followed by Bernhard Hocks in early 1972.

Tips zum Selbstmord

Necronomicon released their singular album, Tips zum Selbstmord, in 1972 on Best Prehodi, a DIY label. The title translates as “Tips for Suicide.”

The album presents a unified thematic arc with sharp instrumental interplay between lead guitarist Walter Sturm and organist Fistus Dickmann, whose respective lines interlace and diverge through dirge-paced passages and tension-filled builds. Guitarist Norbert Breuer alternates between shadowy rhythm figures and doubled leads, forming dense harmonic walls under Sturm’s solos. Dickmann shifts from subdued organ drones to piercing synth flourishes, particularly in longer pieces where layered textures dominate.

Tips zum Selbstmord unfolds as a sequence of extended pieces built on live-in-the-room tension, abrupt shifts, and exposed textures. “Prolog” opens with manic vocal play that snaps into jagged guitar figures and organ bursts, cycling through blunt riffs, wah-smeared soloing, and sudden dropouts that cut the momentum mid-stride. “Requiem der Natur” stretches further, moving from hollow electronic haze into fragile acoustic passages before expanding into massed choral blocks and a strained midsection where bass, guitar, and keys push into unstable, near-overloaded interplay. The title track accelerates the pace with biting lead guitar and sharp turns in tempo, its intensity driven by fast percussive motion and clipped stops.

“Die Stadt” pivots from loosely tuned acoustic introduction into heavier, declarative sections, then opens space for bass-led passages and collective jamming before circling back to its opening theme. “In Memoriam” leans on deliberate dissonance and unsettled harmonies, with organ washes hovering behind fractured guitar lines and elastic phrasing that stretches time. “Requiem vom Ende” closes the album through a slow-build arc, layering cavernous voices, meandering bass motion, and crashing chords into a final surge that recapitulates earlier tensions before locking into a decisive ending.

A1. “Prolog” (7:30)
A2. “Requiem der Natur” (10:49)
A3. “Tips zum Selbstmord” (4:45)

B1. “Die Stadt” (7:18)
B2. “In Memoriam” (6:56)
B3. “Requiem vom Ende” (7:47)

Necronomicon recorded Tips zum Selbstmord between March and April 1972 with engineers Franz Gielkens and Helmut Prösch. The album was produced independently for Best Prehodi and pressed by Carl Lindström GmbH. Arrangements were handled internally by the band, who also designed the packaging.

Drummer Harald Bernhard created the foldable LP sleeve, which opens into a six-panel cross, ala Brass Rock 1 by Heaven. This visual motif complements the album’s lyrical focus on ecological collapse, overpopulation, violence, and self-destruction as global suicide — a conceptual unity reinforced by the somber tone and German-language texts throughout. A large choir appears on “Requiem der Natur,” with layered alto, tenor, bass, and soprano voices recorded in a cathedral-like setting.

Postlude

In 1973, keyboardist Dieter Ose replaced Fistus Dickmann, and original bassist Gerd Libber rejoined the band. Walter Sturm briefly exited to play with Rufus Zuphall, but returned in 1974 for a newly developed program that sought to fuse political awareness with musical intricacy. Necronomicon’s own promotional literature emphasized their intent to reach listeners disengaged from war, injustice, and ecological collapse, using lyrics in German and compositions shaped by classical, jazz, folk, and rock elements. Multi-part vocal arrangements became a defining feature of their style.

The group disbanded in 1976 but quickly resumed under a new format with Sturm, Bernhard, and Ose joined by bassist Bernd Opitz. They adopted English lyrics and performed a set of concise original pieces that balanced harder rhythmic passages with softer, more contoured material. This lineup continued steadily through 1981, when the band folded again. After Dieter Ose’s sudden death in August 2007, archival live recordings of the 1970s material were compiled for the 2009 CD Strange Dreams.

Necronomicon reactivated in late 2010 with near-original personnel — Bernhard, Breuer, Libber, and Sturm — augmented by Helmut Herzog on Hammond and Mellotron emulation. Since 2013, Karl Swiontek has expanded the lineup with flute. Their modern performances preserve the through-composed density of their classic period, marked by tempo shifts, stacked guitar–organ passages, contrapuntal vocal lines, and intermittent improvisation.

Discography: