Pitchfork

Any joke about bargaining with the devil is surely tasteless: we are saddened to report that Uwe Nettelbeck, founder and overseer of krautrock legends Faust, passed away on January 17. The disheartening news arrives via a post by Faust member Jean-Hervé Peron on his website, Art-Errorist.

Peron wrote, "besides being a sharp-witted but yet charming and loving husband/father/grandfather, [Uwe] was an outstanding cook, a writer who always generated deep emotions and interest and a genius selfless music producer.

"I thank you Uwe for all you have done for our music. Faust is your work, no doubt.

"Your work will outlast all of us. May your soul rest in peace."

Nettelbeck, a producer and one-time music journalist, founded Faust in Wümme, Germany in 1971. The group was one of Virgin Records' first signings and went on to record several highly-influential albums over the next few years, including the seminal Faust and Faust IV, before disbanding in 1975. Several of the original members have since regrouped under the Faust banner to tour and record.

No further details of Nettelbeck's death are known at this point. Fellow Faust founding member Rudolf Sosna passed away in 1996.

The present incarnation of Faust-- which includes Peron, original member Werner "Zappi" Diermaier, and Ulan Bator's Amaury Cambuzat-- has a record of new material on the way in March 2007 (mixed by Colin Potter and Nurse With Wound's Steve Stapleton), as well as a DVD. Hear new song "Lass Mich" below.