Echo was the second and most ambitious album by Achim Reichel, a former beatnik (Rattles) and prog rocker (Wonderland) from Hamburg. After his debut album in 1971, he quickly became one of the key figures in the experimental movement, which was christened Krautrock by the British music press at the time, alongside bands such as Can and Tangerine Dream. In addition to Frank Dostal as co-producer and legendary producer Conny Plank as sound engineer, he was supported by his Machines – a large number of professional musicians – at the Polydor Studios in Hamburg during the recording of his second LP. The title of the album was also its programme, as echo effects, especially from Reichel's guitars, dominated the music. Layered on top of each other, they created dense networks of countless repetitive melody fragments. These were joined by all kinds of other instruments such as piano, saxophone, other wind instruments, percussion, drums and occasionally an orchestra, most of which were also echoed and distorted. Electronic gimmicks, tape recordings and various vocal interludes, such as meditative moaning, howling, wailing and sighing, profound recitations and silly, bizarre vocal gimmicks completed these extravagant and spacey soundscapes.

Released by Polydor in 1972, the double album with its experimental character naturally did not appeal to the masses in any way and therefore sold poorly. Today, it is not only one of the most influential Krautrock records ever, but is also considered an absolute cult album, mainly because there is no official reissue apart from a few bootlegs.