Can appreciation thread

Soon over babaluma (1975) and Unlimited Edition (1976) are very good 

Definitely many Can albums are worth looking into. I've seen the fairly low majority ratings for albums like `Flow Motion', `Saw Delight' and the self titled 1979 album on here, but those are all very worthwhile albums, full of an amazing variety of ideas. Perhaps I'm a little more forgiving of them because I heard those ones before their classic albums like `Future Days', 'Tago Mago' etc.

But it's easy to understand why there may be a bit of snobbery from more traditional prog fans towards them. I guess to some, Can are too messy, noisy, schizophrenic and `weird'. Meh, their loss!

I actually wonder if the members of Can would hate being associated alongside `prog' bands?

Saw Delight is an excellent album, for what it's worth. It has the biggie - Animal Waves, Proto-trance and World elements blending together, Kraut-style. Rosko is a very funky bassist, very different from Holger's monstrous groove. Speaking of which, Holger is on fire throughout Vernal Equinox.

Terrific band, love the Tago - Ege - Future trilogy to pieces.

Can are great. The track that blew my mind on the BBC thing was Mighty Girl - what a tune. It sounds like )they have did themselves) unfinished, but I would like to add the reference Steve Hackett here. What a piece, could be something from him.

My fav pick is Flow Motion. Sweeping orchestral synths, wah guitar a la Graffiti era Page, a superb reggae groove damned if I know what's not to like here. Bit like Saw Delight and other later efforts that are not as highly regarded... why??  Same with Soon Over Babaluma is this one too much of a challenge for the Ege Bamyasi fans who stop around Future Days?

I've quite a lot of bootlegs (audience derision on one) but interesting content on all.

They're not a pop band (disco hit aside - most amusing occurrence -of all things to happen!) but once you click into these guys (guitar fans do please FFS note how good Michael Karoli IS) then their world opens up. For the record I rate Karoli on roughly the same level as Akkerman, Page, Hackett and Gilmour. Miight throw in equivalences to Latimer as well... The things is that Can are not a guitar oriented band but a sonic one (like Pink Floyd without the song structures) so don't be misled by the references . But when he does... oh boy...

Look, one of their most rated albums Tago Mago is actually not one of my favourites (subjectively speaking), Oh well too bad. never mind (it's quite superb just not one of my first picks - it may be yours, great). But if you want or are into something that is not the norm (whatever that is in prog rock) then Can's where you go. Might take a few listens (this is prog) and it might happen who knows when, but it's the sort of thing that when it does, makes you go OMFG...)

Bit like what happened when I finally got into Magma...

Soon Over Babaluma is my personal Can favourite, hell of an album!