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CAN

Krautrock • Germany


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Can biography
Formed in Cologne, Germany in 1968 - Disbanded in 1979 - Reunited on several occasions (1986, 1991 & 1999)

CAN is one of a few internationally known "Krautrock" groups; they are famous for their repetitive and hallucinatory sound. CAN was founded in 1968 by Jaki LIEBEZEIT, Irmin SCHMIDT and Holger CZUKAY, and in their early days they also included American singer Malcolm MOONEY or Japanese vocalist Damo SUZUKI. They transformed progressive-rock into a science. By bridging classical music, jazz music and rock music of their times, CAN accomplished the first organic study on rhythm and texture. Their hypnotic and glacial instrumental jams straddled the line between free-jazz, acid-rock and chamber music. CAN's music can be difficult to appreciate, yet their albums offer some of the best experimental rock ever recorded. Then there are always the myths, the legends and the fascination.

Here's a synopsis of most of their albums. I can recommend "Delay" through to Soon over Babaluma. "Delay" was the first album recorded although it was not released until 1981. Most of their albums are great, particularly "Monster Movie", "Soundtracks", "Tago Mago", "Future Days", and "Ege Bamyasi". After "Soon over Babaluma" I'd say forget it as CAN loose there fresh approach for which they were reknown. 1997 becomes the year where other musicians show the timeless aspect of CAN's music in the new remix album "Sacrilege". And this is the Sound of CAN in the nineties.

"Limited" and "Unlimited Edition" are a collection from 1968 to 1974. In the autumn of 1978, a double CD retrospective "Cannibalism 1" was issued on United Artists, and, for many, still stands today as the definitive CAN collection. It drew from the band's first six albums, but a tremendous sampling of songs from their essential early albums. "Cannibalism 1" is the best CD to buy to first experience the incredible music of CAN.

CAN's legacy still resounds clearly across the landscape of contemporary music. As Julian Cope concludes, "CAN will be remembered as one of the great 20th century bands. I've listened to their music for over 23 years, and I still freak out at their staying power... Every one of CAN's members is a hero, and a true star."

With due acknowledgement to Piero Scaruffi's book "A History of Rock Music" for some of the information and text quoted.

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CAN discography


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CAN top albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

3.81 | 406 ratings
Monster Movie
1969
3.83 | 340 ratings
Soundtracks
1970
3.97 | 769 ratings
Tago Mago
1971
3.96 | 538 ratings
Ege Bamyasi
1972
4.11 | 684 ratings
Future Days
1973
3.04 | 28 ratings
Limited Edition
1974
3.69 | 257 ratings
Soon over Babaluma
1974
3.52 | 166 ratings
Landed
1975
3.61 | 77 ratings
Unlimited Edition
1976
3.00 | 137 ratings
Flow Motion
1976
3.25 | 134 ratings
Saw Delight
1977
2.45 | 100 ratings
Out Of Reach
1978
2.70 | 101 ratings
Can [Aka: Inner Space]
1978
3.63 | 168 ratings
Delay 1968
1981
3.00 | 88 ratings
Rite Time
1989

CAN Live Albums (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

4.19 | 61 ratings
The Peel Sessions
1995
4.09 | 43 ratings
Box Music (Live 1971-1977)
1999
3.63 | 22 ratings
Live in Stuttgart 1975
2021
3.57 | 6 ratings
Live In Brighton 1975
2021
3.60 | 5 ratings
Live in Cuxhaven 1976
2022
4.75 | 4 ratings
Live in Paris 1973
2024

CAN Videos (DVD, Blu-ray, VHS etc)

4.03 | 34 ratings
Can
2005

CAN Boxset & Compilations (CD, LP, MC, SACD, DVD-A, Digital Media Download)

4.50 | 2 ratings
The Classic German Rock Scene
1975
4.08 | 3 ratings
Opener
1976
3.08 | 6 ratings
Cannibalism
1978
2.95 | 19 ratings
Cannibalism 1
1978
3.00 | 2 ratings
InCANdescence
1981
3.75 | 4 ratings
Onlyou
1982
4.20 | 11 ratings
Cannibalism 2
1990
4.58 | 29 ratings
Can Anthology
1994
3.33 | 6 ratings
Cannibalism 3
1994
3.03 | 20 ratings
Sacrilege
1997
3.00 | 5 ratings
Inner Space / Out of Reach
1998
2.29 | 5 ratings
Box (Compilation)
1999
4.50 | 2 ratings
The Legendary Can
1999
4.06 | 70 ratings
The Lost Tapes
2012
3.00 | 2 ratings
Can
2013
3.82 | 11 ratings
The Singles
2017

CAN Official Singles, EPs, Fan Club & Promo (CD, EP/LP, MC, Digital Media Download)

3.00 | 3 ratings
Soul Desert
1969
3.80 | 5 ratings
Turtles Have Short Legs
1971
4.20 | 5 ratings
Vitamin C
1972
3.67 | 3 ratings
I'm So Green
1972
3.31 | 10 ratings
Spoon
1972
3.60 | 5 ratings
Moonshake
1973
3.50 | 2 ratings
Big Hit
1973
3.75 | 4 ratings
Dizzy Dizzy
1974
2.00 | 2 ratings
Hunters And Collectors
1975
2.26 | 4 ratings
Silent Night
1976
3.33 | 3 ratings
I Want More
1976
3.50 | 2 ratings
Don't Say No
1977
2.50 | 2 ratings
Can-Can
1978
3.50 | 2 ratings
Spoon / Silent Night
1980
3.00 | 3 ratings
I Want More
1981
3.50 | 2 ratings
Moonshake
1983
2.33 | 3 ratings
Hoolah Hoolah
1990
2.00 | 2 ratings
Sacrilege
1997
2.00 | 1 ratings
The Remixes
1997
3.50 | 2 ratings
I Want More
2006

CAN Reviews


Showing last 10 reviews only
 Live in Stuttgart 1975 by CAN album cover Live, 2021
3.63 | 22 ratings

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Live in Stuttgart 1975
Can Krautrock

Review by Mellotron Storm
Prog Reviewer

3 stars 3.5 stars. This was the first of the live bootleg recordings that CAN released in 2021. And of the three they have released so far I feel this is easily the best one. Irmin Schmidt went through many hours of music that fan Andrew Hall had recorded following the band around for years. Material from dozens of concerts and the music for each show was different because these guys just like to improvise. Sound quality is okay, a little muddy as you would expect given the way it was recorded. All spruced up though in the studio.

This show was recorded live Halloween night in 1975. And like the "Brighton" release that follows we get two discs worth a total of 90 minutes. Here though we have 70 minutes on disc one and 20 minutes on that second disc. The third in the series called "Cuxhaven" is under 30 minutes and has drawn a lot of complaints for being so short.

The third and final track on disc one is 36 minutes long and the highlight for me. The way they get experimental, the way the tempo speeds up for a while is fun. It turns spacey late followed by a driving rhythm. So good! The second track on disc one at 14 minutes is also a favourite, sort of trippy and light early but ending in an intense fashion with some killer drum work. There's two tracks on disc two and the opener is the one I like of them. There's an uplifting vibe here for some reason as the guitar grinds away over top. It does seem like a jumbled mess to end it with the muddy sound not helping.

Maybe I'm being too hard on this for the sound quality and the fact these are improvs. I'm just not that big on improvs let alone 90 minutes worth, but if this sounded like the live albums of today I think I'm going 4 stars. When it comes to Krautrock CAN, AMON DUUL II and AGITATION FREE contributed most to my best of Krautrock list. This is the one I'd check out first if your interested in this live series.

 Live In Brighton 1975 by CAN album cover Live, 2021
3.57 | 6 ratings

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Live In Brighton 1975
Can Krautrock

Review by Mellotron Storm
Prog Reviewer

3 stars I consider myself a pretty big fan of CAN with those first five studio albums from 1968 to 1972 being my favourite period of their music. I'm counting "Delay '68" which is archival as the first. So I was really on the fence about picking this one up considering it's live material from 1975. This was actually a learning experience because CAN in the studio I found out are very different from CAN playing live. So what we have here are two discs of improvs that were never played previously or afterwards. While the sound quality isn't bad it is muddy even affecting me hearing certain instruments at times. It's a far cry from the sound quality of live music today but that is expected. Recorded by a fan it is much better than you might expect but when I rate as a fan the sound quality is important to that rating.

In the liner notes Irmin Schmidt relates how Jimi Hendrix's "Star Spangled Banner" performance at Woodstock changed his attitude to making music. "It was like an orchestral painting, only solo on one guitar, that really stirred me at the time and had a big influence. It's action painting. It's very expressive, emotional and full of a certain kind of expression. That's what I was after, and what fascinated me in Jimi Hendrix, because what he does there, in one fell stroke, is create a new instrument. That's what you as a composer try to aspire to." And speaking of the liner notes one of my favourite things about this release are the black and white pictures of the band members, just so well done.

I had a hard time with the first disc as we get four tracks over 47 plus minutes. There's quite a bit of sparse music on this disc where it's quiet and usually that's at the beginning of the improv. Guitar, organ and drums are mostly standing out once they get going. I do like how experimental the final track is on disc one. Disc two is three tracks over 43 plus minutes and in my opinion a more enjoyable listen as we get some fire here and there. They continue to start slow with sparse sounds but yes this is where we get some passion. This just isn't a 4 star recording for me. "The Lost Tapes" blows this out of the water on a number of levels but I know the fanboys will be eating this one up.

 Flow Motion by CAN album cover Studio Album, 1976
3.00 | 137 ratings

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Flow Motion
Can Krautrock

Review by Boi_da_boi_124

4 stars Review #133!

Crazy, wacky, intense, yet chill, delicious, nutritious, malicious reggae rock. But it is Can, so it is brought to the threshold and pushed past it. When you think a ten minute guitar solo (the title track) is at its peak, it goes further, up and beyond. This album is magical. Not in the crazy, dissonant, nasty, disturbing way that Can usually is, but in a chill, lax, and easy way that is not executed the same in any other album in Can's discography. 'I Want More' is the most commercial Can ever got (and still surprisingly good!), Cascade Waltz is just some trippy, psychedelic five-minute reggae groove, "Laugh 'Till You Cry" is a Can-ified cruise-ship ditty, '...And More' is a bass- heavy reprise of the first track, 'Babylonian Pearl is a funky and relaxed jam with nothing special with it apart from the fact that it is Can who made it, 'Smoke' is a heavy new installment to the EFS franchise, and the title track is just a pure Can masterpiece. It holds up to some of the best later Can songs, like 'Vernal Equinox', 'Theif', and 'Unfinished'. Overall, a great Can album which doesn't fall nearly as short as it gets shamed for. Solid, yet fluid and chewable at the same time. Prog on.

 Opener by CAN album cover Boxset/Compilation, 1976
4.08 | 3 ratings

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Opener
Can Krautrock

Review by Boi_da_boi_124

4 stars Review #89!

Can's compilation 'Opener' holds some of their most popular songs from right around the Suzuki era. This is an amazing collection of tracks, and I love that Can did not shorten one of them. The album starts off with 'Dizzy Dizzy', originally on 'Soon Over Babaluma'. This is my favorite song on that album. Then is 'Moonshake', the Krautpop classic also found on their unanimous master album, 'Future Days'. This song is so freaking amazing I can barely hold it in. The random sound effect interlude, the chorus, those classic groovy Can drums, everything. The third track is 'Sing Swan Song', from 'Ege Bamyasi', undoubtedly their most commercial album from the Suzuki period. This is my second favorite song on 'Ege Bamyasi', only behind 'Pinch'. Acting as the closing track for side one is 'Come Sta, La Luna', which was the first SOB track I heard. The title caught my eye immediately. It translates to 'Eat the Moon' in Spanish. This is one of my favorite non-Suzuki Can songs. On the second side is 'Spoon', another Krautpop classic from Can. Great keyboard solo and more classic Can drumming. 'I'm So Green' is a fun little groovy track off of 'Ege Bamyasi'. Then there is 'Vitamin C', which has a special place in my heart because once I deeply disturbed a friend by playing it for them. This track is amazing and is one of my favorite Can songs of all time. Closing this compilation album is the whole holy approximate nine minutes of 'Future Days', from the album of the same name. This is actually my least favorite song on 'Future Days', but only because all three tracks are even better somehow. This is a truly great track to end one of my favorite compilations of all time. I deeply respect the unaltered song lengths, the tracks chosen to enter this album (although I would've liked something from 'Tago Mago' to be on here), and the overall fun mood of this album apart from the closer of both sides. If I were to go back to 1974, I would definitely have picked this album up at a record store and jam to it for some good fun. Can, you will always have a special place in my heart, you beautiful, beautiful, hella weird beast.

 Tago Mago by CAN album cover Studio Album, 1971
3.97 | 769 ratings

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Tago Mago
Can Krautrock

Review by Boi_da_boi_124

5 stars Review #7!

As I warn anyone willing to listen to this album: be warned: it's a hard listen. 'Tago Mago' starts with 'Paperhouse', a song with great lyrics and a guitar solo so freaking great it makes me want to cry, then moves into 'Mushroom', a somewhat groovy song that just happens to be the only song under six minutes on this album. Also has some great lyrics. 'Oh Yeah' is a largely instrumental track with some of the weirdest lyrics known to man. 'Halleluwah' occupies an entire side, and is my personal favorite Can song. I couldn't help but point out that this sounds like Cage the Elephant's 'Ain't No Rest for The Wicked' (I hope I was the first on Prog Archives to say that, I didn't care to look for it in different reviews). But then - be prepared, you must be prepared - is 'Aumgn'. I am trying my best not to spoil everything, but I won't. You have to listen to it on your own. 'Peking O' is a Kraftwerk-esque eleven-minute track featuring extended futuristic keyboard interludes and crazy jabbering, which still makes me worry about the mental health of vocalist Damo Suzuki. This song, while barely comprehensible, is what I think best embodies Can. Their fearless attitude toward innovation. This track is nonsense, and it isn't even really music, but I listen to it regularly on streaming services whenever I feel like being drifted away into another world. This carries you away to the ending song: 'Bring Me Coffee or Tea', the second shortest song on 'Tago Mago', clocking in at just under seven minutes. Very groovy and odd; a perfect end-track to such a weird album.

 Live In Brighton 1975 by CAN album cover Live, 2021
3.57 | 6 ratings

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Live In Brighton 1975
Can Krautrock

Review by kev rowland
Special Collaborator Honorary Reviewer

4 stars Back in the Seventies I must confess I was not a fan of Can and am not sure I had even heard the name, as none of my mates were into experimental Krautrock, and they continued to pass me by until about 20 years ago when I first dipped my toes in the water to see what they were all about. Needless to say, it was a revelation, but I soon realised there was a difference between Can in the studio and Can in concert, as the latter was something which took improvisation and experimentation to new levels. This is the second in a series of releases by Mute, the other two featuring Stuttgart in 1975 and Cuxhaven in 1976, and has the band back as the original quartet of Holger Czukay (bass), Irmin Schmidt (keyboards), Michael Karoli (guitar), and Jaki Liebezeit (drums).

I am sure all these tracks are based on others which appeared on albums, even if they are only influenced by them, and here the seven songs (91 minutes in length) are literally just numbered 1-9 (in German). I read one review which said to miss out the early songs altogether and go straight to 'Vier' as that is where the magic starts, and while that may be true I found the build to that was wonderful. Here was a band who were improvising on the spot, looking to each other for direction and inspiration, then travelling in that direction and bringing the audience with them. By this time they had been playing together for seven years, and it had been a couple of years and an album since the departure of Damo Suzuki, so they were again used to working as a quartet, and through the set they gradually warm up and get into the groove, finding the special place where everyone turns into trans galactic space goats where all that exists is the music and everything else just pales into no existence.

This is classic Can, captured in wonderful sound quality and one would never imagine this recording is now nearly fifty years old as it could have been from last week, except people just don't perform music like this anymore, or do they? Classic progheads, lovers of experimental music and Can aficionados need to dig this out.

 Landed by CAN album cover Studio Album, 1975
3.52 | 166 ratings

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Landed
Can Krautrock

Review by Uruk_hai

3 stars Review #200

I haven't heard this record until a couple of months ago, I saw a video of Can playing "Vernal equinox" alive and I got really amazed by that song, so I decided to give "Landed" a try, not their best record but actually a very interesting one, I have to say. Almost every Progressive Rock band had to change its style to a more commercial one in order to survive to the demands of the music industry; "Landed" was the incursion of Can in this commercial field: except for "Vernal equinox" and "Unfinished", the songs on this album are totally oriented to average Rock fans, obviously keeping a bit of their most classic style but in general terms: the songs are shorter than in any other Can album, lots of lyrics, silly and not very deep mantric riffs. The percussions in "Red hot Indians" are very folky, but that goes to the drain with the hideous sax filling the entire piece. I said this album is a very interesting one, but interesting doesn't necessarily mean good, it is interesting because of the change of musical direction the band took, but musically, this is merely acceptable.

SONG RATING: Full Moon on the highway, 3 Half-past one, 3 Hunters and collectors, 3 Vernal equinox, 4 Red hot Indians, 3 Unfinished, 4

AVERAGE: 3.33

PERCENTAGE: 66.67

ALBUM RATING: 3 stars

 Soon over Babaluma by CAN album cover Studio Album, 1974
3.69 | 257 ratings

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Soon over Babaluma
Can Krautrock

Review by Uruk_hai

4 stars Review #199

This was actually the first album of Can that I've ever heard and, back in those days, I totally fell in love with it; I used to listen to it every single day and when I finally bought my CD copy I felt as if I had found the Holy Grail but that was twelve years ago when I was just taking baby steps into the fields of Prog and I was much easier to impress. Comparing this album with the absolute masterpieces of Can ("Tago Mago", "Future days" and "Monster movie"), "Soon over babaluma" gives the feeling that something's missing, maybe it is Damo Suzuki's vocals or maybe it is a very intense jamming section.

Some of the most futuristic moments in Can's discography came from "Soon over babaluma"; the album actually feels like the soundtrack of a science fiction movie, the ambient music that the band developed in "Future days" took a darker path and the instrumental sections took even more presence. The selection of rhythms is very varied: "Come sta la luna?" for example, brings an almost tango music with Michael Karoli's violin, a very avant-garde tango anyway, since its dark atmosphere creates an interesting contrast of textures. "Splash" is a very acid instrumental piece, while "Chain reaction" explodes into a very energic sung tune that has almost a proto-punk vibe. "Dizzy Dizzy" sounds like a very underground jazz fusion band exploring the paths of darky melodies and "Quantum physics" flirts with the Electronic school of Can's paisanos Tangerine Dream.

I do not consider this an indispensable masterpiece as I used to when I first discover it and as I still do with "Tago Mago" and "Future days", but man! This is still a terrific album.

SONG RATING: Dizzy, Dizzy, 4 Come sta la luna? 4 Splash, 5 Chain reaction, 5 Quantum physics, 4

AVERAGE: 4.4

PERCENTAGE: 88

ALBUM RATING: 4 stars

 Future Days by CAN album cover Studio Album, 1973
4.11 | 684 ratings

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Future Days
Can Krautrock

Review by Uruk_hai

5 stars Review #198

When the musicians know what they're doing, very organic and minimalistic music is enough to make a masterpiece, extremely complexity is not always needed. After a very average album such as "Ege bamyasi", Can came back to the long-lengthed pieces but this time they were not full of chaotic madness as "Peking O" and "Halleluhwah", actually the music on this album is much more organic and less energic; "Future days" was the last Can album featuring Damo Suzuki but actually, his contribution to this record wasn't as crucial as he did in previous albums, actually, this record could have been entirely instrumental (and it almost is) and it would have still been great.

The opening track is the almost ambient music track "Future days", its rhythm is extremely relaxed, it could pass as music for an elevator with no problem; very calm percussions and a repetitive bass note is what it has to offer, it is a perfect example of how good a song can be with such few elements. "Spray" flirts with the most psychedelic and spacey sounds of the album, its introduction is filled with very intense percussions and keyboards, reaching the end the speed of the percussions increases and the guitar replaces keyboards with a very subtle collection of patterns; probably this is the most similar to "Tago Mago" they made on this record.

"Moonshake" is great, it is the shortest track on the album but it is also the most direct, being not a very extended piece, and with easy-to-follow lyrics, it is probably the most accessible track. The almost 20-minute closing track "Bel Air" is absolutely tremendous, the rhythm doesn't change a lot through its entireness but it really doesn't need it, the song goes and goes with a very natural flow that enerves when it needs it, and then it switches back to the calm mood, the simplicity of the piece its what gives its greatness.

SONG RATING: Future days, 5 Spray, 5 Moonshake, 4 Bel Air, 5

AVERAGE: 4.75

PERCENTAGE: 95

ALBUM RATING: 5 stars

I ranked this album #54 on my TOP 100 favorite Progressive Rock albums of all time.

 Ege Bamyasi by CAN album cover Studio Album, 1972
3.96 | 538 ratings

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Ege Bamyasi
Can Krautrock

Review by Uruk_hai

4 stars Review #197

I was nicely surprised when I found out this album was included in the most recent edition of Rolling Stone Magazine's list of 500 best albums of all time, so it was Yes' "Close to the edge" but so it was Daddy Yankee's "Barrio fino" so, as always, Rolling Stone Magazine can't be taken seriously; however, it was a nice surprise to see "Ege bamyasi" on the list, even when it is probably the last of their albums that I would include in such list.

This is not a bad record, it is important to clarify that, the songs included in "Ege bamyasi" have very nice jammings but this is not on the highest level of their creativity as "Tago Mago" was, the same amount of songs in half of the LP's tells us how brief and, I'd dare to describe as, incomplete the songs are.

Further than "Vitamin C" and "Spoon", the songs on this record are totally average, not bad but definitely not unforgettable masterpieces; the classic Krautrock patterns are present on the whole release but with a tremendous lack of experimentation. Anyway, this is not as poor as "Soundtracks" since in here the songs are full tracks. Very entertaining album but not indispensable at all.

Thanks to ProgLucky for the artist addition. and to Quinino for the last updates

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