My first introduction to the world of Can is Holger Czukay's first solo album "Movies." It took me a decade before I heard my first proper Can album, but that is another tale. I purchased "Movies," which came out in 1979, and I immediately compared it to the more well-known album by David Byrne and Brian Eno, "My Life in the Bush of Ghosts." Both albums used found sound, such as the Byrne/Eno recordings all used vocals from other recorded sources. It's a nifty slightly experimental album, but hearing "Movies" seems to me to be the real deal. Recorded around the same time, I feel Czukay's approach was more light-hearted, with great swaps of humor, compared to the Byrne/Eno, which had a sinister quality. Both were natural groove orientated music, but I find beauty in such pieces by Czukay such as "Persian Love" that I don't find in "Bush of Ghosts."
The Czukay narrative is that he records all the jams from Can recordings, and never turns off the tape machine. He then cuts, slices, and like a film, edits the aural aspect of the work. Here he adds outside sounds/voices to the overall mix. It must be time-consuming work, because the music doesn't sound disjointed or crazed, but structured in a manner that is, of course, listenable, but also catchy. It was pop music with strong melodies but filtered through Czukay's knowledge of 20th century contemporary classical music. Stockhausen is a significant influence on Czukay, and he even studied under the great composer. A remarkable album that never sounds dated. A joy from the first cut to the last.
