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Can - Tago Mago CD (album) cover

TAGO MAGO

Can

 

Krautrock

3.98 | 796 ratings

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Cheesecakemouse
5 stars Essential, hypnotic, innovative, avantgarde I would argue that this is the 'Close to the Edge' of Krautrock.

This album knocked my socks off, it sounded as if it was recorded within the last ten years, not over 30 years ago.

The album starts with Paperhouse a great track to start with mellow and weird at the same time, with Damo's unusual vocals a classic song, great guitar work by Karoli, the genius of Jacki Leizbect's drumming shine.

Mushroom is a fantastic unique unconventional song very meloncholy with depressive guitar and excellent drumming, the singing adds in my opinion feeling of alienation and also mystery with its sense of ambience, all unusual in structure I think this is my favouriter track, its amazing with its weirdness how it holds together.

Oh Yeah, is where you could mistake Damo Suzucki for Thom Yorke, again excellent drumming by the "machine" Leizbect gives it a great rocking flow and atmospheric keyboards by Schmidt it has a rocking and yet cold mechanical feeling that delights the imagination great guitar wotrk by Karoli, it sounds so fresh and roar, brilliant, classic Can. Halleluwah, is a trance funk 20 minute piece a spacy groove, great and hypnotic. Aumgn and Peking O may not be listenable for the first couple of times but is infact very innovative I think some of the experimental music has the forfather of techno in it, it does has some interesting pasrts to it but its the kind of music that you wouldn't play everywhere.

Bring me Coffe or Tea, a very interesting ending piece much like the first four tracks, another winner, it has a contemplative feel to it with great keyboards and guitar..

One thing I havn't mentioned is Irmin Schinmdt's fantastic keyboard work which is very subtle but brilliant he reminds me a little bit like Tony Banks, with these nice little touches. Holgar Czuckay's bass is also essential to Can's sound.

This album is an essentail masterpiece, and should be in every prog fans collection, Krautrock may get some time getting used to but when you get get you find a massive new world of Progressive Music to be explored. Some might argue that Peking O and Augmn are tracks that prevent this album from being five star but I think they have some amazing stuff in it that any serious musician should explore to get ideas to add to his/her songwriting. Also the fact that you are paying a double album for the price of one means that you can treat these two tracks as bonus tracks, and still get the rest of a truely magnificent album. Whatever way you look at it this album is a five star winner.

Cheesecakemouse | 5/5 |

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