Spoon Records and Mute are delighted to announce the release of Can – The Lost Tapes, the long awaited box set of unreleased studio, soundtrack and live material.

The Lost Tapes, out on 18 June 2012, was curated by Irmin Schmidt and Daniel Miller, compiled by Irmin Schmidt and Jono Podmore, and edited by Jono Podmore.

When the legendary Can studio in Weilerswist was sold to the German Rock N Pop Museum, they bought everything, including the army mattresses that covered the walls for sound protection, and relocated it to Gronau.

Whilst dismantling the studio, master tapes were found and stored in the Spoon archive. With barely legible labeling, no one was sure what was on these until Irmin Schmidt and long time collaborator Jono Podmore started to go through over 30 hours of music.

The final cut of tracks, dating from 1968-1977, features studio material recorded at Schloss Nörvenich and Can Studio, Weilerswist with the Can line up of Holger Czukay on bass, Michael Karoli on guitars, Jaki Liebezeit on drums and Irmin Schmidt on keyboards, and on most tracks, vocals from Malcolm Mooney or Damo Suzuki.

Can was formed by ex-student of Stockhausen Irmin Schmidt, who, fired by the sounds of Jimi Hendrix and Frank Zappa abandoned his career in classic music to form a group which could utilise and transcend all boundaries of ethnic, electronic experimental and modern classical music.

A_Swan_Is_Born

Whether droning madly, spiralling into cascades of infinitely echoing vocals or kicking back with their blissed-out take on classic Americana rock, Sleepy Sun are a band that demand your attention. Formed in Santa Cruz and now based in San Francisco, this intense sextet are set to release their latest single, Sleepy Son (sic), taken from their breathtaking debut album, Embrace, in August.

Comprising Brian Tice (drums), Jack Allen (bass), Rachael Williams (vocals, haberdashery & interpretive dancing) Bret Constantino (vocals & harmonica), Evan Reiss (guitars) and Matt Holliman (guitars) – all 22 and 23, the band met in the counter-cultural hub city of Santa Cruz, California, citing “pizza, horticulture, Neil Percival Young,” as common interests. “With the forest and ocean as our back drop, we were drawn to each other as fellow musicians, friends, and lovers” they say.

Drawing musical inspiration from Black Sabbath, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Can and Creation Records, they forged their sound in intense jams, “free flowing, heady, ‘where am I?’ type jamming.”

Though they’re in the one-time home of psychedelia, it’s not San Francisco per se that influences their sound. “It comes more from Northern California itself more than any scene or city,” they say. “There truly is nowhere on Earth like our little corner of the country where the redwoods smother the ocean.”

What are you waiting for? Let’s Get Weird!

North American Tour Dates

2/26 – The New Parish – Oakland, CA

3/9 – Catalyst Atrium – Santa Cruz, CA

3/12 – Echo – Los Angeles, CA

3/13 – Bar Pink – San Diego, CA

3/14 – JDee’s Landing – Palm Springs, CA

3/17 – Emo’s Annex (IODA SXSW Day Party) – Austin, TX

3/18 – Beauty Bar (Bay Bridged SXSW Day Party) – Austin, TX

3/20 – Peckerheads (Rollingstone.com / Rhapsody SXSW Day Party) – Austin, TX

3/20 – Encore Patio at 7th & Red River (Official SXSW night showcase) – Austin, TX

3/21 – Bro Fest at Double Wide – Dallas, TX

3/22 – Replay Lounge – Lawrence, KS

3/23 – Hi Dive Club – Denver, CO

3/24 – Duffy’s Tavern – Lincoln, NE

3/28 – Broadway’s – Asheville, NC

3/29 – E.A.R.L. – Atlanta, GA

3/30 – New College of Florida – Sarasota, FL

3/31 – Propaganda – West Palm Beach, FL

4/1 – Fillmore Miami Beach at the Jackie Gleason Theater w/ Arctic Monkeys – Miami Beach, FL

4/2 – The Ritz w/ Arctic Monkeys – Tampa, FL

4/3 – Hard Rock Live w/ Arctic Monkeys – Orlando, FL

4/5 – 40 Watt Club w/ Arctic Monkeys – Athens, GA

4/6 – Disco Rodeo w/ Arctic Monkeys – Raleigh, NC

4/7 – Rams Head Live w/ Arctic Monkeys – Baltimore, MD

4/9 – Madison Theatre w/ Arctic Monkeys – Covington, KY

4/11 – The Pageant w/ Arctic Monkeys – St Louis, MO

4/12 – Liberty Hall w/ Arctic Monkeys – Lawrence, KS

4/13 – Cain’s Ballroom w/ Arctic Monkeys – Tulsa, OK

4/15 – Marquee Theater w/ Arctic Monkeys – Tempe, AZ

Whether droning madly, spiralling into cascades of infinitely echoing vocals or kicking back with their blissed-out take on classic Americana rock, Sleepy Sun are a band that demand your attention. Formed in Santa Cruz and now based in San Francisco, this intense sextet are set to release their latest single, Sleepy Son (sic), taken from their breathtaking debut album, ‘Embrace’, in August.

Comprising Brian Tice (drums), Jack Allen (bass), Rachael Williams (vocals, haberdashery & interpretive dancing) Bret Constantino (vocals & harmonica), Evan Reiss (guitars) and Matt Holliman (guitars) – all 22 and 23, the band met in the counter-cultural hub city of Santa Cruz, California, citing “pizza, horticulture, Neil Percival Young,” as common interests. “With the forest and ocean as our back drop, we were drawn to each other as fellow musicians, friends, and lovers” they say.

Drawing musical inspiration from Black Sabbath, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Can and Creation Records, they forged their sound in intense jams, “free flowing, heady, ‘where am I?’ type jamming.”

Though they’re in the one-time home of psychedelia, it’s not San Francisco per se that influences their sound. “It comes more from Northern California itself more than any scene or city,” they say. “There truly is nowhere on Earth like our little corner of the country where the redwoods smother the ocean.”

What are you waiting for? Let’s Get Weird!

New York Dates:

2/6 – Glasslands W/ Class Actress – Brooklyn

3/13 – Cameo Gallery – Brooklyn

Twin Shadow makes the sort of music that one imagines would perfectly soundtrack the premature but poetic end to an affair. Shimmering, synth-heavy arrangements underpin bittersweet modern soul songs, all of which seem to document some sort of recent or imminent loss. FRACTIONSOFONE.COM 

After a stint living in Berlin, Bowie and Kraftwerk obsessive and former band-hopper George Lewis Jr. moved back to his home base of Brooklyn and started writing affected electronic pop under the name Twin Shadow. This backstory is maybe not that unique, but Lewis’ elicitation of songs as enigmatic as “Castles In The Snow” and “Yellow Balloon”–both co-produced by Ed Banger affiliate Mickey Moonlight–certainly is. They’re like a wiser, well-adjusted alternative to glo-fi, due on a forthcoming 7-inch in March with another set to follow for Chris Taylor (of Grizzly Bear)’s Terrible Records. Yes, this dude will probably have a really good year. RCRD LBL 

This is like the soundtrack to those moments when the drugs still haven’t quite worn off; you’re still smiling broadly and glowing, but firmly rooted to the sofa. He has a single due out in March, so look out for that. It seems Brooklyn never runs out of energy, so we are looking forward to what else appears throughout 2010. THERECOMMENDER.NET

So the story sounds a little familiar. At least at first, as George Lewis Jr. recalls his 10-round bout with writer’s block, a struggle that was broken by searching the streets of Berlin for the ghosts of Bowie, Reed and Pop. Because that’s what artists do when they get tired of playing rock ’n’ roll, right? They revisit the point where the gods of glam and four-alarm guitars discovered such groove-riding Germans as Cluster, Kraftwerk and Can. 

“The whole experience of living in Berlin was very cinematic,” explains Lewis Jr., “reinforcing the idea of being in a place where you can indulge just about any fantasy, creatively and personally. What I wanted to do came out with such clarity once I got back to Brooklyn—I spit a bunch of songs out right away.” 

A couple standout recordings from those early bedroom sessions are “Yellow Balloon” and “Castles In the Snow,” which will be released as a limited 7” in March. These songs also serve as the phantasmagoric foundation for a forthcoming LP of new songs that’ll be released through Chris Taylor’s (Grizzly Bear) Terrible Records later this year. Driven by brittle drum breaks, crystallized keys, rubber-soled bass lines and galloping guitar chords, the double A-side single is a poppy but peculiar introduction to Twin Shadow. The solo project took on a life of its own last year, as Lewis Jr. found his calling amid a steady diet of laser-guided synth lines and layered loops. 

“I remember the first time someone sat me down and made me listen to an entire Kraftwerk record,” says Lewis Jr. “I think it was The Man Machine. Anyway, I freaked out over it, because it made me realize why I loved David Bowie’s Low for so many years. I mean, I still listen to Led Zeppelin at least twice a week, but I don’t want to hear someone trying to do that anymore.” 

He also doesn’t want to hold anything back after many years of bouncing between bands and exploring the tone poem side of songwriting with the Bill T Jones Dance Company and Lewis Forever, an ongoing performance art project with his three sisters. One of which is his twin, although that doesn’t quite explain the Twin Shadow name. Think of it as a movie title instead—a film adaptation of Bowie’s Berlin years, as filtered through the waking dream lens of David Lynch. 

“It’s kinda crazy how new all of this is to me,” he says. “Everything is very spontaneous. That’s the other thing I learned in Berlin—that it’s okay to change, because it’s all connected in some way. Whatever I learn today is something I’m going to apply tomorrow. The tough thing is finding some cohesion. But that’s okay. Musicians who don’t evolve can only be a part of our cultural existence for so long, you know?”

Castle