The man who helped give the German psychedelic rockers their driving rhythm section was found at his apartment, with the cause of death currently unknownHolger Czukay, co-founder and bassist with pioneering German rock band Can, has died aged 79. He was found by a neighbour at his apartment, converted from Can’s old studio in Weilerswist near Cologne. Czukay is also celebrated for his experiments with sampling before the advent of digital samplers, cutting up and splicing tape into recordings. He also pioneered what he called “radio painting”, using shortwave radios to record random snippets of sound and pasting them collage-style into recordings; “rhythm boxing” was his description of how he used drum machines. Can partly reformed in April without Czukay – Irmin Schmidt and Malcolm Mooney performed with the London Symphony Orchestra, Sonic Youth guitarist Thurston Moore and others as The Can Project.

Source: The Guardian September 06, 2017 08:00 UTC