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Across three decades, John Shepherd built a Nasa-style lab at his grandparents’ Michigan home to communicate with extra-terrestrials, beaming sets featuring Can, Kraftwerk and Neu! into space. Now the subject of an acclaimed film, he tells Ben Gilbert why and records an exclusive tQ mix
Few post-war musicians can match Irmin Schmidt’s creative drive, says Duncan Seaman. The veteran musician, composer and Can founder, talks about his Villa Wunderbar anthology of film music and solo work and his upcoming live shows
As Grönland reissues his collaborative albums with Holger Czukay, David Sylvian writes for The Quietus as he remembers the spirit of experimentation that he discovered in the Can studio during the 1980s. Photos by Yuka Fujii.
With the publication this weekend of Rob Young’s book All Gates Open: The Story Of Can, Sean Kitching chats to Irmin Schmidt about the development of the book, the origins of the band, and the surprising tenderness of Mark E. Smith
Sod the first few EPs, we say a band's real hidden gems are buried at the end, among the ill-advised career moves and last grasps at fading relevance. Here, tQ writers fight the corner for their favourite unloved and underrated records from the tail-end of their favourite artists' discography.
Can drummer and rhythmic innovator Jaki Liebezeit sadly died earlier this year, but the sounds and pulses he created will continue. In this Quietus Essay, John Payne takes an in-depth look at the theory behind the noise
Mr Agreeable once took a holiday in Southern Bavaria and for reasons that remain unclear has been furious at our Teutonic cousins ever since. Therefore tidings of a new book about German experimental music from the 60s and 70s broke his poached egg...
Getting stuck in to David Stubbs' more-than-just-an-index new book, Future Days: Krautrock and the Building of Modern Germany, Stewart Smith considers the unique egolessness and socio-historical peculiarities that gave rise to the enigmatic genre and Stubbs' effectiveness as guide
With both The Grid and Beyond The Wizard’s Sleeve back in action, and new memoir Strange Things Are Happening out now, Richard Norris takes Patrick Clarke through an eclectic 13 records that have defined his life in music
Following the publication of his goth chronicle and ahead of a new album with Budgie and Jacknife Lee, The Cure's founding drummer Lol Tolhurst takes Julian Marszalek through his favourite records, from Jimi Hendrix to Low via the wonders of Trout Mask Replica
Prolific drummer and collaborator Valentina Magaletti marks the release of Tomaga's finest album by telling Jennifer Lucy Allan about her favourite 13 albums, from The Cure to Miles Davis, Art Blakey, and Can to Deerhoof, This Heat and the Art Ensemble Of Chicago. Photo by Adele di Nunzio
Island-dwelling outsider musician and One More Grain brain Daniel Patrick Quinn tells us about his 13 favourite albums from Suede to Fela Kuti, Nico to Robert Wyatt and Gamelan to ELO, plus the sound of a snipe drumming, and wonders whether he'd have sexual feelings for Jeff Lynne were he a woman.
Following last year's mighty Outside The Circle album and the news that Anthroprophh will be playing this year's Desertfest, the band's leader and former Heads man Paul Allen (the hirsute gentleman on the right below) cherrypicks 13 albums from his hefty collection