The first time Can bassist Holger Czukay came to Japan in 1982, his passport received extra scrutiny. This wasn't so unusual for slightly shaggy looking, middle-aged hippies. Czukay, however, wasn't an undesirable element.
After staring, gaped-mouth, at his name, the immigration officer came from behind his desk, shook Czukay's hand and effusively welcomed him to Japan. Beneath the gray uniform and serious mien lurked a music otaku who recognized a true rock legend. The welcome for his upcoming Japan tour -- the first time he has performed live here -- should be equally warm.
At 64, Czukay could easily sit back and enjoy the adulation. When I spoke to him by phone at his home studio in Germany, however, he was surprisingly spry, despite the late hour. He was indulging his nocturnal work habits, fiddling with tracks for his new Diagnose label and his other projects. Even if Czukay had settled into obscurity after Can disbanded, Czukay's place in rock history would be assured. Though he was nominally the group's bassist, his experiments with cut-and-paste editing, tape collage and sampling prefigured everything from Portishead to Radiohead.