Damo Suzuki

Damo Suzuki
Damo Suzuki singing "Paperhouse" during a 1971 appearance with Can on Beat Club
Background information
Birth name	Kenji "Damo" Suzuki
Origin	Japan
Genre(s)	Krautrock
Occupation(s)	Vocalist Musician
Instrument(s)	Guitar Vocals
Associated acts	Can
Website	http://www.damosuzuki.de/

Kenji Suzuki (鈴木健二, Suzuki Kenji^?, born January 16, 1950, in Japan), popularly nicknamed Damo Suzuki (ダモ鈴木), is a singer probably best known for his membership in German krautrock group Can.

Biography

Suzuki spent the late 1960s wandering around Europe, often busking, during which time he would only have been a teenager. ^[1]

When Malcolm Mooney left Can after recording their first album Monster Movie, Holger Czukay and Jaki Liebezeit encountered Suzuki singing on a street in Munich, Germany whilst the two were sitting outside at a street café. They invited him to join the group, and he did, performing with them that evening.^[2]

Suzuki was with Can from 1970 to 1973, recording a number of well-regarded albums such as Tago Mago and Ege Bamyasi. His freeform, often improvised lyrics, sung in no one particular language^[2] gelled with Can's rolling, psychedelic sound.

Suzuki converted to the Jehovah's Witness^[2] faith when he married his German girlfriend, who was also a Jehovah's Witness, after the release of the album Future Days, and retired from music in 1974.

He returned to music in 1983, and currently leads what is known as Damo Suzuki's Network - as he tours, he performs live improvisational music with various local musicians (so-called "Sound Carriers" ^[3]) from around the world, thus building up a 'network' of musicians that he has and can collaborate with.

Among the musicians in his live shows have been Michael Karoli and Jaki Liebezeit of Can, Mani Neumeier of Guru Guru, Dustin Donaldson of I Am Spoonbender, Cul De Sac, Passierzettel, The Early Years, The Bees, Do Make Say Think, Broken Social Scene, Acid Mothers Temple, The Sandells, the Omar Rodriguez-Lopez Quintet (with whom he has recorded the 2007 EP Please Heat This Eventually), The Skull Defekts, Edmund Ammendola and Dave Williams of Augie March, Gordon J Watson & Simon Doling of Terminal Cheesecake, Gary Jeff of God, Karl Asa of J>A>W>, Hamish Black and many, many others.^[3]

Trivia

• The Fall's 1985 album This Nation's Saving Grace features a song "I Am Damo Suzuki," inspired by and dedicated to the singer. ^[4]
• The rock band The Mooney Suzuki takes its name from Damo Suzuki and Can's earlier vocalist Malcolm Mooney. ^[5]

Discography

Damo Suzuki is present on the following albums:

• Can Soundtracks 1970
• Can Tago Mago 1971
• Can Ege Bamyasi 1972
• Can Future Days 1973
• Can Unlimited Edition 1976 (compilation)
• Dunkelziffer In The Night 1984
• Dunkelziffer III 1986
• Dunkelziffer Live 1985 1997
• Damo Suzuki's Network Tokyo On Air West 30.04.97 1997
• Damo Suzuki's Network Tokyo On Air West 02.05.97 1997
• Damo Suzuki's Network Osaka Muse Hall 04.05.97 1997
• Damo Suzuki Band V.E.R.N.I.S.S.A.G.E. 1998
• Damo Suzuki Band P.R.O.M.I.S.E. (7CD Box) 1998
• Damo Suzuki's Network Seattle 1999
• Damo Suzuki's Network Odyssey 2000
• Damo Suzuki's Network JPN ULTD Vol.1 2000
• Damo Suzuki's Network Metaphysical Transfer 2001
• Damo Suzuki's Network JPN ULTD Vol.2 2002
• Damo Suzuki's Network Hollyaris 2005 (2CD)
• Damo Suzuki's Network 3 Dead People After The Performance 2005
• Damo Suzuki and Now The London Evening News 2006 (CD)
• Omar Rodriguez-Lopez Please Heat This Eventually 2007

Notes

External links

• Official Site
• Interview with Spike Magazine

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