Einsturzende Neubauten, Damo Suzuki
Glasgow Tramway
25th April, 2007

Given his Can connections, Suzuki is the ideal artist to open for Neubauten. Putting his manifesto of free improvisation to practice by only meeting up with the musicians he’s to play with on the day of the show, the cacophonous assembly resembles a music therapy session. Damo’s set, as a result, takes the form of one long circuitous jam that occasionally threatens to break into selected themes from Can’s Tago Mago. Neubauten’s Scottish debut in a tram shed sees the inimical NU Unruh make his presence felt via the familiar battery of sundry metallic objects and a tub of Styrofoam. But Neubaten now is more about texture and tonality than unleashing extreme volume and power, and the immaculately turned-out Blixa Bargeld, in customary dark suit and bare feet – a beguiling presence – is taken aback by the warmth of the crowd’s response. “Why didn’t you make all this noise 20 years ago?” he cracks. The fact is, they never had the chance until now.