"Monster Movie" is the debut studio album by Can, a German experimental rock band. Released in August 1969, the album marked the beginning of the band's distinct sound that would come to be highly influential in the world of avant-garde, experimental music.
The album consists of four tracks, the most famous of which is "You Doo Right", a 20-minute-long jam built around a single basic beat that was edited down from a six-hour-long improvisation session. Recorded at Schloss Nörvenich, a 14th-century castle near Cologne, this marked the beginning of the band’s distinctive live, improvisational approach to music.
The members of Can during this album were Holger Czukay on bass, Michael Karoli on guitar, Jaki Liebezeit on drums, and Malcolm Mooney, an African-American sculptor and singer, on vocals. An interesting fact is that "Yoo Doo Right" was the only song on the album featuring lyrics from Mooney, who exited the band due to mental health issues shortly after the album's release.
Despite not achieving significant commercial success initially, "Monster Movie" is now highly regarded for its innovative approach to music making, as it blended rock rhythms with electronic music, free jazz, and world music elements. It also set the standard for the Krautrock genre, a distinct style that emerged in Germany during late 1960s and early 1970s, which incorporated influences from psychedelic rock, electronic music, and avant-garde elements.
