In 1995, German label Crippled Dick Hot Wax released Vampyros Lesbos, a compilation of late-'60s funky soundtrack recordings from the films of Eurosleaze maestro Jesús Jess Franco. Since that record is universally beloved (it can kickstart a decadent mood in any party or lounge where it's deployed), fans were stoked when the folks at the sporadically dormant CDHW announced they were putting out the never-before-released soundtrack to Kamasutra, a German sex-education/exploitation film from 1969.
The bad news: not only is this not another Vampyros Lesbos (very few so-hyped records are), it's not even remotely related in vibe or rhythms. The good news: Kamasutra is, in fact, a very early Can recording, credited to "Irmin Schmidt Inner Space Production."
The jams are driven by Schmidt's Orientalist keyboard noodlings and feature the unmistakable slinky guitar lines of Michael Karioli. If you don't come expecting music by which to watch Sapphic succubae in modernist discotheques, you'll be delighted with this Eastern excursion by some very accomplished hippies, from the same inner spaces that spawned George Harrison's "Wonderwall," Pink Floyd's "More," and Jerry Garcia's contributions to Zabriskie Point.
