This album reminds of Tin Drum by Japan. Here are some parallels:
*They were both released in 1981.
*S/T is sung in Japanese (I speak Japanese, very poorly considering how long I lived there, and could pick some words here and there, my listening comprehension is worse than my speaking) and the other band is named Japan.
* They have a similar quirky sound, imo.
* The author of the great novel, The Tin Drum, Gunter Grass, lived in Germany. Can is obviously Krautrock.
OK enough of that. If you like this, you may go in for another Japanese band, the more guitar driven female psychedelic Angel In Heacy Syrup. I would guess Ange In's vocals were influenced by Phew.
ANGEL IN HEAVY SYRUP on Myspace Music - Free Streaming MP3s, Pictures & Music Downloads
Now about this record specifically, I'm sure this is music that could continue growing on you for years but that's not to say that I don't have a favorable initial impression. I defintely do. My favorite track on the album is Dream with the spare piano and spacey sound effects. This alone probably puts it into a higher leaque than the other stuff I've mentioned. And just by virtue of the fact that the guys from Can are involved demands serious respect, obviously. This music might actually be a little too tonal for me to consider really avant garde, if that matters. As my Japan, comparison suggests, it feels more new age than no wave. But time can be tricky when looking back 30 years. And sorry if my comments are a bit non sequitur, but on to the texture of this music. I love it. The backgrounds are super cool and the weird Japanese vocals on top of it have a cool disconnected ambiance that throws the listener off but intrigues and pleases as well. All in all, I think this was a great recommendation and I am glad I learned about this music.