MOGWAI

1. "God Gets You Back" (6:40) quite a nice song that has a nice little cinematic opening before turning into something that takes us back to about 1990 when bands like Toad The Wet Sprocket, Trashcan Sinatras, The Pale Saints, Lush, Ride, Slowdive, and The Kitchens of Distinction were having their heyday. I can see why many listeners are extolling this as one of their favorite songs from the past year. It is definitely one of my favorites from this (quite unusual) album. (9/10)

2. "Hi Chaos" (5:24) sounds like good ole fashioned Post Rock with a rock construct (ABABCAB) instead of slow-build, cresecendo, dénouement. (8.75/10)

3. "What Kind of Mix is This?" (4:11) an interesting mix of individual instrument sounds that is squeezed into one more ABABCAB construct. (8.75/10)

4. "Fanzine Made Of Flesh" (4:34) some 1980s New Wave in this one makes it sound like late-1970s fledgling New Wave. Pre-New Order New Order (no: not Joy Division; Cure-ish New Order--or perhaps OMD, Modern English, or Echo & The Bunnymen). Kind of cool if this were 1979. (8.875/10)

5. "Pale Vegan Hip Pain" (4:24) this one sounds like classic early 2000s Post Rock from the likes of Mono or Red Sparowes. Decent but rather simple and unsophisticated. (8.75/10)

6. "If You Find this World Bad, You Should See Some of the Others" (7:22) and I thought the previous song was simple and unsophisticated--sounded like early MONO! Little did I know that this was coming next! Really great build up and brain-annihilating crescendo. (Those crashing cymbals are among the loudest I've ever heard.) The long aftermath is a little unusual: a bit like walking around the streets of Hiroshima a year after the bomb. (13.375/15)

7. "18 Volcanoes" (6:18) vocals! And they're pleasant, melodic, and even dream-poppy! Again: not what one might expect from a Post Rock band--more like something from RIDE, SLOWDIVE, or even The Pale Saints. The weird guitar (or synth?) sounds are cool. A top three song for me. (8.875/10)

8. "Hammer Room" (5:16) interchangeable piano and guitar arpeggi are interwoven giving this the feel of something light and upbeat from NORTH SEA RADIO ORCHESTRA or a collaboration between 1970s Brian Eno and early XTC. Or DIF JUZ! Another top three song. (8.875/10)

9. "Lion Rumpus" (3:33) more New Age sounds and melodies driving this one despite the weird industrial screeches and gratings renting the sonic fabric in the second half. (8.75/10)

10. "Fact Boy" (7:02) floaty cutesie stuff meandering around the sonic field while a Crimsoninan Gamelan-like mathematical weave propels the cart along the ribbon of undulating highway. Nice but not enough to make me want to come back. (13.25/15)

Total Time 54:44

While I do love Mogwai's contributions to film and television soundtracks, I do not find the music of this album particularly compelling, innovative, cinematic, or impressive. It's just simpler, more accessible, more melodic, instrumental Post Rock music. A little too down and depressing for me and my tastes--and too diluted and simplistic.

B/four stars; a nice addition of nostalgic New-Wave-oriented Post Rock but by no means a step forward for the sub- genre.

TEN RAPID finds the band already having established its core sound of guitar-based instrumentals that feature melodic bass grooves and the use of distortion and effects that offer the dynamic contrasts that the band continued with its long canon of releases that followed. The album featured nine tracks that generated the expected cyclical loops, patiently delivered build ups and thundering crescendoes which in the case of TEN RAPID featured louder and more rocking aspects of guitar distortion with the occasional outbursts of high energy freneticism. In the case of "Tuner" guitarist Stuart Braithwaite also added vocal accompaniments.

Generating the same sort of hypnotizing effect that many slow-burning post-rock bands deliver, TEN RAPID doesn't offer sprawling tracks with climactic endings like contemporary acts such as Godspeed You! Black Emperor but rather short poignant ones that pacify your senses before pummeling them into submission at least on select tracks like "Ithaca 27-9." The main focus on TEN RAPID seems to be on the myriad tones and textures afforded by modern technologies that allow various shades of nuances of distortion, feedback and warm tones eking out emotional responses to otherwise rather simplistic slowcore styled compositions that to the inattentive ear will sound dull and overly repetitive.

Considered to be the debut album by some and a compilation to others, TEN RAPID is more of a supplemental album's worth of material that hallmarked the band's development as it became an influential act in the world of late 90s post-rock but really the tracks on here aren't anything to get overly excited about as they don't deviate from the band's usual repertoire that followed. While many went gaga over MOGWAI in the early 2000s personally i've never warmed up to them in the way i have to other more engaging post-rock bands of the same era due to the rather bland delivery system this band more or less has coasted on for well over a quarter of a century now.

Infinitely less experimental than Swans, Talk Talk or Sigur Ros, MOGWAI started out and has remained a more stripped down post-rock type of act that has accented the tonal swells that ebb and flow throughout its rather monotonous processions. While TEN RAPID offers a bit more of an extreme contrast between the soft and the heavy, it's basically MOGWAI in its already established form. It's a pleasant listening experience but not one that really gets my juices flowing for the same reason the majority of the band's subsequent releases fail to inspire me. For those already indoctrinated into the MOGWAI cult, this one will surely provide a much needed extra dose of slightly augmented MOGWAI tracks but to my ears the extremes distract from the main purpose of what MOGWAI offered on its spacier albums that followed.

Absent are intensive dynamic and metallic guitar riffs replaced by subdued performance where creating absorbing atmosphere is the foremost goal. The first 12 tracks are mainly of short length but well developed and for the first time, we can say that music is not guitar-based as keyboards dominate. To me, "Fridge music" stands out with its great dose of melancholy and warm textures. Thankfully, most tracks are instrumentals apart from the catchy folk-sounding "What are they doing in heaven today" that feels out of place here. Lastly, "Wizard motor" reminds us of the typical majestic Mogwai sound driven by guitars. With this soundtrack, Mogwai succeeded in delivering a mellow yet equally emotional and artistic work to their typical landmark post-rock sound. The other great soundtrack, on the other side of intensity but equally compelling is with "Atomic".

Formed in Glasgow in the mid 90s, with Stuart Braithwaite on guitar and vocals, Dominic Aitchison on bass, Martin Bulloch on drums, and a few others that have gone and left throughout the band's career on various instruments, namely the keyboards or flute. Where most post bands have songs that feel very inconsolable, I always found Mogwai's music to be more celebratory. They are a happy brand of post rock, as happy as post rock can get. This, added on with their less atmospheric and more rock driven output makes them a very interesting band. Unlike other post bands, they never really made any longer songs too. They have made longer pieces of music like with Mogwai Fear Satan on their debut album, Young Team, and the two part untitled dark ambient suite on the Zidane OST, but relatively they focus on smaller songs that showcase a bit of what the band has to offer in terms of sound and style. This direction leads their albums to be a little divisive among fans. Someone's all time favorite will most likely differ from else's which leads this band into a more fun route to take for a conversation, because I truly think Mogwai is a great post rock band to start with and go through all their albums. That aside, in 2011 they released their seventh studio album (not including any remix albums, session albums, or soundtrack albums), Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will.

Now do not let the title fool you, this is not some loud and abrasive hardcore album filled with fast riffs and a punk nature, no, instead you will get some very well made post rock mixed with a bit of an alternative rock sound. The first song White Noise definitely shows this quite well. I can hear hints of more emo and softer rock vibes within this song in the pitter patters of the drums, and the soft yet defined guitars. It builds rich and defining atmospheric melodies that build into this noisy, yet somehow still very mellow and lush sound that is rich in its abilities. It feels all so squeezed up, but not like a fist being clenched, but like a hug. It is soft and warm, yet still has a tight grip on you. I think this is one of Mogwai's most defining tracks out there, and it is a shame it isn't as talked about as I would like it too. Definitely an amazing opening for this album.

Things do change with Mexican Grand Prix. While still post in nature, they shifted gears into a more EDM direction. I do admit this is my least favorite track on this album because it feels a little out of nowhere, and that it doesn't really fit with everything else this album has. It isn't a bad song though. I like the vibes on here, being very jovial and danceable while keeping the aesthetic Mogwai presents themselves having ever so truly. It is a fun track to listen to, but definitely not their strongest output.

Everything gets back up again with Rano Pano. Talk about being loud and proud, because this song is just noisy, and I honestly really like it. How the guitars create this airy yet thin atmosphere that gets built up more and more as the song progresses, with each beat of the drums making things expand more and more. It all gets louder and more crisp, which even despite all of this, it still has that very buoyant feel to it all. Even with style and sound changes the band still can create a very happy sound to it all. I cannot help but just love that main riff and how it repeats and never gets old. It is like how Mike Oldfield with Tubular Bells or Ommadawn made repetitious music that never gets forgettable or annoying in its structure. I feel like the more I talk about this song the more good I have to say about it, but that is just because I think it is another one of their many flawless greats.

This also goes to Death Rays, but I do have some critics on it, but from an album standpoint. As a song, it is just pretty. The melody and the structure of it all just hits everything right on the head of the nail. How it all builds towards a finish that feels so lush makes me just fall for this song each time I hear it. On an album stance though it feels like the band is back peddling when they do not need to. It feels like they are retreading similar steps from White Noise when it seems like this album is built off trying different styles and noises to create a complete work of art. It is something that slightly gets under my skin, which I think is really unfortunate because I really do love this song. It is still perfectly good, but I do see it as a tiny misstep.

However I do admit that San Pedro is such a good track. It dives head first into that sort of alt rock sound that was popular in the late 80s and 90s. It has this grunge and emo vibe to it all that it makes it feel like some anthem song for those who grew up on that type of music. I can tell this song might seem off putting to many people, but I do enjoy this song. It is different, it is something you do not get every day in the vein of post bands. It is taking a sound and style, and making it work in their own unique ways. It is short but it is fun to look at.

But on a completely different note, Letters To The Metro is such a comely track. I just love how it builds but never gets anything loud in the end. Instead we get beautiful piano and guitar works that build this ambient and somber sound. This is probably their most sad song yet. In their wake of mirthful melodies, they can definitely work really well with more dreary movements. This change in sound really helps the album move forward into new directions that I think benefits the album really well. It's calm, it's focused, and it is bittersweet.

We got back into that alt rock groove though with George Square Thatcher Death Party. We have that noisy, and emotional sound returning in full force, and much stronger now. Everything feels so right in it together that you can feel everything rolling into one complete work of art. It's alternative rock in its pure sense. It has that Sonic Youth drive, that My Bloody Valentine noise, and that Velvet Underground spunk. It is what the entire alt rock movements stand for and go by, and I just love it. A plus material as always.

We get back into a more post rock sound with How To Be A Werewolf. For some odd reason I find this song to be kinda on the weaker side of things. I feel like as I stated before with Death Rays that it feels like back peddling when they should instead move the music forward. Still isn't a bad song, but it does get under my skin in terms of effectiveness, since I already heard something like that before where it builds up to something loud and jovial. It is retreading on familiar territory that I do not think needs to be retreated.

I do, however, think Too Raging To Cheers is a good improvement on that sort of formula I talked about in How To Be A Werewolf where it builds up into something loud. Unlike How To Be A Werewolf, it instead uses the buildup to explore a more electronic sound rather than that of a rock one. The guitars are still there, but I get vibes from more glitchwave and even techno music. It allows itself to truly be unique in presentation without the need for going back a few steps. It is that type of post rock that deserves a lot more attention. It is a post rock that combines the slow, methodical, and atmospheric charge, with more nuanced and differing genres and sounds, and making it work highly well.

Lastly is You're Lionel Richie, and this final track sets a good end mark for this album. Tracks through that familiar post rock mixed with alt rock sound this album has had for the course of most of its run time, but going about it with a longer focus and atmosphere. This 8 minute track shows a good amount of intricate details that create for a good experience throughout it. How everything is guitar driven without it being overly distorted or loud until the halfway point where it quickly gets more loud as it crescendos across through the end, makes this track extremely well made in style, sound, and overall presentation, making for an ending that is very solid.

Definitely not their best, but far from their worst. It is flawed, but this album has a ton of stuff to love about it. The sound, the unique styles found here, the interesting elements used here, and the entire emotional spectrum this has, combining joyous movements, with somber tones and textures, makes this a treat in every way possible. Check it out if you wanna hear what Mogwai can do as an example of great post rock music.