YOUNG MOUNTAIN

Even though this is an E.P, it clocks in at 36 minutes of beautiful, blissful post-rock instrumentals. This was the band's debut recording and it was self-promoted and self-produced. However, the E.P. was getting a lot of buzz and great reviews, which, for a beginning band, were well deserved. They were soon signed on by a label and this E.P. was re-released by the label. The production is superb and sounds nothing like a debut album.

The band hails from the same place as the post-rock band "Explosions in the Sky", but to me the sound of this album is so much richer and varied then EitS. They do tend to follow the basic post- rock formula on this album, but I find it is more emotive and beautiful, especially in the softer sections. Probably more closer to Mogwai than EitS, they are also not afraid to use digital percussion at times, or, at least, that is what it sounds like.

The first track is "Quiet" and it sounds very much like a typical post-rock song. But "The World is Our _____" is so much better, with that pretty build up that climaxes a few times, and the build up isn't overly long. Again, the sound is so well textured that every sound is heard and the music isn't as dense and hard to access as it is in another post-rock band called "Pelican". This music is so much more penetrable and that works to a definite advantage. "I Believe in Your Victory" is another one similar to the 1st track except the climaxes are not as dense and the guitars have a nice ringing, chiming sound. On the second build up, there is a very strange percussion pattern that is definitely original, kind of a start/stop beat that helps to build tension.

The intermediate, short track called "Grandfather Clock" is a very nostalgic feeling song which doesn't have a build up, but it lovely nonetheless. It breaks up the formulaic feeling before it gets too repetitive and is well placed on the album. "Happiness" comes next and this one is an example of a post-rock symphony, so well layered and beautiful. Again the climaxes aren't overly dense but are lighter sounding than a lot of Post-rock music and that is what is so attractive to me. Such a well thought-out song with a lot of real emotion pouring out of the instruments. Very nice. Last but not least is the multi-part "There Are Some Remedies..." which is a little more harsh, but still not impenetrable. When the second build up comes in, the rhythm's change and build up to a very explosive climax this time which suddenly ends leaving you suspended in the middle of some special effects by the guitars. The ending is a little quick and even though the suspension at the end is a effective ending, it would have been nice to be allowed to shimmer a little longer. But that is a minor complaint really.

Overall, this is a vary good debut recording by the band and definitely leaves you wanting to explore more of their music. There really isn't anything ground breaking, but it definitely is post- rock that rises above the norm even with the formulaic structure. The emotion level is much higher than what I have heard in most cookie-cutter post-rock bands. I feel there is a lot of promise in this E.P. and as for myself, I want to explore more of their music. Even though I have had this excellent E.P. for a while, I still have the desire to listen to more of their discography. In the meantime, I will give this a 4 star rating, albeit a very strong 4 stars.