Artist : Godspeed You Black Emperor
Album Reviewed : lift yr. skinny fists like antennas to heaven!
Produced By : Constellation

Godspeed You Black Emperor slammed the Indy and college radio scene hard a few years ago, and with good reason. I, personally, have never heard music like it before. Others who spend more time among the cutting edge of the music scene may be less impressed by their contribution, although from what I’ve seen so far, most people seem as impressed as I am.

The band seems to have become most known for long, complex tracks, equally long and complex titles and avoiding both the music press and recording labels, all things I approve of whole heartedly. The tracks, however, are the most amazing things. Using a mass of guitar players and effects generators, I honestly contend that it’s the closest thing to orchestration we’ve seen since the big bands (or at the very least, the Moody Blues), and the songs and albums they produce are in ways reminiscent of the works of such orchestras, with the same devotion to theme, both musically and metaphorically that one might have found in many post-modern classical pieces. In fact, you might describe the sound as post-modern elements creeping into the contemporary independent music scene.

This particular album was the first work of theirs I’ve been exposed to, and also easily my favorite of what I’ve heard so far. Storm, in particular, is an emotional roller-coaster lasting over twenty minutes. Beginning with the most subtle of plucked strings, the song builds slowly but forcefully to a powerful crescendo in the best of major/minor mixes, creating that feeling of melancholy hope, like the joy of the first bright, warm spring morning you wake up after a month’s long depression and suddenly just feel like maybe there’s some point to getting out of bed again. This drops suddenly at the end of six minutes’ development, and slowly evolves through a series of attitudes until finally you are left with a slow, disquieting piano solo, played over a strange and distorted vocal track. The song, indeed the album as a whole is entirely instrumental excepting random clips of found sound voices played here and there among the tracks.

I would say that, all things considered, Godspeed is easily the most inspired and emotional moving (and manipulating) music I’ve encountered since I meandered into the indy and electronica scene. It really affects me like nothing else I’ve ever listened to, and is especially good for both writing and moping.

An interesting side note, but I can’t seem to introduce anyone to it. It doesn’t catch if you’re saying ‘hey, listen to this’. For some reason, they seem to have to hear it on their own, either picking it out of the collection or hearing it on the radio or something for it to really sink in.