LIFT YOUR SKINNY FISTS LIKE ANTENNAS TO HEAVEN

I say that being a fan of the genre and the many bands that play the post mold. And i say that knowing they didnt come first and knowing many other bands now play a completely different style of post, far removed from what these guys play. I say that because post rock owes its life to Godspeed You! Black Emperor. if Talk Talk or Bark Psychosis or Slint planted the seed of the genre, then Godspeed You! Black Emperor was certainly the gardener, the father.

Post Rock is, in the end, Godspeed's baby.

lengthy intro aside this music is fantastic. The 4 song, dual disc set brings Tales From Topographic Oceans to mind almost immedietly and is equally as ambitious as the classic symph disc is. However, the similarities stop there.

The entire album, as the title suggests, is a religious affair. the opener is the best example of this and also happens to be the strongest song on the recording. It begins quietly with horns and gentle guitars plucking a very happy, joyous melody. this is repeated by the guitars as the horns are joined by strings and more guitar and more horns and more strings and then drums etc. etc. till climax. you get the idea. this idea isnt new to post rock anymore but god d*mn they do it RIGHT for once. the repetition here isnt boring, at least to my ears. the chords all raise, all ascend, up, up, up, reiterating the religious feel and nature of this song which sounds more and more like a hymn as you approach the 6 minute mark. Horns start to play a faster melody behind the guitar and the chords keep rising till it breaks and washes into soundscape. out of this soundscape emerges a soft guitar melody that sounds very much like a variation of amazing grace. religious theme again is reinforced. The same thing happens here as in the first section. build build, layers and layers till climax. This section is more rousing than the first even, more determined and driving. the climax then fades into a chaotic rhythm that takes the song into a spacey atmospheric section with spoken word, field recordings, and what sounds like a preacher or speaker distorted in a wash behind a slow piano melody. this takes the song out.

22 minutes have never passed faster.

Ill spare you all a song by song analysis but the themes present in the first song are all present, if in different forms, throughout the rest of the album. spoken word, climaxes, frantic guitars, atmosphere, horns. This album takes a lot of patience and effort on the part of the listener. its a very demanding album but in the end, extremely rewarding. If you are a fan of post rock, THIS is the best album but the genre's best band. if your a fan of music, this is just something incredible. its not everybody's cup of tea but it is very clearly a masterpiece of post rock and in this reviewers mind, a masterpiece of music in general. highly, highly recomended.

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