I WAS HERE FOR A MOMENT, THEN I WAS GONE

Maybeshewill is a UK act that made some ripples in the post rock act with two acclaimed albums. The third album in this band's career is the characteristically verbose title 'I Was Here For A Moment, Then I Was Gone', and continues the band's melodic and cinematic style of instrumental rock. Much in the same sense that genre kings Explosions In The Sky do it, Maybeshewill's sound revolves not around inspiring their audience with complexity, innovation or even technical skill, but rather to flood the listener with emotion. Being that the band manages to get this across merely with their instruments, this is quite impressive, and the band's third album may be their best yet.

The music that Maybeshewill creates with 'I Was Here For A Moment' is not something that sounds anything new to post-rock, or even my limited personal experience with the style. A quick comparison I would make would be to one of my favourites of the style- God Is An Astronaut- in the sense that they keep their songwriting intact while managing to keep all of the dynamic ebbs and flows that the longer form acts do. The comparison is reinforced by the fact that Maybeshewill uses electronics to bolster the atmosphere. There is even some classically inspired violin work that ties the band in with their British compatriots Loss Of A Child. Okay, enough with the comparisons. The bottom line is that there is a lot of depth to the sound of this band, although they are not so far flung from the sounds of other bands in the style. All the same, the powerful emotions get through.

Although the songs on 'I Was Here For A Moment' tend to average out at around four minutes in length, that does not stop Maybeshewill from getting the sense of 'epic' across. The music's greatest strength is its arrangement of sound; you will likely not find a moment here that feels undercooked and lacking depth in sound. The writing that can sometimes feel like it takes a little longer than it could have to get where its going, but the payoffs are always majestic. 'Words For Arabella' is a perfect indicator of this; running slowly for the first minute or two, then emerging with one of the most beautiful melodies that I have heard in a while. There has even been efforts taken by the band to have the songs run smoothly together- something that is often very underrated by artists- although these transitions only compliment the music around half of the times.

I do not necessarily consider myself a fan of post-rock anymore, having frankly found alot of it to sound too much alike Mogwai, Godspeed, Explosions In The Sky, and a couple of the other big acts. Maybeshewill makes an encourage remark with this album though. While it does not stand out in terms of originality, what Maybeshewill have done with post rock here is really excellent, and as an album that only grows with the emotional commitment the listener puts into it, I can certainly say I am impressed.

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