OTHER TRUTHS

Being a band that I've just been getting acquainted with for the last two months, I must confess that Canadian post-rock outfit Do Make Say Think has caused a very good impression on me ? their 2009 release "Other Truths" is a powerful indication of the sort of refreshment (or one of sundry possible sorts) that the post-rock genre needs to go on in a healthy state. Some fans and connoisseurs have praised this band as a current leader of the most recent developments in the post-rock area, and I clearly see their point. With a repertoire of four tracks that doesn't get to the 45 minute mark, "Do Make Say Think" makes an excellent statement of suggestive elaborations ? in some passages, similarities with Tortoise, Isis or the legendary Godspeed You Black Emperor! can be traced, but none of these references scares away the Muses that drive this ensemble's originality. The opening sequence of 'Do' brings a gentle mood of guitar, trumpet and sax, fluidly intertwined with an aim on the construction of the first main body, which happens to be dynamic and ethereal simultaneously. The agile rhythm section allows the whole instrumentation to convey contemplation and enthusiasm equally. Once this section ends, things shift toward a different landscape, one drawn with shades of languid density. At one point, some industrial ornaments settle in before the effective abrupt ending. A good starter, indeed, but there's still more room for exciting music, as 'Make' comes to show immediately after. 'Make' offers, at first, a slightly more constrained expressiveness, with a slower tempo bathed in jazzy cascades. Once the track gets to a climatic point, a melancholic intensity fills the room with a combination of brightness and grayness, preserving the climax in a solid manner. Once this continuing climax ends, the minimalistic coda arrives to wrap things up in a most spacey way. 'Say' starts on a repetitive note, as if stating the soundtrack to a scene in which a character is carefully leaving his hiding place. It won't be long before a controlled storm of rocking energy emerges in a polished alternation of suave nuances and powerful moods ? the dual guitars are focused on their usual business of faithfully complementing each other, and in this case, the sonic result is particularly captivating. The final section retakes the opening motif with an emphasized languidness, ultimately leading to a lovely choral arrangement. 'Think' ends the album with an exclusive focus on the eerie aspects that had already been present in 'Make' and 'Say', still reinforcing the jazzy element in the basic cadences. The litany character that this track seems to emphasize so purposely makes it perfect to complete the listening experience with a reflective intention ? a lovely way to finalize the experience with an album like this. In conclusion, DMST has delivered an excellent item for this year 2009.

While other Post-Rock bands are still trying to play Math-Rock, Metal or Electronica (or blend this altogether) to attract hipsters' attention and get a line in Pitchfork, genre's veterans from DO MAKE SAY THINK just do what they're good at: playing Music. Well-structured and composed, it has feelings and atmosphere, and these two factors are usually forgotten by numerous newbies of the genre. Who needs endless avantgarde experimentations, when you can't write a melody one can whistle along? Like fellow Canadians from BELL ORCHESTRE, DMST managed to release one of the most fresh-sounding and captivating albums of 2009 for a genre which is thought to be stagnant for at least recent 5 years. Bravo and recommended!

3.5 stars really

Latest album from the Toronto combo, one that comes with agreat urban artwork, and sees some brass players as guests. I don't know if it's recent or not, but McKenzie is not part of the line-up that remains otherwise uncjanged .Just four tracks on this album and funnily enough all for are named after the four words of the band's name. Not that the music behind each word of their ensemble's name will tell you more about their philosophy, because this was set a long time ago, with their debut album.

Musically, we're still very strongly in the realm of the Constellation?GYBE! soundscapes, but DMST does make it difference: some of these tracks are quite fast, they are also very brass-y and they're not depressive (even if I wouldn't go as far as saying that these guys make frivolous and happy tunes), so those alone should indeed. The music is still very ambient, made from slow build-ups and crescendoing until they reach a climax and slowly decrease. The major difference here is the brass instruments underlining some of the more dramatic moments but bringing an upbeat to the music. Nothing new under the sun; and this album won't stand out in your post rock shelves, like a Tortoise or a Tarentel album might

Other Truths is my first DMST experience, and I certainly found it to be a good one, as they combine the peaceful and energetic sides of post-rock very well. There's not really much I can say about the album, except that it is very well-made and stays interesting throughout. However, one thing that impresses me about Other Truths is that while they use the crescendo->climax theory of post rock, they don't have boring, unnecessary quiet parts like GYBE, and instead keep the listener's attention throughout without testing his or her patience. Certainly recommended to fans of good instrumental music, especially in the post-rock vein. Four stars for an excellent effort.

The art of the build-up, and the outro.

This is DMST's most musical of their first six albums. While their other albums mixed a bunch of different styles, but usually with a few great longer signature pieces, this albums only contains four signature pieces, and no filler. While feeling loose and improvised, each of the four tunes has a definite structure. The first three compositions are crafted to build up from an in auspicious beginning to a rapturous emotional peak. This build up is accompanied by the addition of horns (saxes and trumpets, as well as violin) and the occasional rag-tag choir. However, what makes each of these tracks so musical is that they also have mastered the art of the outro. This is a stumbling block for many bands - they build up to the peak, but then what? Most often, the peak IS the end, and this is even true on some early DMST albums. But here, there are a good three minutes of excellent music after the peak, putting excellent use to the brass, guitar distortion and other effects. Indeed, I think the outros here compete with the build-ups in terms of musicality. The weakest parts of each song is actually the beginning. The second track ('Make' - each of the four songs is a word from the band's name), in particular, starts with a musically-weak theme played on bass and drums (the only musically-weak spot on the album), but this gets parlayed into a fantastic additional 11 minutes of music with a beautiful brass-section theme after the peak. The first track ('Do') is structured around an electric-guitar theme, not too dissimilar in sound to the highly-respected first track ('When the Day Chokes the Night') on their second album, Goodbye Enemy Airship - The Landlord is Dead. The song builds up over its 10 minutes to this laddered bass-line theme over which horns are added, distorting creatively into a wall of sound that slowly evolves in very musical fashion until it doesn't. The third track ('Say') is probably the most musical here, though. Morphing between three different themes, but always very compelling, it displays a bit of math-rock before succumbing to majestic horns and distorted guitar washes. The outro again is fantastic. The only piece here that doesn't conform to a similar structure is the last tune ('Think'). Instead, this is a very melancholy tune based around an electric-guitar theme and very similar sonically to a number of tunes from their earlier albums, except that this one is dripping in emotion. Really, it should have been called 'So Long' - it feels so much like goodbye letter, and indeed this was the last thing the band recorded before their long hiatus (for 8 years). This last track doesn't build - instead it just fades out. On the whole, a coherent musical album, and one that I am often drawn to listen to. I give this 8.4 out of 10 on my 10-point scale, which translates to 4 PA stars.