HAPPY SONGS FOR HAPPY PEOPLE

Mogwai is one of the premier post rock bands, and one of the earliest members of the genre. They make ominous, foreboding instrumentals, dominated by guitar and effects, like a more rock-oriented GY!BE. In my opinion, instrumental albums and bands are relatively hit-or-miss- sometimes it results in an emotional journey (Explosions in the Sky, good Sigur Ros), and other times it results in dull, forgettable affairs (GY!BE, bad Sigur Ros). Mogwai lies somewhere in the middle. On one hand, the music is well-made and doesn't have many random, pointless "soft parts" that fail to be interesting and waste a listener's time, which many post rock bands are prone to doing. They're very good at combining various noises into an enjoyable whole, that calls up emotions- usually fear, anger, or hurt. On the other hand, there isn't very much diversity to the songs- they all seem to follow the same basic formula, and it's somewhat hard to tell the difference between them- if you hear a piece of a song playing, then you will know it's Mogwai, but it'll be tough for all but the most devoted fans to recognize which song it is. The music isn't all that memorable, either- you're probably not going to have this stuck in your head at any point. Though it has its flaws, Happy Songs For Happy People is a unique and enjoyable album. Plus, though it doesn't really count for much, the titles are really cool- they are often awkward (in a good way), and really reflect the nature of the music. So, three stars- it's good, but not really excellent. Recommended to fans of instrumental music and post rock in general.