YOUNG TEAM

Mogwai are a post-rock band from Scotland. When this debut album came out, they were one of the few post-rock bands from the UK not based in London. They take their name from the Cantonese word for "devil". Many of the original post-rock bands had a fairly unique sound, but it seems Mogwai and GYBE were the most influential on later post-rock bands. Both at this time employed lots of vocal samples, but both would later abandon them.

"Yes! I Am A Long Way From Home" begins with a speech from a Scottish woman. The bass playing reminds me of Jane's Addiction. When the loud guitars come in it reminds me of Smashing Pumpkins. Backwards talking and laughing at the end. "Like Herod" starts off quiet with a good bass line. The drums drop out. Just before 3 minutes it gets really loud. It then goes through loud/quiet/loud sections. Mogwai were one of the pioneers of the quiet/loud building crescendos thing in post-rock. It wasn't long before this became very cliche in this genre.

"Tracy" starts with atmospheric guitars and talking. Later some nice vibes playing in unison with guitar. More talking later on. The version of "Summer" here, subtitled "Priority Version", is not as good as the one on the Ten Rapid collection. "With Portfolio" begins with piano. Then it becomes a stereo experiment with sound effects. "R U Still In 2 It" has a title that you would find on a Prince album. Almost a ballad. Starts with tremolo guitar and a spoken voice saying the title. Later actual singing and some Jane's style bass playing. Some more talking. Later piano.

"Mogwai Fear Satan" is the longest and best song on the album. Good drumming here. Mainly built around quiet/loud dynamics. The flute during the quiet parts is a nice touch. Some military style drumming near the end with varispeeded guitar effects. Overall, this was influential and too much post-rock of the past ten years sounds very similar. I don't think this is very essential. I think their 2003 album Happy Songs For Happy People would make a better starting point for most prog fans. Young Team gets 3 stars.