AMS album of the week

If there’s one band who can wear the post-rock tag without shame, it’s Godspeed You! Black Emperor, famous for being able to capture the view of a city skyline burning and turn it into song. And they’re back, after leaving us with the somewhat disappointing Yanqui U.X.O. in 2002. The eight person instrumental ensemble now offers 54 minutes of new music, in the form of two 20 minute epics (which is by no means unusual with an average track length at around this mark) and a pair of drone tracks. So, has the apocalypse returned?

Apparently, it has returned, but it hasn’t changed – the bulk of this album has been performed live since 2003, and any diehard fan will own several bootlegs featuring sections of the pieces. This leads to a disconnected sense when listening to the album, as it could be interpreted as two well-rehearsed live jams connected by ambient interludes. Worse still, these interludes sound more like the band picked a note and played it for six minutes alongside a dissonant audio sample, rather than the carefully paced ambient sections that made previous epics so dynamic. They’re almost the definition of filler.

However, the epics most certainly aren’t filler. ‘Mladic’ sees the entire band rocking out louder than ever before in a storm of carefully paced yet frantic riffs, building to a stellar climax in its 18th minute. Godspeed’s massive sound comes primarily from the wide variety of instruments (three guitarists with a stunning range of effects, two drummers, two bassists and a violist) and their unparalleled understanding of how to create immersive atmospheres. It doesn’t run the full gamut of moods expected in a Godspeed epic, but that’s where ‘We Drift Like Worried Fire’ steps in, the second lengthy track. The first 10 minutes are especially good and remind us that Explosions in the Sky can’t hold a candle to Godspeed.

Even the last ambient song redeems itself – a rising organ emerges through the noise and holds until the end of the song, ending the album on a slightly warming note. This album isn’t a progression for Godspeed, but that’s not what it tries to be. Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend! is simply them clearing a backlog of old material, paving the way for the next release (whose songs are already being played live), and creating some memorable material in the process.