The End of The World is a constant theme in music, usually with Metal bands, but it extends to all genres at times. Even the concept of the Pop Song is apocalyptic in nature. I’m totally serious. The Pop Song as we know it came about after the 2nd World War, during which The Bomb was used for the first time. Before World War II there was no concept of destruction on that kind of scale. But after The Bomb happened? Life got a whole lot shorter and things got faster. The 3-minute Pop song came about from a culture that believed they could die at any moment and so they didn’t have time to sit around listening to full symphonies play for hours at a time. Music needed to happen fast along with everything else. That’s a condensed version of the story, but those are basically the important parts.
Now. Why is this relevant to Godspeed You! Black Emperor? Thematically speaking, the end of the world is a powerful presence in GY!BE’s music. I have heard their sound called “Apocalyptic” more times than I can count, but if it is so, I don’t think it comes from a place of fear. Standing in the crowd at their show this February, they used projections behind them while they were performing and the first thing they projected was the word “Hope.” I think that while GY!BE’s music has undertones of a societal apocalypse, the overall me
ssage of their wordless compositions is one of hope. You don’t make music this gorgeous if you don’t have hope for humanity.
It sounds cliché, but there really isn’t another band out there quite like Godspeed You! Black Emperor. The eight-piece band is entirely instrumental and works more like a miniature Rock Orchestra than a Rock Band. I know that Rock Orchestra conjures up images of something like the symphony performing Led Zeppelin tributes or some shit like that, but I promise you, it’s that’s not how it is. From my perspective, GY!BE comes from the school of music founded by artists like Glenn Branca and carried forward by O.G. Indie rockers Sonic Youth, that of unusually tuned instruments played in such a way to create soaring walls of sound in order to produce an overwhelmingly transcendental effect on the listener.
But Godspeed You! Black Emperor isn’t a Rock band like Sonic Youth, and beyond unusual tunings and use of screwdrivers as substitutes for bows, the comparisons end pretty fast. Looping back around to the conversation that got this piece rolling, GY!BE are probably even less apocalyptic than people think when you consider their utter rejection of the Pop Song. A typical GY!BE song is more than 10 minutes in length and goes through several movements before reaching it’s conclusion. Their music is more akin to modern Classical than it is to modern Rock music in that regard.
The sound GY!BE achieves comes from a veritable armada of instruments. Their set up consists of three guitars, two bass, one cello, one violin and two drum kits, with members alternating between instruments as necessary. Compositions usually begin minimally, with just a guitar or two and gradually they build and build until they reach spectacular conclusions. The sonic experience of this band is akin to being surrounded by a large flock of little birds, each one holding onto a tiny wind chime. As the birds fly around you faster and faster the sound of wind chimes begin to harmonize and bounce off of each other until you are lost in a sea of echoes. That’s the idea anyway. You might hear something different.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor may be the pinnacle of the pretentiously titled Post-Rock genre, but their reign was relatively short and there aren’t a lot of albums by them out there. Of course, they just got back together last year after a long hiatus, so that may change. But in the meantime, the albums that exist by them are all quite fantastic. F♯ A♯ ∞ is one of my favorite albums of all time and probably the best place to start with your exploration of their music. But if you’re into something a bit more focused and a bit more raw, then I would suggest skipping ahead to their last album before going on hiatus: Yanqui U.X.O.
So that’s it. If you need a little more hope by way of Apocalyptic Post-Rock Blues, then this is the band for you. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. Cheers.
Recommended Listening:
F♯ A♯ ∞ (1997, Constellation/Kranky)
Slow Riot for New Zerø Kanada (1999, Constellation)
Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven (2000, Constellation/Kranky)
Yanqui U.X.O. (2002, Constellation)
Tracklist:
01: “Moya”
