Godspeed You Black Emperor
Published:Review of the Godspeed You Black Emperor , February 2011
I've been a fan of Godspeed You Black Emperor since 1998 their enigmatically titled album "F♯ A♯ ∞". They were active from 1995 until they went into an indefinite hiatus around 2004. Fast forward 2010. The band regroup and start touring again.
Godspeed have never been a band that go out of their way to make you love them. You have to go to them. Those kind of relationships infuriate me & I'd never normally bother with them unless the there is great reward. I find the same pattern with their albums. I hear it but don't really like. Put it down. A couple of weeks later, I pick it up and give it another go. The bits I don't like, the ugliness start to take on a beauty of their own.
The lights dim and the projectors start up. A drone starts to build. The band walks on the stage. The audience cheers as the band takes their place. There are seats arranged in a square. The 2 drummers are up the back. There's an electric bass, double bass and 3 guitars. The drone builds into Hope Drone. This then morphs into "Mladic" from the new album. Things are taken down a notch as they start "Lift Your Skinny Fists to Heaven / Gathering Storm". Up next next is "Behemoth". I'm not so keen on the 40 minute epic. I think it could do with some edits. It's not as jam packed with ideas as most of their other material. The final piece was "The Sad Mafioso".
The thing that struck me was how much the band seemed to be lead by the drums. The changes in pace seemed to be initiated by the percussion. I love they way the used dynamics. The use of loud and quiet to build tension. Godspeed are masters at it.
The band did not attempt to communicate with the audience in any way. This was not so much a gig. It felt more like I'd been invited to watch a recording session. They finished the last song and walked of. We did get a wave from Ephram as he left the stage. No encore. Mind you, given that most pieces clock in at 20 minutes, encores aren't a practicality.
Godspeed You Black Emperor break many of the laws of rock'n'roll. You won't get a stageshow, just the music.
Set List
- Hope Drone
- Mladic
- Gathering Storm
- Behemoth
- The Sad Mafioso