Post-Rock Thread

[dankrsta]

Originally Posted by jackhammer

I gave this a spin earlier for the first time in a while and Post Rock is really starting to bore me. Sure there are some great bands out there and it has the sound that I look for a lot in music but the scene is so over saturated with similar bands and sounds who owe a huge debt to Can that I am actually starting to dislike the scene.

I agree. That's why I don't follow the scene that much like I did in the 90's. Actually my favorite post-rock bands are all formed in the 90's. (Gastr Del Sol, Tortoise, Slint, Labradford, Trans Am, Godspeed You Black Emperour, Windy & Carl, Bardo Pond, Mogwai, Jessica Bailiff, Pan American, Ui, Stereolab, etc.) It was a much more exciting scene then, because it wasn't so much a genre but more of a phenomenon (as the prefix 'post' suggests) in the 90's underground music. It was a reaction to the loud 80's underground (noise, hardcore, math-rock, shoegaze etc) that was starting to break into the mainstream, although the post-rock pioneers all came from those scenes and their musical language came from those styles with very diverse influences from jazz, dub, electronic music, avantgarde and most importantly kraut-rock. They took that minimal and repetitive approach of kraut-rock and electronica and applied it to rock idioms, they made noise sound beautiful and quiet, slowed it down, sprawled it, made it minimalistic, more abstract and ambient. There was more diversity - jazz/dub/funky influenced post-rock, electronic influenced, drum&bass influenced, experimental, cosmic rock, drone, neo-krautrock, ambient etc. All these styles were considered post-rock, because the term, just like 'post-punk' covered a variety of expressions and an attitude and relationship to previous period in music (namely loud 80's underground rock and punk in the case of 'post-punk').

But, in this decade the 'post-rock sound' have become more unified, with identifiable set of rules in composition and idioms, and thus a proper genre. This development is, I'm guessing, a result of a major influence from Mogwai and Godspeed You Black Emperour. A great strenght of post-rock - minimalism and repetitivness - has become a weakness, because there is only so much you can do before it loses its freshness and becomes too repetitive, too flat and boring. Also, the development towards more and more ambiental music is a problem for me, because post-rock is becoming a soundtrack, a background music for pictures (when your music needs a picture to complete it, then your music is in trouble). Several posters in this thread have commented that they listen to post-rock as a background music for reading or doing something else. And I don't blame them, because when you actually pay attention to its music (well the majority from this decade), it's pretty boring and lacking in impact. So, how long before post-rock becomes elevator music.

[333]

Originally Posted by jackhammer

I gave this a spin earlier for the first time in a while and Post Rock is really starting to bore me. Sure there are some great bands out there and it has the sound that I look for a lot in music but the scene is so over saturated with similar bands and sounds who owe a huge debt to Can that I am actually starting to dislike the scene.

Aw, man. Maserati's drummer died in an elevator-related death a few months ago while he was on tour. So sad.

[Mojo]

I just try not to overwhelm myself with the genre. When im in the mood, a good post-rock band is everything im looking for. If i need to relax or want something to put on while im trying to get to sleep, then i usually put some post-rock on.

The genre is filled with countless bands recycling the same themes and the same sound and the genre as a whole has to have a very limited shelf life, i would say. I cant see the current boom in post-rock over the last few years continuing on while so many bands are seemingly perfectly happy to mimick one another and not take any risks. I think more stand out bands are needed to really inject some originality into what is quickly becomng a very predictable and stale environment.

[clutnuckle]

Indeed. Generic post-rock comes in such abundance nowadays. I'll even admit to liking some, but I'd say half of them are basically bathing in the ideas that GY!BE put to rest 10 years ago, and bands like Sigur Ros/Moving Mountains were able to work with.

edit: I have to agree that most of the titanic post-rock releases were from the 90's. The 00's scene was generally just petty worship (sooorrrrrryyyyy TWDY, I still love ya).

[dankrsta]

Originally Posted by mojopinuk

The genre is filled with countless bands recycling the same themes and the same sound and the genre as a whole has to have a very limited shelf life, i would say. I cant see the current boom in post-rock over the last few years continuing on while so many bands are seemingly perfectly happy to mimick one another and not take any risks. I think more stand out bands are needed to really inject some originality into what is quickly becomng a very predictable and stale environment.

That's true. But the term 'post-rock' has existed for almost 20 years now, and the infinitely more fresh and creative post-rock scene of the 90's (for which the term was invented in the first place) should not be mistaken for the current genre, which has become so closed off and confined. It reminds me of a relation of a bloodless and confined gothic-rock from the 80's and 90's to a more interesting and powerful dark wave and death-rock of the early 80's.

[Petula07]

Do you know band Junius? Junius - MySpace

If you like post-rock with singing, try them. I think they are good and not boring.

[dankrsta]

^^^Hmmm, it's some unusual fusion of post-rock sprawling and some gothic romantic, melodramatic sound (especially in the singing style). It didn't quite grab me, but for this kind of music it usually takes a lot more listening until I start to feel it. I have a love/hate relationship with gothic or gothic coloured music in any form. When it hits me I really love it, but more often than not it's just bland. For this band Junius I really can't say just yet.

[TheFolkslave]

Seeing Ef tomorrow. Im really excited

[Petula07]

Enjoy it

Yesterday I saw Junius (support band) and God is an Astronaut.

[TheFolkslave]

I saw Ef last night and it was awesome. Really nice setlist and overall amazing performanse. It was great to chat with the band after the show. They were really nice guys. I also got a t-shirt and a signed Give Me Beauty... album.
Callisto was really great too. Too bad they didn't play their last song since the drummer Ariel had some problems with his health. They cancelled the rest of the tour too because of Ariels heath problem :/