i don't think i've EVER heard anything that was compared to mogwai or godspeed that was any good.

That's what I was going to say.

*cries*

I don't know if Hochenkeit circa Omu4h 4aholab/400 Boys got the comparison, but if they did (for whatever reason, god forbid), they would certainly qualify as being one of those bands that were really GOOD.

I didn't get much out of Bell Orchestre, but in fairness I'm not really into any of this genre at the moment.

I don't get this at all ... "Rock Action" was a departure from their earlier identity, which was basically Slint imitators with louder guitars. Then they started making music more like what NIN should have sounded like on "The Fragile". OTOH, your comment does apply very well to the follow-up, "Happy Songs For Happy People".

Godspeed and Mogwai are shite, so if a band is compared to them, this must be shit too.

Damn, I wanted to be the one to bring this utterly obvious and predictable comment to the thread.

To answer Scott's question, I don't think it's a bad formula, it's just a difficult one to pull off without becoming

-- pretentious
-- repetitive
-- boring

Ned and others have commented that they don't need Godspeed because they got their fix for that sort of music from the Swans 15 years ago, which is a perfectly justifiable position from where I sit.

Well, agree to disagree, etc. Come On Die Young was the great Mogwai departure to me. It was quite different from that comp of early stuff, and Young Team. CODY is still my favorite album by them. Rock Action sounded like they were grabbing bits and pieces of stuff from songs that most of their fans liked, and released a short album as some sort of "this'll make 'em happy" motion. There's nothing wrong with that, but this was the release with me where I felt the band seemed to have run out of ideas.. My expectations were high though, especially after CODY and the self-titled EPs released right after, which comprises of their best work.

LOCAL bands that compare themselves to mogwai and godspeed. They are never, ever any good. Every city with over 1/2 million people has at least one.

well, yeah, so did i. and more like 20 years ago! (oh god i feel old) and this doesn't stop me from loving neurosis who are swan worshippers supreme. so, maybe it boils down to the heavy for me. a lot of the more indierock-derived stuff seems kinda anemic to me after listening to isis or whoever (like for instance that new Minsk album which wallops me nicely.) i have heard explosions in the sky and they never made much of an impression. i just got a reissue of their first album and i should check it out more. i flipped thru it and it took so long for anything to happen that i got impatient with it. i will try it again when i feel more subdued.(there are few bands who can even do acoustic music as heavy as gira did and does. you know? i don't compare stuff to him too often. that bar is too high.)

Yes, but they're actually good too. Like Mogwai, but unlike Godspeed. ;-)

Barry argued the case for Rock Action rather well -- personally I think Come On Die Young sounds far less surprising and interesting in context now. I put it on my 136 list for a reason -- namely, I loved it -- but I haven't touched it in years where Rock Action gets regularly played by me.

Name, please. I need to hear this.

You are not alone in loving the first Spz album above all else since. And for wanting more Spectrum. You getting that Spacemen 3 bio that just came out?

"Tortoise with strings" which was my immediate impression of Godspeed the first time I heard 'em and hasn't changed since.

looooooool