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PlaylistNew releases by Suicide, Mum and Godspeed You! Black Emporer
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Suicide American Supreme Mute, 2002 If the label is to be given its due gravity, this is the first true post-9/11album in that it directly and holistically addresses the psychology of the attack and the society that sustained it. It is perfectly fitting that Suicide, the archetypical insider band, should rise from the ashes of post-punk obscurity to deliver it – smoking and stinking and all. Everyone seems to have heard of the pioneering electronic duo of Martin Rev and Alan Vega, but no one can quite recall a tune. Countless reviewers carry on about their importance and significance, tying them to the roots of Kraut rock, electronica, to the aggrieved, revolutionary spoken-word tradition of the Black Poets and to New York’s No Wave movement. All of these comparisons are deserved, and American Supreme, their first release in years, drags the famous old skeleton out of the closet again, to great effect. Vega’s grating voice – his phrases sometimes sound as though they were extracted under torture – is napalm on the pyre of American culture. This is music with a message, and neither is pretty. It chants “Dachau, Disney, Disco” as the music collapses around our ears. In contrast to Martin Rev’s more direct keyboard and synth work of the ‘70s, American Supreme harnesses bitter irony and reductive musical references (as in “Child, it’s a New World’s” watery, digitized Motown references, for example) to their purpose of social critique. If you enjoy this music you’re likely a bit of a masochist, but it’s a mistake not to allow it to burn you. “Morons survive, yeah, they thrive. The education machine. Hey, what’s left? We all live like remains.” The double CD release also includes an atmospheric live recording of the 1998 London show. Godspeed You! Black Emperor Yanqui U.X.O. Constellation, 2002 On the surface, Godspeed You! Black Emperor delights in opacity. They tour as half a dozen seemingly disparate musicians with as many super-8 film projectors in tow, building structure out of chaos onstage and then setting fire to it all with indescribable intensity, like a suicidal robotic filing cabinet. Their albums, released mainly on vinyl by their own Constellation label, are beautifully assembled examples of everything positive about the indie scene and the idyllic “socially responsible rock star,” from the notion of DIY capitalism to their emphatically anti-corporate political messages. Yanqui U.X.O. (U.X.O. is defined as “unexploded ordinance” in the liner notes) damningly links the corporate entertainment industry with the companies producing the landmines, missiles and bombs that litter the (rest of the) globe. GY!BE is orchestral rock, though the term “rock” seems arcane when applied to the interminably plodding narratives that pile tension upon tension, finally culminating in a tornado of humming strings and feedback. After nearly a decade of touring and indie releases GY!BE is finally getting some of the attention they’ve long deserved from critics. Yanqui U.X.O., recorded by Steve Albini, is an exercise in pure intensity; distressing, coherent and beautiful. Múm Finally We Are No One FatCat, 2002 Although this is only the second full-length release from Reykjavik’s Múm, they aren’t exactly fresh off the boat. In fact, the Berlin via Copenhagen expats might just be one of the most prolific bands recording on the continent today. Picked up by London’s FatCat label after a long friendship with the founders (who also release fellow Icelander Sigur Ros’ ethereal electronica), Múm has released a steady stream of intimate soundscapes, one-off remixes and fragmentary soundtracks on as many Icelandic indie labels, including Bjork’s Bad Taste. Finally We Are No One adds the angelic twin sisters Kristín Anna and Gyda Valtsdóttir to the mix and the result is pure sleeper magic that has garnered praise from quarters as far afield as Rolling Stone magazine, Mogwai and Pulp’s Jarvis Cocker. An endearing blend of string elements, electronica and fragile vocals, Múm brings Air’s minimalism to the rarified air of Iceland’s strong folk traditions. Finally We Are No One is intricate, human and sincere, but laced with veins of darkness and foreboding – signs of a distinct musical maturity that are beginning to earn this band respect. |
Article added on Tue 14th Jan, 2003 [last updated Thu 6th Oct, 2005]Share this page 
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