posted 11/10/2008 (Mon) @ 07:17 pm
>>> Music Reviews
God Is An Astronaut - God Is An Astronaut (2008)
Electronic Rock / Instrumental
…And The Devil Is A Cosmonaut
- Shadows
- Post Mortem
- Echoes
- Snowfall
- First Day Of Sun
- No Return
- Zodiac
- Remaining Light
- Shores Of Orion
- Loss
There’s a bit of a buzz in the air about Irish post-rockers God Is An Astronaut. Rightfully so. Rockers and citizens of the disparate states of Electronica alike will feel completely at home with this one. Fans of the trem-bar blur and cascades of cosmic Velcro fuzz shred that defines My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless will have a pretty decent trip, too.
No singer? Check. Varied instrumentation? Check. Heartbeat quickening build-ups from near silence to towering, minor key walls of sound? Check.
Typically, post-rock first demands long, minimalist passages, cathartic explosions of euphoric noise to follow ten minutes or so later. God Is An Astronaut aren’t afraid to move. They waste little time on warm-ups, and go straight for the six-string + sampler kung fu. Opener “Shadows” begins the album innocently enough, but quickly pitches forward into fevered, towering axe work, passionate piano, and rollicking, half-human/half-machine percussion.
Although the band can slow down (see the reflective, piano-tinged “Remaining Light”), the high fever tempo and mood of God Is An Astronaut are its most striking and unique features. “Echo” rides on stop-start rhythms and grunge/clean dynamic shifts, like a softer, more conventional 65daysofstatic, or a more angular The American Dollar. Splashes of tabla and programmed sitar color the exotic “Zodiac,” while a tribalistic drumbeat forms the core of “Shores of Orion”’s raucous, ‘gazey groove, perhaps the most satisfyingly loud moment of the album. Although clearly there’s nothing approaching Deftones caliber whiplash to be had here, God Is An Astronaut prove that words aren’t required to inspire a good headbang.
Rocktronica neophytes have a potent gateway drug in God Is An Astronaut. At least in the case of this album, it’s a happy, happy marriage, indeed.
RIYL 65daysofstatic, The American Dollar.
Links
Download (Spreading Neurotoxins) (support the artists—pay the band if you like it)
Myspace
Tags: best of 2008 candidates, electronica, god is an astronaut, instrumental, post-rock, rock
