I was just writing a concert preview for Mogwai's show at the Commodore this Friday, when I stumbled upon the unfortunate announcement on their website. Apparently they had some visa problems. The band says they hope to be back in Vancouver as soon as they can.
The instrumental rock band holds legendary status in their scene, as one of the most influential post-rock bands of the 2000s. The band rejects the label post-rock though, which I have to agree, is an overanalytical name for such a broad genre. In many cases, I might rather just call it shoegaze, since there are a lot of identifiable similarities between post-rock and shoegaze, and shoegaze generally has more charm, in both nomenclature and musical stylings.
I have to admit, I had to push myself a little to understand why Mogwai chooses to leave vocals out of most their songs. Their guitarist, Stuart Braithwaite says, “I think most people are not used to having no lyrics to focus on. Lyrics are a real comfort to some people. I guess they like to sing along and when they can't do that with us they can get a bit upset.” You really have to just put on a Mogwai album for awhile and sit back; then suddenly it hits you that vocals would really just get in the way of their music.
Without further ado, here's a couple samples of what we'll all be missing this Friday. Keep an eye out in case they reschedule, because a Mogwai show in Vancouver is not to be missed. In the meantime, check out their new album Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will, from which these two tracks were taken.
Mogwai - Rano Pano
Mogwai - San Pedro
Is it just me, or does it sound like Mogwai was listening to O Children's “Dead Disco Dancer” while they wrote “San Pedro”?
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