Everything is accessible. Everything is disposable. In this age of social media and where music is available at the drop of the hat, very little remains precious, there are very few secrets. Sure, there are pros that come with the changing times of the modern age, but we're left without that sense of mystery that used to come with music.
However, one band in particular appear to rail against these changing times. The world of Godspeed You! Black Emperor remains an intriguing one – very little is known of the band, other than their art, which continues to remain their sole focus, devoid of all ego and desire to conform. Spending two hours in their company tonight, of course very little is revealed of the band themselves, yet their personality shines through the foreboding intensity of their music.
The band slowly steps into formation onstage as the brooding opener 'Hope Drone' continues to build and build into a stunning crescendo. For what must be some 20 minutes, violinist Sophie Trudeau, who shines and soars throughout the show, leads the group into an increasingly violent cathedral of noise, which reverberates not only throughout the room, but your entire body.
Despite the fact that we have just been treated to a brand new album, the glorious 'Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress', a further two new songs are showcased this evening, placed either side of a pulsating, menacing rendition of 'Mladic'. The first track, set to a backdrop video of escalating tower blocks, is a claustrophobic symphony led by Trudeau and guitarist David Bryant acting as an unofficial conductor of the world's most sinister orchestra. The second, somewhat more emotive and gentle by their standards, then leads into a performance of the new album in its entirety.
Put to tape it's clear that the album itself, as they all should be, is a cohesive listening experience, so it makes perfect sense to be performed in full. The power and weight of the performance reaches almost unthinkable levels of dramatic tension, whilst managing to maintain a sense of melody amongst the bluster and considered, calculated chaos.
Following the brutal finale, there's the first awkward pause of the evening, some two hours into the show. A minute of uncertainty then leads into a stunning version of 'The Sad Mafioso', an apocalyptic tour de force set to an unsettling video backdrop, leaving the crowd both stunned and disorientated.
Of course there is no crowd interaction, no farewell or thanks at any point of the show. To do so would be at odds with the atmosphere Godspeed generate. This stunning performance, in which the group's art so articulately spoke for them, served to not only add to the band's mystique, but push them forward into new realms of the unknown. Whoever Godspeed You! Black Emperor are, they stand alone as one of a kind.
FUTURE GIGS
sorry, we currently have no gigs listed for this act.