- Artists:
- Mogwai »
- Label:
- Wall of Sound »
Mogwai are a band who stand so much at the forefront of the post-rock genre that it's almost impossible to take any album they have produced in complete isolation. With a back catalogue boasting Rock Action, Happy Songs For Happy People, and Young Team, everything released by the giants of the genre will be instantly compared to the heights scaled in those records. But, of course, we all know just how good Mogwai have been...
First up on The Hawk Is Howling; 'I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead' ushers you into the album with familiarity, as singly struck reverb-laden keys, gently picked guitars and a brick-by-brick crescendo all appear before fading out into the ether. ‘Batcat’ then bounds and thunders its way over you like an overpopulated herd of overfed and clumsy wildebeest; the bottom end and cymbal crashing dominating any guitar noodling present in the periphery into oblivion. There may not be much material on the album which is full-on balls-out rock - barbarously brutal moments are few and far between - but in 'Batcat' the hawk is not so much howling as joining the vultures in clawing over your corpse and trawling through your innards for their fill.
Though The Hawk Is Howling's understated moments do far outweigh the boisterous ones, this is no bad thing; the pregnant anticipatory shtick is something Mogwai have always done well. The perennial problem here is that anticipation alone is often not enough for such lengthy tracks as 'Thank You Space Expert' and 'I Love You, I'm Going To Blow Up Your School'. The production is cleaner and crisper than ever before, but the rawness contained in previous releases is somewhat lacking due to the absence of soaring and searing riffs. But Mogwai have always been a band who are more than the post-rock predictability of soft-heavy-soft. A heavier use of background electronic instrumentation is most prominent here, and for the most part it fits into the album neatly without being garish.
At a pace which rarely exceeds a laid-back stroll, the album slowly but, as sure as day is light and night is dark, exhibits some satisfying moments as it progresses. Nothing is too overstated but everything is somehow reassuringly constructed in the most organic way. ‘The Sun Smells Too Loud’ is the only real hiccup in proceedings and still sounds as much like a piss take, outtake or b-side as it did in July, rumbling along insipidly and tediously for nearly seven minutes and features a riff that could barely be more grating. 'I Love You, I'm Going To Blow Up Your School' shows Mogwai still have the knack for those epic seven-minuters, whilst album closer 'The Precipice' leaves you hanging by your fingertips over just that, as it gathers pace, force and velocity towards a conclusion of crunching proportions whilst the hawk's talons claw at your few remaining fingernails as you desperately cling on.
The Hawk Is Howling may not induce the apprehensive anxiety of Happy Songs For Happy People or even match the apocalyptic ambience of Rock Action, but when taken in isolation, even outside of the Mogwai name, it holds its own as Mogwai's first solely instrumental album (there's not even a subtle and softly spoken Scots accent being passed through a vocoder). Perhaps Mogwai have made a rod for their own back-catalogue but, after over a decade of output, The Hawk Is Howling proves they still remain worthy of their place on the post-rock pedestal.
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Mogwai
rock action?
not a massive fan of that album and i don't know too many mogwai fans who'd put it up there with their best.. i heard some stuff off this the other day on rob da bank's show and have to admit to being a bit bored, which has never happened to me with mogwai before. i hope i was just in a bad mood that day..
Rock Action
is my fave mogwai album, and most of my mogwai-loving mates would put it up there with the best thing they've done too. hoping this is as good, but a tad worried by the reviews ive seen...
Ooops. School boy error.
It was late in the day...
Definitely
doesn't match the epic impossibility of Rock Action, but it's still a great record, in a tad different way. I agree that some of the songs (especially Thank You Space Expert) does not measure up to the levels of tension brought. All in all, though, I think it's a solid album from one of the most prominent post-rock bands out there.
THANKS ...
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Hi Luke / DiS,
On behalf of Wall of Sound / PIAS, Matador Records and Mogwai, many thanks for your review of “The Hawk is Howling” (UK / US release date 22nd / 23rd September) ... .. and, if your readers want good quality, non-pirated, preview tracks, then full-length preview streams of the whole album are exclusively available via the band’s MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/mogwai ... .. “The Sun Smells Too Loud” and “Batcat” are now also designated as official promos for fans and bloggers to post / host / share etc in the run-up to - and folowing - release and do also check-out http://www.matadorrecords.com/mogwai/music.html and www.mogwai.co.uk for news and info on the new album and the band’s 2008 shows.
Thanks again for your insightful write-up.
Regards,
WEB SHERIFF
you know what you're getting with..
mogwai. i wasnt blown away with it. but its an enjoyable listen.
personally i think theres alot of other post rock bands out there that have surpassed mogwais efforts.
Lies!
I like The Sun Smells Too Loud...
Nice riff.
i
love
The Sun Smells Too Loud
totally agree on the sun smells too loud
that riff is just weird. i think you scored it about right. somewhere between 6 and 7 for me. one of my favourite bands of all time, and probably the biggest influence on my musical forays, but i think think their peak was reached a while ago.
having said all that, i think 'im jim morrison, im dead' is a brilliant tune. definately my favourite.
the
riff on 'the sun smells too loud' reminds me of the sound of gruff rhys' brain ticking over.
lovely album, glad they are back
What Pitchfork bandwagon?
I have read nothing on Pitchfork regarding this release. What did they say?
The point still stands.
Maybe people think it's shit because it is?
I must be one of the few who actually think "The Sun.." is pretty good!
This album is not very exciting, but it's an enjoyable listen
Come on die young
is my favourite Mogwai album...what tune is better than Xmas Steps?
really like the Hawk is Howling, its a great album, very consistent from start to finish. I'd give it an 8.
I really want to check it out
Sounds very promising. If 'The Sun Smells to Loud' is the worst track off the album, then I'm really looking forward to hearing the rest of it
good review
I think you hit the nail on the head with the piss-take remark concerning "The Sun Smells Too Loud". Not a dreaful tune by any means but one that features a rediculously boring riff for its entirity. Not a clever move.
The album is definitely a step-up from the abomination that was Mr Beast with all its awful vocal driven songs and MOR post rock lullabies. I'm really pleased that none of the Mogwai boys sang a note on this release either. Singing seems to only makes their records weaker (Cody the one exclusion to the rule, of course).
The Hawk has a flow to it not seen since Come on Die Young. I reckon 7 is a good score. Pitchforks 4.5 is a bit harsh.
Come on now
I know there's got to be other people out there who really liked Mr Beast! An 'abomination'? You've got to be kidding me.
On first listens I'd place this at around a 7-7.5/10 - see what further listens do for it
The Hawk is Howling
is the sound of Mogwai doing something unexpected and the majority of their critics going 'hang on, why are Mogwai doing something unexpected? What am I supposed to complain about now?!'
First impressions: it's slow, it's ponderous, it has some distinctly different instrumentation, and it's quite beautiful without needing to fall back on their old school dynamics. 'Still Waters Run Deep' come to mind.
And yes. Better than Mr. Beast by far, though I enjoyed Mr. Beast for what it was.
ok
an abomination by Mogwai's standards.
Friend of the Night just about saves it from being a near disaster.
no way!
folk death? g mega snake? both tunes too!
rock action
is easily their best and most accomplished record to me. young team second. all the rest have at least three songs which sound underdeveloped/throwaway
i would never ever trust anyone
who could be described by themselves, others or myself as a "post-rock aficionado"
i like that they're so much division
as regarding mogwai's best work. i think this must mean they're really good.
come on die young though, really? were there ever a more clear case of a band, when presented with the dilemma of a "difficult second album", put their fingers so firmly on the COMPLETELY PUSSY OUT button?
another
review:
disappointing
on first listen. also not particularly well-recorded despite pitchfork's assertion of increased production values.. i don't think they have ears.
i certainly prefer it
to rock action. as does mr cummings, for that matter.
it's the
third most-listened to Mogwai song on lastfm over the last 7 days, so evidently Mogwai fans, at least those with some kind of scrobbler, don't think it's shit...
Of course.
But it's also one of the two tracks freely available without purchasing the album. You can still listen to something you don't like.
I'm not criticising people who like it, just saying that I wasn't jumping on any bandwagon when reviewing it.
"the absence of soaring and searing riffs"
is my only big problem with the album because I spent most of the tracks waiting for some to come in - but I did really enjoy it. And more so on a second listen.
I think it will continue to grow on me.
rock action?
are you guys deaf. thats easily their least strong album. plus its too short. 8 tracks, and 2 are just short inbetween tracks. stop coming to my house is not great, and you dont know jesus could be much better.
er...
'Stop Coming To My House' isn't on Rock Action.
I didn't say you were
I was just presenting some evidence to say it's not shit. I really like it, one of my favourite Mogwai songs actually. The album's great, but it's kind of simmering away at the point that 'Sun' starts with it's weird, sharp noise and kind of wakes you up a bit. It's definitely not shit, that's too harsh. Pussycat Dolls are shit, for example.
I really liked Mr Beast
Happy Songs.. is my favourite Mogwai album, Rock Action would be quite low down in my list.
Only given Hawk a couple of listens so far but I'm really liking it. Can't wait to see them in Manchester in a few weeks.
Loved Pitchfork's review of this
He could've saved himself the bother and just written "Preferred their earlier stuff".
I could listen to Thank You Space Expert forever
The Sun Smells Too Loud...
...Is one of my favourites!
It's one of the only tracks that has standy-out hook; the 'riff that could barely be more grating'.
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