Post-rock

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L'espressione post-rock indica, in senso ampio, un genere musicale che utilizza una strumentazione rock (chitarra elettrica, basso, batteria) in modo non conforme alla tradizione del rock stesso, attingendo più da altre tradizioni della musica leggera quali soprattutto jazz, musica elettronica, krautrock o simili. L'espressione fu coniata da Simon Reynolds in un articolo sul numero 123 della rivista musicale The Wire (maggio 1994) e si riferiva originariamente a gruppi come Stereolab, Disco Inferno, Seefeel, Bark Psychosis e Pram; in seguito il suo significato venne esteso (diventando anche più ambiguo) fino a includere gruppi come Slint, Explosions in the sky, Tortoise o Mogwai (che hanno oggettivamente pochissimo in comune).

Fra i gruppi "fondatori" del genere (ovvero fra i primi gruppi ai quali l'espressione post-rock fu riferita in modo sistematico, fino a identificarla con il loro stile) ci sono i già citati Slint e Tortoise (fra gli album di quest'ultimo gruppo fu molto influente, in particolare, Millions Now Living Will Never Die), ma anche gruppi come i Talk Talk che sul finire degli anni '80 rivoluzionarono la loro musica (in precedenza erano synth-pop). John McEntire dei Tortoise divenne in seguito produttore di molte altre band che si ispiravano al sound del suo gruppo. In questo periodo (in cui il fenomeno era particolarmente vivo nella città di Chicago) l'uso dell'espressione post-rock iniziò a diventare più vago, indicando una gamma di stili che variavano dalla musica ambient dei Boxhead Ensemble, al rock dei Radiohead, fino alla musica elettronica degli Stereolab. Anche in seguito all'uso sempre più inconsistente che se ne faceva sui media, l'espressione post-rock cadde progressivamente in disuso nei primi anni 2000 (gli stessi Tortoise rifiutarono di essere etichettati in quel modo); tuttavia, essa viene ancora usata in certi contesti ed esistono tutt'oggi festival "post-rock" o etichette dedicate a questo genere di musica.

History of the scene

The band Tortoise was among the founders of the movement. After the second Tortoise LP Millions Now Living Will Never Die, the band became a post-rock icon. After many bands (e.g., Do Make Say Think) began to record music inspired by the "Tortoise-sound", and were often described as post-rock.

In the late nineties, Chicago, Illinois, became the home base of many different groups. John McEntire (of Tortoise) became an important producer for lots of them, as well as Jim O'Rourke (of Brice-Glace, Gastr del Sol and many more). Godspeed You Black Emperor! (from Montreal, Canada - later renamed Godspeed You! Black Emperor) and Mogwai (from Glasgow, Scotland) were among some of the influential bands of the scene to arise during this time. Post-rock began to range from the slow, guitar-based ambience of Boxhead Ensemble, through the mid-tempo rock of Radiohead, to the up-tempo electronica of Stereolab.

By the early 2000s, the term had started to fall out of favour. It became increasingly controversial as more critics outwardly condemned its use. Even the bands for whom the term was most frequently assigned (for example, Cul-de-Sac, Tortoise, and Mogwai) rejected the label that it placed on them. The wide range of styles covered by the term most likely robbed it of its usefulness. Bands like My Bloody Valentine are often referred to as post-rock due to the overuse of the term when categorizing rock bands with a more experimental edge to them.

Today, despite criticism of the term, the post-rock genre lives on. Explosions in the Sky and Mono are among the post-rock bands which have recently risen in popularity, due to the emphasis on melody and emotional content within their music. Some relatively "commercial" bands such as Yourcodenameis:milo and Hope Of The States have adopted the quiet-loud-quiet-loud songwriting approach used by bands such as Mogwai. However, exempting the widespread success of Icelandic post-rock band Sigur Rós, the movement hasn't caught on significantly in mainstream music. Many new post-rock bands remain in the underground; notable examples include Detwiije, Red Sparowes, and Caspian.

Perhaps the most eminent post-rock "scene" today is that of Montreal, where Godspeed You! Black Emperor and similar, orchestral post-rock bands record on the Constellation label. These groups are generally characterized by a leftist political ethic and an aesthetic rooted in, among other genres, musique concrete, chamber music, and free jazz. Other than Godspeed, some of the better-known groups include A Silver Mount Zion, Do Make Say Think, and Fly Pan Am.

The post-rock sound

As mentioned above, the post-rock sound incorporates a wide variety of musical genres, such as ambient, jazz, electronica, experimental, and sometimes even rock itself. The post-rock approach to music, including emphasis on instrumental work and sound textures, is similar to the earlier New Age movement, which came out of the modern folk tradition. Post-rock is characterised by repetition of musical motifs and subtle changes, with an extremely wide range of dynamics. Most often, post-rock songs are lengthy and instrumental, containing repetitive build-ups of timbre, dynamics and texture. Guitar timbres are usually smooth, often using delay and reverb. Harmonically, there is an emphasis on consonance, though by no means is there a definitive rule of thumb. Another genre closely related to post-rock is math rock, characterized by more percussive timbres, more dissonant harmonic gestures, and more prog-influenced arrangements.

Lyrics are often omitted from post-rock music, however this does not necessarily mean vocals are always absent. Some post-rock bands employ vocals as an instrument, incidental to the overall sound, rather than the more traditional use where clean, interpretable vocals are important for poetic and lyrical meaning. Post-rock vocals are usually soft and droning, and can be infrequent or present in irregular intervals. Jessica Bailiff is a good example of this style of droning vocals. Sigur Rós, a band known for their distinctive vocals, have even fabricated a language which they call 'Hopelandic', described by the band as "a form of gibberish vocals that fits to the music and acts as another instrument" [1].

Wider experimentation and blending of other genres have recently taken hold in the post-rock scene. Many bands such as Red Sparowes and Pelican have been fusing metal with post-rock, the Appleseed Cast's Low Level Owl project of 2001 saw the previously emo band totally expand their sound with an ambitious double-album suite of atmospheric songs and ambient instrumentals. Some post-rock bands such as Bossk have even been using vocals similar to those found in death metal. Bands such as Pivot, 65daysofstatic and From Monument to Masses incorporate electronica and sampling elements into their tracks. The lines between post-rock and post-hardcore are also slowly being blurred by bands like Oceansize, Peace Burial at Sea and Youthmovie Soundtrack Strategies. Other bands such as Rachel's and Clogs combine post-rock with classical music. Bands such as Godspeed You! Black Emperor are so far removed from popular music in their sparseness of arrangement and use of repetition, that they are frequently compared to minimalism.