New Mogwai - "The Sun Smells Too Loud"

Mogwai, those veteran Glaswegian purveyors of loud/soft/loud/soft instrumentals, are back with their sixth studio album The Hawk Is Howling, the follow-up to 2006's Mr. Beast. I've only been listening to the record for 24 hours, but track five, the 7-minute "The Sun Smells Too Loud," is without a doubt Hawk's catchy, shimmery, slightly nostalgic pop piece. Really, the majority of the 10 tracks have a downcast, melancholic, or at least darker bent, which makes it a curious first taste. (By the way, best song titles go to chilly opener "I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead" and moody, cinematic soft-to-loud scorcher "I Love You, I'm Going To Blow Up Your School.")

Mogwai - "The Sun Smells Too Loud" (MP3)

Where have I heard the central hook before? Yo La Tengo? More nostalgic than happy, maybe. Still, definitely the anomaly.

The Hawk Is Howling is out 9/23 on Matador. The guys are out and about in September with Fuck Buttons as the supporting act for all the shows:

09/03 - Portland, OR @ Music Fest NW
09/04 - Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo
09/05 - Victoria, BC @ Element
09/06 - Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom
09/08 - San Francisco, CA @ The Grand Ballroom
09/09 - Los Angeles, CA @ Wiltern Theatre
09/10 - Tucson, AZ @ The Rialto
09/12 - Austin, TX @ Stubb's
09/13 - Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
09/15 - Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse
09/16 - Richmond, VA @ The National
09/17 - Washington DC @ 9:30 Club
09/18 - New York, NY @ Terminal 5
09/19 - Philadelphia, PA @ Starlight Ballroom
09/21 - Monticello, NY @ ATP Festival
09/22 - Boston, MA @ Wilbur Theatre
09/23 - Montreal, QC @ Metropolis
09/24 - Toronto, ON @ Kool Haus
09/25 - Pontiac, MI @ The Crofoot
09/26 - Chicago, IL @ Congress Theater
09/27 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue

[Photo by Steve Gullick]

Posted at 11:09 AM by brandon in MP3
Tags: Mogwai

5 Comments

reminds me of playing commodore 64 when i'd stay home from school in the 7th grade. so yeah, nostalgic. good tune.

Posted by: billy the boy by the pool with stuff at 07/03/08 11:53 AM | Reply
Score = 1

What would you play? 'Below The Root'.. .'Space Taxi' perhaps.

Posted by: kaleb in reply to billy the boy by the pool with stuff's comment at 07/03/08 12:52 PM | Reply
Score = 0

Just saw them at Sled Island festival. Mogwai headlined and were the perfect cap to the night.

Posted by: eyun at 07/03/08 3:47 PM | Reply
Score = 1

i also saw them at sled island and it was perfect. they put on a hell of a show. this new track reminds me of jello in a sock, and that is a good thing.

Posted by: daver at 07/03/08 10:15 PM | Reply
Score = 2

Saw them in DC a few years ago and my hearing has not been the same since. Of course the constant ringing in my ears is annoying, but I will do it all over again come September.

Posted by: glouse at 07/16/08 1:45 PM | Reply
Score = 0