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]
