The Flashcards for Godspeed You! Black Emperor

Godspeed You! Black Emperor is an all-time essential post-rock band, and I've noticed this Canadian outfit completely dominates the minds of the genre's fanbase. It's as if no other post-rock band exists whenever people discuss or search for the genre.

Naturally, I've dabbled with these deities before, but their sound has never quite aligned with my personal taste. Still, since this is one of my favorite genres, I decided to give them another listen—hoping perhaps some new moments might win me over. But given their top-tier, S-class status, I won't be writing an overly exhaustive summary for them.

Here are the results of this latest venture:

F# A# ∞ (1998)

75+/100

Truthfully, you can just put this on if you want to know what the genre is all about. Tracks spanning over a dozen minutes certainly felt alien back then—definitely far from conventional, even if a band like Swans had pioneered that territory much earlier. Operating with a crescendo-centric style paired with violin and piano was enough to break through my cynicism on "The Dead Flag Blues" and "East Hastings." The third track follows a similar path and is decent, though the heavier riffing in the outro gets a bit distracting.

Look, I essentially have to offer an apology here, especially to the GY!BE fans who constantly hype this band up. The truth is, I just want to see the spotlight shine elsewhere rather than on the same old band all the time. If I wasn't typing out a critique like this, my appreciation for GY!BE wouldn't be much different from when I first tried them five years ago. Giving them even an 80 feels like a stretch this time around. Historically essential, yes, but still not personally essential.

Tracklist:

 1. The Dead Flag Blues

 2. East Hastings

 3. Providence

Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada (1999)

70+/100

GY!BE's second major release is the Slow Riot for New Zero Kanada EP. This feels a bit more accessible, featuring emotional clean guitar tremolo picking on "Moya," though the noise-drenched guitar shrieking from the 11:53 mark to the 14-minute mark acts as a disruptor on "Blaise Bailey Finnegan III." Naturally, though, I have to admit GY!BE is highly consistent, and "Moya" becomes the first track here to make it onto my favorites playlist—even if I couldn't get my hands on it for free. Hahaha...

Tracklist:

 1. Moya

 2. Blaise Bailey Finnegan III

Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven (2000)

75/100

For three consecutive years, Godspeed You! Black Emperor dropped new material. Yet, out of the many times I've replayed this, only the violin and crescendo arrangement within the first six minutes of "Storm" managed to truly strike a chord. The shift at the eleven-minute mark—the mid-song transition—prevents the full track from fitting my taste. "Like Antennas To Heaven..." kicks off with acoustic guitars and vocals that fail to grab my attention, as I much prefer the spoken word sections, field recordings, or audio samples like speeches that typically define this genre. The melancholic stretch from 06:57 to 12:07 stands as the finest moment on the track. The subsequent extended crescendos are "Sleep" and "Static," which utilize guitar effects or direct wailing vocals to conjure a magical or spiritualistic aura. The flute-like textures alongside the guitar riff from 16:53 onward on "Sleep" are actually cool, but they don't fully sink in.

So, despite being labeled a phenomenon by others, I simply can't connect with the dynamics at play here. Perhaps I just don't get it yet, and who knows when I ever will when it comes to GY!BE.

Tracklist:

 1. Storm

 2. Static

 3. Sleep

 4. Like Antennas To Heaven... 

Yanqui U.X.O. (2002)

70/100

Their third album isn't exactly one of their essential releases, but I do appreciate the dialed-back noise and fewer jarring riffs. Unfortunately, it lacks any prominent violin, flute, or piano additions, which leaves it sounding like the standard crescendo style that countless bands adopted in its wake.

Tracklist:

 1. 09-15-00

 2. 09-15-00 (cont.)

 3. Rockets fall on Rocket Falls

 4. motherfucker=redeemer

 5. motherfucker=redeemer (cont.)

Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend! (2012)

70+/100

Their fourth album doesn't stray far in terms of composition. Noise and folk/world music elements form the core of "Their Helicopters Sing," which are then injected with post-rock instrumentation and violin on "We Drift Like Worried Fire." Between this track and "Mladic," I began to realize what makes GY!BE distinct, as the experimental/psychedelic rock textures feel far more pronounced here than anywhere else.

Tracklist:

 1. Mladic

 2. Their Helicopters Sing

 3. We Drift Like Worried Fire

 4. Strung Like Lights At Thee Printemps Erable

Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress (2015)

70+/100

If it weren't for the two tracks completely dedicated to pure noise, I would readily crown this as GY!BE's finest output. The main selling point lies in the crescendo delivery on "Peasantry or 'Light! Inside of Light!'" and "Piss Crowns Are Trebled," which get straight to the point and are much shorter than their usual fare.

Tracklist:

 1. Peasantry or ‘Light! Inside of Light!’

 2. Lambs’ Breath

 3. Asunder, Sweet

 4. Piss Crowns Are Trebled

Luciferian Towers (2017)

70/100

Their sixth album leaves a similar impression to "Like Antennas To Heaven...", leaving a mark via the horn-like sounds and violin work on "Anthem for No State, Pt. III." The only other track I can get behind is "Anthem for No State, Pt. I," solely because the violin dominates the mix. Beyond that, the usage of harsh, noisy riffing just doesn't resonate with me.

Tracklist:

 1. Undoing A Luciferian Towers

 2. Bosses Hang, Pt. I

 3. Bosses Hang, Pt. II

 4. Bosses Hang, Pt. III

 5. Fam/Famine

 6. Anthem For No State, Pt. I 

 7. Anthem For No State, Pt. II

 8. Anthem For No State, Pt. III 

G_d’s Pee AT STATE’S END! (2021)

70+/100

Up to this point, what actually sounds different? Beats me. It heavily mirrors their four main albums, relying on noise, peculiar riffs, and supporting instrumentation like violin and flute. The moments that stir up genuine emotion can be found in the second build-up of "Ashes to Sea or Nearer to Thee," as well as on one of the shorter cuts, "Our Side Has to Win (for D.H.)," thanks to the prominent violin presence there. A psychedelic aura also permeates "Where We Break How We Shine (Rockets for Mary)."

Tracklist:

 1. A Military Alphabet (five eyes all blind) (4521.0kHz 6730.0kHz 4109.09kHz) / Job’s Lament / First of the Last Glaciers / where we break how we shine (ROCKETS FOR MARY)

 2. Fire at Static Valley

 3. “GOVERNMENT CAME” (9980.0kHz 3617.1kHz 4521.0 kHz) / Cliffs Gaze / cliffs’ gaze at empty waters’ rise / ASHES TO SEA or NEARER TO THEE

 4. OUR SIDE HAS TO WIN (for D.H.)

All lights fucked on the hairy amp drooling (2022)

60/100

An archival recording dating back to 1993, capturing a time when GY!BE was still rooted in alternative/experimental rock with distinct emo undercurrents. It features plenty of acoustic playing, audio samples, and scattered vocals.

SIDE A

drifting intro open / shot thru tubes / threethreethree / when all the furnaces exploded / beep / hush / son of a diplomat, daughter of a politician / glencairn 14 / $13.13 / loose the idiot dogs / diminishing shine / random luvly moncton blue(s) / dadmomdaddy

SIDE B

333 frames per second / revisionist alternatif wounds to the hairkut hit head / ditty for moya / buried ton / and the hairy guts shine / hoarding / deterior 23 / all angels gone / deterior 17 / deterior three / devil's in the church / no job / dress like shit / perfumed pink corpses from the lips of ms. celine dion

Tracklist:

 1. all lights fucked on the hairy amp drooling - SIDE A1

 2. all lights fucked on the hairy amp drooling - SIDE A2.wav

 3. all lights fucked on the hairy amp drooling - SIDE B1.wav

 4. all lights fucked on the hairy amp drooling - SIDE B2

"NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD" (2024)

75/100

Is it because of the connection to the Israeli aggression in Palestine that makes this latest GY!BE album a strong release in my eyes? Perhaps, but the clearest reason is the violin—meaning the melancholic elements present across a good portion of the tracks! Yes, the formula remains more or less the same, and there is noise, but it isn't overly intrusive, except on "Raindrops Cast in Lead" which carries a more energetic stride.

However, upon closer listening later on, everything seemed to dissolve. It no longer felt cohesive. Well, that's because the melancholic violin only takes center stage during very specific moments, but the Montreal outfit still deserves credit here.

Tracklist:

 1. SUN IS A HOLE SUN IS VAPORS

 2. BABYS IN A THUNDERCLOUD

 3. RAINDROPS CAST IN LEAD

 4. BROKEN SPIRES AT DEAD KAPITAL

 5. PALE SPECTATOR TAKES PHOTOGRAPHS

 6. GREY RUBBLE - GREEN SHOOTS