Mogwai - Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will

Glasgow, Scotland natives and experimental music pioneers, Mogwai, have carved the path for many and have influenced numerous other bands in the post-rock genre. For a genre that is very serious and almost melancholic sounding, you would think that the pioneers would keep this sound alive throughout, but this is not the case. Mogwai, for one thing, have a great sense of humor. One can tell this by just looking at the song titles. Names such as 'Batcat', 'Glasgow Mega-Snake', and 'I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead' make no sense, but they don't really need to, because Mogwai's music is that legendary. They like to experiment with many different styles and are safe from being labeled post-rock, a name that they have always despised. One thing is for certain, these five Scots continue to make ears bleed with the release of 'Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will'.

Many of the songs on 'Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will' follow in the footsteps of Mogwai's epic catalogue, however, there are some surprises on this release. Many of the sounds that Mogwai create could be sounds that one might hear in big-budget films or car commercials, but other sounds could even be danced to in a club-type setting. Opener 'White Noise' begins with muted guitar and lush piano arrangements. Keyboards help to round out the track and form the central melody for its entirety. The track 'San Pedro' brings to mind stoner-rock (Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age), where tracks such as 'Mexican Grand Prix' and 'George Square Thatcher Death Party' use mainly keyboards and synths to create 80's sounding electro-pop. These tracks bring to mind bands such as Kraftwerk, Neu!, and My Bloody Valentine. 'Rano Pano' contains fuzzed-out guitar and remains fairly monotonous throughout while 'Death Rays' contains guitars, synths, and pianos, to create a spectacle of beautiful melodies (something Mogwai is very keen on). 'Letters to the Metro' and 'Death Rays' are both very mood-driven tracks, but where 'Death Rays' sounds hopeful, 'Letters to the Metro' sounds sleepy. 'How to Be a Werewolf' begins as a slow, synth-driven melody, which eventually turns into a full-fledged rock song. 'Too Raging to Cheers' sounds like a sadder version of 'Auto Rock' from 'Mr. Beast', while 'You're Lionel Richie' resembles Godspeed You Black Emperor with the slow-build-until-crescendo technique.

'Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will' shows that Mogwai definitely can switch up the routine if they please. This is a masterpiece of an album and being the seventh album, one would think Mogwai would have gone stale by now, but it sounds to me like this is only the beginning (fourteen years later). Fans since day one, as well as new listeners, will hear elements of krautrock, shoegaze, dancehall, techno, post-rock, alternative, punk, and ambient, and will never get bored with this album. This could easily be Mogwai's best album since 'Young Team' and they have definitely opened new doors over the years.