Record #867: BRUIT≤ – The Machine is burning and now everyone knows it can happen again (2021)

As a post rock fan, I’ve heard a lot of my fellow fans complaining the last several years about how there aren’t any good post rock albums coming out. I have generally dismissed this as your typical “old man yells at cloud” grumpiness. After all, there’s been tons of recent post rock that I’ve absolutely loved.

But then, I heard The Machine is burning and now everyone knows it can happen again by French post rock/modern classical quartet BRUIT≤ (French for “noise”). This record is so great that for a second, I understood what they might have been talking about.

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Record #596: Mono – Hymn to the Immortal Wind (2009)

One of the most common characteristics among post rock bands is the complete denial that they are a post rock band. Explosions in the Sky insists that they are “cinematic rock.” This Will Destroy You defiantly calls themselves “doomgaze.” Mogwai calls the term “lazy” and says they’re just experimental rock.

And Mono, from Japan, themselves sneer at the label, insisting that they are a neo-classical group.

But as pretentious as that might sound, Hymn to the Immortal Wind leaves no room for doubt. Continue reading