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.”)
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]
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reminds me of playing commodore 64 when i’d stay home from school in the 7th grade. so yeah, nostalgic. good tune.
What would you play? ‘Below The Root’.. .’Space Taxi’ perhaps.
Just saw them at Sled Island festival. Mogwai headlined and were the perfect cap to the night.
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.
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.
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Hi Stereogum,
On behalf of Wall of Sound / PIAS, Matador Records and Mogwai, many thanks for plugging ?The Hawk is Howling? (release date 21st September) … .. thanks also, on behalf of the artist and label, for not posting any pirate links to unreleased (studio) material and, if you / your readers want good quality, non-pirated, preview tracks, then full-length versions of ?The Sun Smells Too Loud? and other, exclusive previews are available for fans and bloggers to post / host / share etc in the run-up to release at http://www.matadorrecords.com/mogwai/music.html … .. do also check-out http://www.mogwai.co.uk and http://www.myspace.com/mogwai for news and info on the new album and the band?s 2008 shows.
Thanks again for your plug.
Regards,
WEB SHERIFF