mrewest Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 1 hour ago, Derek™ said: Earlier Pelican doesn’t sound like this at all, to me. My problem with a lot of Pelican’s prior albums is that there’s too much fluff. There are well-constructed, killer riffs and Russian Circles-tier chugs here and there... but they’re flashes in the pan on albums like Fire In Our Throats. There’s just too much wandering and not enough purpose. I think the songwriting is absolutely tightened up this time around. If anything, a lot of the songs - this time around - take some time to breathe, slow down, and not pummel the listener with monotonous riffs. I don’t know, I can’t find a weak song on the entire thing. Even the chiller intro and interlude are great breathers that help retain the flow of the record and keep it from ever getting to be overbearing. I think each song unpacks at a similar pace, and in a similar fashion than Russian Circles — never in my life would I imagine their songwriting to be on an equal footing but here we are. Admittedly I don’t know if I ever made it through a full Pelican album prior to this one. Any time I tried in the past I would get so bored I had to move on. Felt the same way when I saw part of their set at Dunk USA & also when I listened to their live Dunk album. This new one absolutely caught my attention way more than anything I’ve previously tried to listen to. Like I said the way some of these tracks end is what’s doing it for me. I look forward to more listens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek™ Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 4 minutes ago, mrewest said: Admittedly I don’t know if I ever made it through a full Pelican album prior to this one. Any time I tried in the past I would get so bored I had to move on. Felt the same way when I saw part of their set at Dunk USA & also when I listened to their live Dunk album. This new one absolutely caught my attention way more than anything I’ve previously tried to listen to. Like I said the way some of these tracks end is what’s doing it for me. I look forward to more listens. There are a handful of Pelican albums that I have to mentally prepare myself to sit down and listen to start to finish, so I get it. I’ve only caught them live once but I thought they were pretty killer. I suspect a big culprit could be their drumming – it’s nowhere near the level of variety and interest that Dave contributes to RC. Let me know if it grows on you at all. If not, at least we have LITE and Blood Year in a couple of months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drds89 Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 Doesn't sound like Pelican till track 6 Last song was probably my favorite, but overall, it sounds like an instrumental verison 70's rock/metal, Sabbath-lite, which I already lived through and spent enough money on. Not a bad listen though. If anyone wants a red copy to flip, one of Derek's recommendations earlier in the thread still has one ethereal 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alwaysopenmouth Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 I feel like I'm one of a few people that don't have a problem with Larry's drumming. I still remember that pitchfork review back in the day that started off by immediately calling for them to fire him lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek™ Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 1 hour ago, drds89 said: Doesn't sound like Pelican till track 6 I think that’s what makes this album so good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
throwgncpr Posted June 8, 2019 Share Posted June 8, 2019 I don't know how someone can listen to the first 5 tracks and not think it sounds like Pelican.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek™ Posted June 8, 2019 Share Posted June 8, 2019 4 minutes ago, throwgncpr said: I don't know how someone can listen to the first 5 tracks and not think it sounds like Pelican.. I think it sounds like a version of Pelican that have clear intent and direction with their songwriting, and know how to weave memorable riffs into their music. Midnight and Mescaline feels like an exercise in taking the best bits of their last album and morphing it into an entire track. It's a new Pelican for me and I'm into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
throwgncpr Posted June 8, 2019 Share Posted June 8, 2019 I think it's a clear continuation of where they were heading with Forever Becoming. It's better and more focused, but this is by no means a stretch for them. I'd put this up with my favorite Pelican releases (I actually prefer the slow, wandering fluff of their earliest songs). This might even be their best, were it not for Abyssal Plane. That song really bugs me and it pulls me out of the joy of the rest of the album. The lead guitar riff is annoying, and Larry's drumming on this song is not working at all for me. Still, it's one low point on an otherwise really great record. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drds89 Posted June 8, 2019 Share Posted June 8, 2019 21 hours ago, Derek™ said: I think that’s what makes this album so good. That it doesn't sound like former (meh) Pelican -- jajaja -- I couldn't resist, from my truncated quote. J/K my brutha! I know musical tastes are subjective and glad you are enjoying 70's rock. This could have been the album between Rush ST and Fly By Night, almost ;) But seriously, if this album was released by a lesser known or unknown band and was a Gumbo bandcamp rec on the Postrock thread , would you be loving it and clamoring for vinyl, or is it because of the fact that it is ....Pelican? I'm already two posts too many into this thread, so I will leave the final word to Derek (I've listened to every Pelican album and revisited at various stages through the past 10 years or so, and like @mrewest who has yet to see the pg.lost light, fail to own any of their music on vinyl) Only 3 pages on a new Pelican release, too, seems odd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek™ Posted June 9, 2019 Share Posted June 9, 2019 10 hours ago, drds89 said: That it doesn't sound like former (meh) Pelican -- jajaja -- I couldn't resist, from my truncated quote. Yeah, that's exactly it, actually. I am by no means a Pelican fanboy. I own their stuff and I enjoy it but more often than not I have to be in a pretty specific mood to fully appreciate one of their albums, start to finish. Just my personal 2¢ but I don't find their "full album" songwriting abilities to be as well-rounded or as engaging as a band like Russian Circles. I think I'm going to have to take your word on that Rush comparison, though. Admittedly, I am not well-versed in the realm of classic rock... but from your post I'm gathering that Rush was either grimy, riff-heavy post-metal earlier in their career, or that you've gotten a hold of a Pelican prog-rock record. Really struggling to wrap my head around either scenario and would enjoy your elaboration unless you're truly done with the thread. I see no harm in keeping it afloat with new posts – I doubt anyone is expecting any sort of specific updates or links at this point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drds89 Posted June 10, 2019 Share Posted June 10, 2019 Fair enough, I appreciate your irenic spirit of discussion! I'd think few would disagree earlier Pelican is in the metal genre, most likely post metal. I like quite a few post metal bands, but they never clicked with me. This album sounds like rock until the later tracks, where we get some metal riffage and some dynamics to earn the monicker of "post." Re: Rush, it's always been difficult for me to call S/T a prog rock album. When Neil joined the band and started writing lyrics, they started moving away from your typical rock band. Even CoS, Fly By Night & 2112 are rock albums to me, but the thematic approach and longer tracks started getting the attention of prog fans, I'll give them the nod. They were a rock band who could write radio friendly beauties, but also Xanadu, Cygnus X-1 and side 1 of Hemispheres to make them a prog rock fan's dream. They could be accessible to wider audience of top 40 folks. Then came Moving Pictures...you know the story. It was fun living through that era. Yes, King Crimson, Tull, Led Zep and Pink Floyd's albums sound so different when you're in middle school vs college -- as did side 1 of Hemispheres lol. I don't think I can put into words like the mighty Gumbo how hard rock differs from metal. The ends of the spectrum are easier to get consensus, but the continuum where hard rock and light metal differ is mushy. The discussion can go like those genre-related discussions within the post rock universe, that includes such divergent sounds as Mogwai, Sigur Ros, Explosions, Godspeed, Mono, etc -- don't you love it when reviewers who listen to an album that is supposed to be "post rock" and then say fans of EiTS and Godspeed should love this?! smh Again, to my ears, this album (first 5 tracks) sounds lighter than earlier Pelican and agree with you a logical progression from Forever Becoming. It's instrumental rock (that's been done before, but not boring or bad, technically. I guess I need to re-listen for that drum miscue mentioned by another member) -- and some metal later on. Gain some fans, lose some. Russian Circles isn't always full-on post metal (I know you never said or implied it), they have written some really nice, lighter post rock tracks, some very beautiful ballads, etc. But most of us would call them post metal without blinking an eye, or adding the extra stuff I just did ^^^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1876records Posted June 10, 2019 Share Posted June 10, 2019 wow, this record is damn near perfect. way to go, Pelican! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bortx Posted June 10, 2019 Share Posted June 10, 2019 is there any physical evidence for the existence of red vinyl? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek™ Posted June 10, 2019 Share Posted June 10, 2019 5 minutes ago, bortx said: is there any physical evidence for the existence of red vinyl? bortx 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kisol Posted June 10, 2019 Share Posted June 10, 2019 22 hours ago, drds89 said: they have written some really nice, lighter post rock tracks, some very beautiful ballads, etc. Don’t tell their bass player Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drds89 Posted June 12, 2019 Share Posted June 12, 2019 On 6/10/2019 at 7:38 PM, kisol said: Don’t tell their bass player LOL, bubblegutz was probably reefed as usual. Most of the big name post rock bands eschew the moniker for some reason, but shorthands or labels or genres as a starting point of identification for discussion. Not sure why they do, especially Mogwai. "Mostly-instrumental-rock-metal-band-with-loud-soft-loud-dynamics-atypical-song-structure-if-vocals-likely-used-as-another-instrument-sometimes-with-samples-and-longer-than-3-minutes-duration" I've already written my opinion about Brian elsewhere. And to think shoegaze used to be a derogatory term! seku and kisol 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alwaysopenmouth Posted June 17, 2019 Share Posted June 17, 2019 Finally gave this a proper spin after having only listening to it via Spotify. I love how huge this sounds, especially "Arteries of Blacktop." My only gripe I guess is that both LPs were pretty warped, though playback isn't affected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brentoage Posted June 22, 2019 Share Posted June 22, 2019 I picked up a copy of this last night at the show in Toronto. They had a few versions - I grabbed the silkscreened tour cover /250 on black vinyl. Trevor dug my Pelican tattoo. The set consisted of mostly new stuff. Fun night! danyc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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