My first experience with Mogwai dates back to Lowlands 1998. Next to me was a boy with his back to the stage drinking a beer, while the youthful Scottish band behind him were strumming for several minutes. Suddenly, however, the song (Christmas Steps) ignited in a deafening roar, after which the unsuspecting boy dropped his beer with fright. With that extreme contrast between quiet and loud, Christmas
… Steps was the perfect introduction to Mogwai's instrumental post rock, and the prelude to their breakthrough album Come On Die Young. Some say they have never surpassed it. True or not, the fact is that the albums from (2003) are somewhat interchangeable, although they invariably contain two or three welcome additions to the live set. This is also the case on the ninth studio album Every Country's Sun. Coolverine is a reminder of everything that made Mogwai so exciting in its early days, Party In The Dark (with shoegaze vocals by band leader Stuart Braithwaite) is Mogwai's best approach to a radio hit, while Don't Believe The Fife is pleasant after four minutes. old-fashioned strumming ignites. Watch your beers! (RME)more
