(you can also read the story of the band in their own words...)

godspeed you black emperor! formed in montreal around 1993/1994, taking their name from a mitsuo yanagimachi documentary/film. their first release, all lights fucked on the hairy amp drooling, was released in december 1994 and is described on the constellation records site as follows:

this very out-of-print cassette is the only released document of the earliest days of godspeed. to even call it a release is a stretch as only 33 were ever dubbed. at the time, the ‘band’ was comprised of efrim and mauro only, and this cassette foretells where the current ensemble would ultimately go as regards seamless pieces interwoven with compelling field recordings, spoken-word, and strange soundings from who knows where.

by early 1997, the band had increased to a ten piece and began recording the first full length release, titled f#a#oo. from the constellation site:

f#a# oo was the culmination of godspeed’s evolution into a large ensemble. by early 1997, the band had taken shape as a quasi-orchestral outfit involving most of the current players and had mounted a number of live performances combining multiple film projections with sense-rattling sonics. the recording of f#a# oo took place at their loft (hotel 2 tango) on a rented 16-track analogue machine and was supplemented with 4-track recordings and material from the band’s archive of field recordings. the opening monologue on side a (dead flag blues) is taken from incomplete movie about jail, an unfinished film that efrim wrote and has been working on for the last five years.

this is the press release which accompanied the album:

take the epic scope of ennio morricone, the artsy slash of 17 pygmies, the desert tones of prime savage republic, bolster the mix with the rhythmic chugalug of the ex and add the canadian tradition of radio drama and you begin to get a hint of what this band are up to. with twin percussionists, three guitar players, violin, cello, glockenspeil and tape loops, godspeed you black emperor! can make a big rumbling sound or stretch out into delicate filigrees.

the first new material since the album appeared in march 1999, in the form of the slow riot for new zero kanada ep. as constellation describe it...

two new pieces capture the band in all their mesmerizing, drawn-out glory. both songs are long intricate compositions that rise and fall with the full dynamics and interplay that characterize godspeed's live performances.
side one is an eleven minute rock opus that builds to a chilling cresecendo and then explodes beyond the threshold. side two clocks in at eighteen minutes, with an extended spoken-word field recording as its foundation, around which the band structures various movements ranging from the minimal to the densely layered.

the band have recently completed a european tour, with the prospect of an american tour, possibly to coincide with the release of the new record in september, to come. check the news page for more details.

top of page