Mogwai - The Hawk Is Howling

Mogwai. The Hawk is Howling. 2008. 4 stars.

These post-rock pioneers seem to have divided critical opinion over the last few years. Being that their breakthrough debut Young Team came out over a decade ago, fans have debated as to whether their followups are merely paled copies of their first efforts or successful attempts at refining and focusing their sound. 2006’s Mr. Beast was an excellent case in point - some argued that it cut Mogwai far too short, narrowing their songs down to powerful bursts, essentially loosing the slow-burning, spacey atmosphere that made them famous. Others, myself included, saw the transition as an attempt to reassert their dominance in a genre now full of faceless copycats. The Hawk is Howling follows the measured lead of its predecessor but is thankfully more intricate, dense and fluid.

The album’s opener, “I’m Jim Morrison, I’m Dead” is a beautiful and impressively detailed track that builds organically into a shimmering crescendo. Its progressions are far less forced and mechanical than some of the other Slint-inspired numbers from their discography. “Batcat”, the first single from the album, is the album’s most intense and bloody song, with lots of cascading feedback and distortion, sounding like a compressed climax from Tool. The burning tension leads to fiery, angular release, reminding me of the final, terrifying moments of Slint’s “Good Morning Captain”, an obvious inspiration for the band. Far from being derivative, “BatCat” blends a climbing doom metal procession with psychedelic passages of noise, making it a genuine tour de force.

Other highlights include the infectious psych-pop of “The Sun Smells to Loud” which features a bouncy, guitar hook accompanied by bright electronic flourishes. Easily one of the catchiest Mogwai songs to come along, perhaps since “Hunted by a Freak”, revealing the more wide-eyed and wondrous side of the band that is often neglected amid the usual gloom and doom (and boom).

The rest of the album, save for a few explosive climaxes, is not as distinctive. Songs like “King’s Meadow”, “Daphne and the Brain” and “Local Authority” are certainly beautiful and relaxed jams, but they seem uneventful in light of their more intense counterparts. “I Love you I’m Going to Blow Up Your School” has a compelling build up, with spidery riffs and a foreboding atmosphere, but its very similar to the gargantuan “My Father My King” from the EP of the same name.

While about half of this album has Mogwai returning to some of their better ideas, there is enough of an experimental edge to this to keep it interesting and fresh. Its a satisfying work to be sure, and it manages to solidify Mogwai’s position as a intense and influential creative force in post rock. The Hawk is Howling may not have the same effect on 2008 as Young Team had on 1997, but its still an impressive accomplishment, both in terms of its tight cohesion and its tense, spiraling compositions.

Mogwai “I’m Jim Morrison, I’m Dead” Live in Mexico City

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This entry was posted on Friday, September 26th, 2008 at 3:11 pm and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.