来自日本东京的三人后摇乐队 December 时隔多年沉淀和两张 EP 的洗礼,终于在今年于倦鸟唱片出品了这张全长专辑 《Alpha And Omega》 。在这张新专辑中,你讲能够听到属于 December 的独特器乐编排以及第一次流露出的对于弦乐的精妙使用;与此同时,他们在两张 EP 中所体现出的细腻也依然拿捏的恰到好处。这张译为“始终”的全长,终于丢掉了从《Torso》 里最后的一点“似曾相识”的他人影子,取而代之的,便是彻头彻尾的December了。

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封面中几位男女在蓝天绿野苍穹间赤裸的奔跑着，像开始着一段美丽梦幻的旅程，更像是一次向纯粹灵魂的回归。在聆听Sigur Ros这张新作品的时候，我一直在思考它究竟在表达着什么。音乐截然不同的节奏明快，显现出了风格上的重大转变。Sigur Ros已经从以往阴冷的氛围中走了出来，开始展示出他们明媚的一面。我像这张专辑也许正是通过这种明亮的感觉传递着一种纯粹的回归吧。听完这张作品之后，突然感觉内心的浮躁仿佛随着音乐彻底消散了。第五首和第七首是专辑中最打动我的曲子，依然带着他们Sigur Ros以往作品的影子，空灵般的感觉引得人心中涌出一段段回忆般思绪。让我们经历着Sigur Ros带给了我们又一次灵魂般洗礼的感动，随着他们开始一段盛夏之旅吧！
专辑原名为《Mee Sue í Eyrum Vie Spilum Endalaust》，英文翻译名为《With a Buzz in Our Ears We Play Endlessly》，被充译作：苍穹耳语无尽无垠。封面选自纽约视觉艺术家Ryan McGinley名为I Know Where the Summer Goes摄影系列，欣赏过这组摄影作品之后，也深深的震撼了我。Ryan McGinley,他是纽约国际摄影协会最年轻也是最杰出的摄影师奖项得主。他的作品离不开青春这个主题，拍摄对象往往是社会上的边缘分子，构图直接，用色简单利落。Ryan McGinley代表了在Youtube和Myspace环境下成长起来的新一代年轻人，他们将自己的私密生活制作成视觉日记给大家观看。I Know Where the Summer Goes拍摄于2007年夏天，带着16个模特，三个助理，弄了4000个胶卷。
Ryan McGinley作品：

惘闻是来自中国北方大连的一支纯器乐/后摇滚乐队。在惘闻的音乐中充斥了时而甜美时而悲伤的旋律、厚重的吉他音墙甚至传统的中国五声音阶。闭上双眼，你会很容易陷进惘闻音乐所营造的意境，或者说在他们的音乐中，你能够错觉般的浮现出你做过的一个梦或者你看过的一部电影的情景。惘闻认为有词或者唱的音乐会很容易的引导听者按照歌者所希望的方式思维，所以他们放弃了词和唱，试图通过音乐构造出了一个开方式的听觉场，让听者进入这个场并有自由的思考空间。
乐队成立七年了，他们一直怀着“不被人所知，被不被别人接受也无所谓”的态度低调地向前迈进，如今惘闻的作品已与当年的《二十八天失眠日记》截然不同了，应该说是更具国际水准，非常赞！舞台上的谢玉岗依然背对着观众，头也不回的将音乐进行到底！

“如果遥远天际中散烁的星星也有声音的话，那它听起来一定像是Mogwai这样”——《NME》杂志
又是几个苏格兰的孤独男人——Mogwai，和Arab Strap同属Chemikal Underground公司，以及后来北美最大的另类音乐公司Matador。受Sonic Youth和My Bloody Valentine的深处启发，甚至还有The Smashing Pumpkins(其实听听“Gish”未尾，便知Billy Corga也是在巨大的噪音中冰冷的质疑生活的变数)，当然还有Slint(后摇滚的启蒙人之一)90年代初就有的示范表演，只是Mogwai更迷于制造有巨大声响的哀伤之曲，徐徐推进沉稳的沉思，“Mogwai曾认为一段好的旋律，即使不断重复地演奏十分钟也会是好听的”。
相比Tortoise、Experimental Audio Research、Movietone等后摇滚代表，Mogwai稀少的人声反而是最多的，他们埋头精调细琢，爆发时比Bedhead更内敛些。用了大量新的吉它音色，把鼓调成如沉闷心跳的节奏，贝司厚重、缓和的流淌，淡然的声音若即若离的在音乐的边线，大段大段华丽轰鸣的段落起起伏伏。“当史诗般作品“Mogwai Fears Satan”结束整张专集的时候，Mogwai提升了整个后摇滚音乐的水平，创造新的音乐革命和情感力量，不同于所有当代的吉他为基本乐队的东西。”他们让音乐回归到心灵的无援之处，放弃了人声有时候对音乐过份的虚饰和为难，后摇滚实际上比摇滚乐多了更多可能的音乐语言，于“无声”处，音乐是第一位的，所以我想不是后摇滚结束了摇滚乐，而是新血滋生了新肉，后摇滚让摇滚乐有了另一重生命力。
1997年Mogwai《Young Team》问世时，不该的是这一年Radiohead的《OK Computer》大行其道，几乎拿走了所有的盛誉(而今又有多少人还在为《OK Computer》竖起耳朵就不得而知了)，好像没有人不喜欢滥美之词并热衷参于，总有一些人为了省事和嫌麻烦而容易满足追随。
世界由此喧嚣，愤怒大行其道，而它并非一律可贵，Mogwai也有啸杀感肆起的乐段，却嗜好把愤怒深埋在各种声效的表层下，他们坦诚了无助的脆弱，熨烫人心，由此得以自救，Mogwai不诅咒爱，却把矛头指向了生活对个性和人性的伤残，缓解了我们常年心头积压的心悸。
少年心气般的兴奋《Young Team》过后，1997年精选辑《Ten Rapid》是1995 -- 1997年大批单曲的合集，可整个音乐的音色和概念上感觉还是有一贯性，象是同时期的作品。如其他后摇滚乐队一样，Mogwai做得非常精细，变幻莫测的音色和反复的乐段，也象其他乐队一样充满睿智。他们找来了Mercury Rev的成员及监制Dave Fridman(Dave以往较叫好的作品包括为Flaming Lips制作的唱片)，泡制了1999年《Come on Die Young》，“年轻人你快点死吧”——每个人的内心都是有魔鬼的，权势、容貌、名利、荣辱上太多太多的杂念让心魔在无止的滋长，它们合力抹杀了爱，以龌龊为乐，退化到像动物一样撕杀。“Come on Die Young”，要不到后来都会变成了“Mogwai”。谁都想活的好点——“在三十岁的时候人们都希望有条捷径可以走”，“Mogwai Fear Satan”(魔鬼面对馓旦)就是Mogwai对人生的一次嘲讽。
而Mogwai的感性一面也是纯净、真切的，欲说还休的“Cody”的余味绕梁三尺，“如果我试图让你停下脚步，你是否也会想让我停留，古老的歌一直萦绕，直到最后的时刻，悲伤的歌让我回忆起儿时的旧友，如果这就是命运，我想我只能离开……”
爱是一个高温的主题(Mogwai好些起伏颇大的段落很适合给《37度2》中贝蒂那段失控的街头奔跑做配乐)，有时候她的冰冷比热更令人嗜好，我们经常忍不住像怀疑生命一样对它，如果说生命无常，爱情何尝又不是更脆弱的呢？“End”是无声的所在，比Joy Division“The Eternal”还可怕的青春衰曲，它可能有三个以上的版本？写此曲的时候Mogwai们平均年龄不到22岁，22岁——大部份这个年龄的人还在街上用着父母的钱，回家在卧室里苦恼，算计着爱情和明天，而他们给了未完青春最好的沉思。
2001年《Rock Action》好像评论有些低落，但却是《Young Team》后最给人印象深刻的作品。名为“Rock Action”(摇滚行动)，这又是具有讽刺意味的名头。《Rock Action》结合了富于棱角的扭曲噪音，具有推动力的鼓点，Tortoise般的电子构架，尤以长达九分钟的史诗般作品“2 Rights Make One Wrong”为佳，以铜制乐器，弦乐，Banjo，行云流水般的吉他，时隐时没的人声编制成一层层意犹未尽的音墙，它让我们的耳朵良久的幸福着……
Mogwai得到了不单是英国及欧洲后来也有美国评论界太多的赞美，在独立音乐同仁当中也得到了许多的尊敬。他们每每赶走了陈腐的气息，建立了自己的音乐美学体系，对所有的赞美都当之无愧。后来甚至也深情款款的翻唱了Guns N' Roses的“Don'T Cry”，在其主页上就有这首曾经博得不少少女之心的歌，不过你听了之后就明白这仍然是Mogwai一以惯之的作风，他们一直在试着用最好的方式来表达自我，并让艺术的血液得以畅通。
“对于我们的东西，这世界还没做好准备，” Suart Braithwaite却一锤定音的说过，是的，他们还年轻着，Mogwai如今的平均年龄不超过26岁，大胡子Dominic Aitchison今年可能26了，Stuart Leslie Braithwaite更是1976年5月10日生，在后摇滚的阵营里他们还没到“向后看”的时候，他们享受着音乐，甩掉“陈年往事”的累赘，把生命中多余的包袱远远甩在了脑后……
每一个夜晚都是心衰者的逃离，生命无可把持，每个地方都有这么多的陈词缆调，如果这就是命运，我想我只能离开。让我们一起跑，跑过城市，跑过山谷和平原，在风中跑，跑过了无尽的年岁，跑过了绝望也跑过了温暖，让身后的东西统统腐烂吧……

Opening October 15th nationwide, Friday Night Lights (a Universal picture starring Billy Bob Thornton and Tim McGraw, based on the best-selling book of the same name) features an original score by Temporary Residence top-seller Explosions In The Sky!
The film chronicles the entire 1988 season of a high school football team from Odessa, TX (adjacent to Explosions In The Sky's hometown of Midland, TX). It focuses on the ongoing financial and emotional struggles of a small town that places all of its hopes on the team's chances at winning the state championship.
The Universal soundtrack - scheduled for release October 5 - includes Explosions In The Sky's score, as well as a new Faith Hill/Tim McGraw duet and a new track by No Doubt's Gwen Stefani. Universal estimates the soundtrack will top one million copies sold by Christmas 2004. It is expected to debut in Billboard's Top 10.
"Have You Passed Through This Night," from Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die... is featured in the film's trailer, which began airing in theaters nationwide June 11. The trailer began airing on national television during the Olympic Games.

Inspiration is what drives creation; it is akin to lungs enabling a person to breathe. Musicians in experimental genres such as post-rock and post-metal have taken a great deal of influence from the world around them and have implemented the power of the environment in their music. ISIS, Tides, Up There: The Clouds all reference the sea, the sky, and events triggered by a combination of these and use the inspiration to produce moments of sublime beauty in their work. The Sleep Design gains inspiration from a more divine presence. The Alabama quartet formed out of "a passion for the beauty of God through sound” with an aim to “shed light on the power of a Creator captured in rhythm.” Christianity portrays God as the all powerful creator of the earth, and The Sleep Design successfully encompasses the perception of that power, unleashing moments of true inspiration and beauty throughout with All That Is Not Music Is Silence.
Even with divine intervention it would be difficult to create something in the realm of epic post-rock that has not been touched already. The majority of the tracks on the album begin on the lighter side of instrumental post-rock, some soaring off into spiraling anthems while others continue on the more melodic path. There is a solid blend of ideas, and although a simple formula rears up in many of the songs, there are instances where variation is nicely placed. “Hope Is the Dream of a Soul” makes use of a soaring vocal loop which takes away the attention of the regrouping instruments before hitting a towering ending. The band plays with breathtaking results, and “The Sound of War” is a stunning example of how well its songs are constructed. Following a simple peak-rebuild-peak layout, the track makes use of a great guitar pattern that continues to rise and gain momentum toward a second crescendo, high above the previous one. The success of this record is down to the work that is done between these moments of towering splendour.
Even though the album contains all the hallmarks of post-rock, the variation in the styles alleviates hang-ups over the influences on display and helps the band avoid sounding familiar and repetitive. Not every song ends in the same manner or on the same tone, and the band uses passages of ambient interplay to reset the mood both during and between tracks. This acts in a similar way to a palate cleanser, allowing for something new to come in that could well be similar, yet tastes different. “These Dreams Haunt & Capture” not only breaks the tone down from the emphatic start to the album, it also provides time for a new sound to sink in before more uplifting guitar work sets off towards the middle of the song. Moments of stillness are never stretched beyond their need, and the tracks ultimately benefit. For all the excellent musicianship on display one of the best tracks is one of the shorter songs on the album. “The Fire, The Grave, & The Eyes of Man” takes time to build before it unleashes a torrent of rocketing guitar and an emotional screaming vocal loop. The song is short yet very effective at displaying the heights that this record can reach.
Albums that redefine post-rock music are few and far between these days, and All That Is Not Music Is Silence is certainly above the standard of many releases. The music that is produced is wide ranging and has the ability to enthuse a great deal of emotion in the listener, be it from the rousing crescendos or the ambient plateau The Sleep Design comes to rest on. When a genre has been saturated with so many attempts to provoke these emotions it is always refreshing to find a band that has the talent to work within the constraints and yet creates something that truly is inspirational.
-Gary Davidson

Elara is a post-rock band from Italy which has heavy ambient and modern classical influences. The band Luigi Cerbone (Guitar, electronics, sounds & programming) was the founder, he first released an EP called “Starry night in a cold November” by himself in 2008.
Soon he met Alessio Tozzini (Bass) and Vincenzo Barbone (Drums) and they have been playing as a band since 2011. Band members told that band was result of the changes in their musical styles and concept and moreover, soon after that, "it came a moment of breathing space, the quest of peace and serenity."
These are the questions asked by the band:
"Is it possible, if only for a moment, to forget the frenzy of life?
Is it possible, at any time, anywhere you are, whatever you're doing, to take your mind back to the most exciting places you've ever seen, from the horizons that you have touched, to the nature that surprised you, to the single beat of the Earth that has allowed you to understand that whatever obstacle you're facing, somewhere there`s a lovely personal place where you can find peace and quiet?"
Elara continues:
"We tried to give shape to this need of the soul, notes and melodies, crescendos and atmospheres, which allowed us to fix forever the memory of those places and those emotions, which allowed us to create our own "Soundtrack For a Quiet Place."
The band decided to record a brand new 3 songs EP at the Domination Recording Studio based in the Republic of San Marino. Afterwards Greg Calbi, Senior Mastering Engineer at the Sterling Sound of New York, completed the mastering of the EP.
Elara is set to release their second EP “Soundtrack For a Quiet Place” with Fluttery Records in winter 2013.
credits
released 01 February 2013

Genre: Instrumental Post-Rock / Piano / Ambient with electronic influence
Country: Ukraine, Odessa

Japanese group PRESENCE OF SOUL is led by female singer and composer YUKI, who also handles guitars, keyboards and Mellotron. She's accompanied by a guitar player, a bass player and a drummer. "Blinds" (2008) is a first album to be listened to somewhere between GODSPEED YOU BLACK EMPEROR !, SIGUR ROS, MOGWAI and ANEKDOTEN. As a matter of fact, the band was the support act for the swedish musicians during their 2008 shows in Japan. From the very beginning, PRESENCE OF SOUL proves to be absolutely innovative and mature at the same time: ethereal female vocals create a sharp contrast with guitars fury and drumming power. Sad atmospheres, often enhanced by Mellotron and a great sense of slowliness (Without mentioning softness) evolve step by step, with an increasing violence, reaching its climax in an overwhelming maelstrom. It's a kind of "Progressive post-rock", and one cannot imagine a more intense musical world. You'll surely be haunted a long time after listening...

Oct 4 - 6, 2006 at Electrical Audio Recording, Chicago IL