Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Wonder Ballroom, Portland OR - February 1, 2016

[Canada] I obsess over this band. I hear them everywhere – in everything. But they’re totally unique – totally new – to me - still. This band is in my heart and I’m in theirs. They defined my mid 20s and I defined theirs … (not really- but it sounded good). I was introduced to them in my early Austin days and never got over them. Introduced by a guy recently released from jail for dealing pot, working on a communal farm outside of Austin, and still trying to figure out how to reconcile living as a human being in the trap of society. Ironically, Godspeed You’s darkness is my perfect antidote when I feel most dark – the sweet comfort of nihilism bundled up in one little band. So getting to see them was a minor dream come true. Unfortunately, or maybe apropos, I was in kind of a fiercely bad mood – Flame claims I was being all sorts of unruly establishing our place in the line to get in – I don’t have any patience for anarchists who can’t figure out how lines work. I actually don’t know much about the band beyond the fact that they’re a Canadian collective and that the only people I meet who have seen them live in the NE US. And that they put all the other chamber rockers to shame (e.g., Explosions in the Sky). Their albums have long unwieldy names like “Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven,” “Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress,” “Allelujah! Don’t Bend Ascend.” I imagine they started the wave of psych folk bands with similarly ridiculous names for their albums and songs. Not to mention their inconveniently placed exclamation point. So they took the stage – the crowd depleted by the onslaught of Vast Plains - with little fanfare, no costume, and no interaction with the crowd. Bombastic. Possibly a little more abrasive than their recorded material I’ve heard. Flame kind of broke of my heart when he pointed out they have somewhat of a NIN sound – which they did, at least live … I realize again and again lately that my favorite bands as an adult relate in at least some way to my teenage obsession with industrial music. And then a girl screamed, “Fuck you, you motherfucker!” It almost sounded like a set up but the fight continued in little intervals – I was embarrassed for America – the Canadians don’t need further confirmation of our loser-ness. Fortunately, soon after, a surly woman & man were escorted past us. They were classic instruments with electronic sound accompaniment. Flame was right to point out they sounded like Pink Floyd, the earlier weirder Pink Floyd. They are gripping – they have a repetitive drone quality like Wu-Tang – of course in an entirely different format… but the same all the same. You are drawn in and can become entranced. I was fascinated by a guy to our left head thrashing the whole time to what was a pretty unfollowable beat. They are an individual experience sort of music. Local reviews acclaimed their film show but I didn’t find it remarkable – repetitive black and white footage, mostly notable for its light contrasts or speed. Too bad because this band does spoken loops really well, they didn’t play any of those songs – I only fully recognized one song. I’ll still listen to Godspeed You when I need perspective, but as for this show, Vast Plains endures.