Lift your skinny fists, Godspeed fans. The Montreal-based sonic boom of a band will be dropping their first album in more than 10 years, with only a two-week wait.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor last released “Yanqui U.X.O.” in November 2002, and it was only one of four studio sets the rockers have dropped. Now, “Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend!” is due on Oct. 16 in the U.S., with the promise of the “dark” sound matter that made the band pop, whether live or through headphones.
“The future looks dark indeed, but on the evidence of this new recording, Godspeed appears wholly committed to staring it down, channeling it, and fighting for some rays of sound (and flickers of light) that feel hopeful and true,” reads a statement in the release.
The songs were formed out of seeds from before their 2003 hiatus; they fleshed them out starting after they reformed in 2010 for select live shows. What exactly that sounds like may be their artful blend of drone, repetition, LOUDquietLOUD, pulsing intergalactic guitar coitus, but the release went more out of its way to explain why the band isn’t investing in the whole three-month album promotional cycle.
“Never a band to care for conventional industry wisdom, Yanqui was released with no publicity or press availability, no marketing plans, no cross-promotions or brand synergies, driven by word-of-mouth from a passionate and committed fanbase… To suggest that such simple principles and goals have become harder to maintain and enact a decade later is an understatement,” it reads. “For all the contents and discontents – for all the ‘content’ – of our present cultural moment, the very idea of circumventing the glare of exposure or the careful plotting of media cycles and identity management appears futile.”
Aw, so no Pitchfork premiere and NPR album stream?
The album is apparently only four tracks long, but considering some of their song lengths, that might not mean much. Be warned that GY!BE may be already selling “Allelujah!…” during their ongoing tour. Check out dates below.
Oct. 1 Boston, MA – Orpheum Theatre
Oct. 2 Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer
Oct. 3 Baltimore, MD – Rams Head Live
Oct. 4 Carrboro, NC – Cats Cradle
Oct. 5 Atlanta, GA – Buckhead Theatre
Oct. 6 Birmingham, AL – Bottletree
Oct. 7 New Orleans, LA – Tipitinas
Oct. 9 Austin, TX – The Mohawk
Oct. 10 Austin, TX – The Mohawk
Oct. 11 Dallas, TX – Granada Theatre
Oct. 12 Nashville, TN – Cannery Ballroom
Oct. 13 Louisville, KY – Headliners Music Hall
Oct. 14 Detroit, MI – Majestic Theatre
Oct. 15 Buffalo, NY – Town Ballroom
Oct. 28 Porto, Portugal – Amplifest
Oct. 30 Madrid, Spain – Teatro Kapital
Oct. 31 Barcelona, Spain – Sala Apolo
Nov. 1 Bordeaux, France – Le Rocher de Palmer
Nov. 2 Nantes, France – Lieu Unique – Soy Festival
Nov. 3 Lille, France – La Condition Publique
Nov. 4-5 London, England – Kentish Town Forum
Nov. 7 Brussels, Belgium – Cirque Royal
Nov. 8-9 Berlin, Germany – SO36
Nov. 10 Dresden, Germany – Reithalle
Nov. 11 Prague, Czech Republic – Lucerna Music
Nov. 12 Vienna, Austria – Arena
Nov. 14 Ljubljana, Slovenia – Kino Siska
Nov. 15 Zurich, Switzerland – Rote Fabrik
Nov. 16 Bern, Switzerland – Dachstock Reitschule
Feb. 13 Brisbane, Australia – The Tivoli Theatre
Feb. 14 Sydney, Australia – The Enmore
Feb. 15 Melbourne, Australia – Forum Melbourne
Feb. 16 Alton, Australia – ATP’s I’ll Be Your Mirror