(The best comparison for “Tuner” might be Pavement’s “Strings of Nashville.”) “Ithica 27 ϕ 9” finds the natural transition between the lulls of “Helicon Two” and the rage of “Summer” in its quiet-loud-quiet structure. The ambient “I Am Not Batman” and lovely “Tuner” present Mogwai as a slowcore band more akin to Codeine and Low than Slint. Aliens” twists the pummeling textures of “Summer” into a tense rhythmic knot. “New Paths to Helicon (Part Two)” strips things down to a gentle drumbeat and a wandering guitar line, with the occasional gurgle of bass beneath. “Summer” begins with hazy foreshadowing of the song’s soaring guitars, crashing crescendos, melodic chimes, and hyperactive drumming. Ten Rapid’s sequencing is one of its strengths, abandoning the chronological release dates of its eight previously released songs (closing track “End” is “Helicon Two” played backwards-Murder by Death did the same trick on Like the Exorcist but with More Breakdancing, back when they were called Little Joe Gould and were more influenced by Mogwai than Johnny Cash) in favor of a regular album flow. They also had the presence of mind to turn these scattered seven-inches into a viable album, leaving behind the weakest of the lot. There are brief interludes of vocal slowcore, but they make sense within the surroundings, even if that approach was largely abandoned. Going back to a minimal song like “Helicon Two” or “A Place for Parks” isn’t an alienating experience like unearthing Fillet Show-they still feel like Mogwai songs. Each successive full-length adds more compositional depth, but the guiding principles of the band were sound at the beginning. The most simple answer is that their initial blueprint remained true.

So why is Ten Rapid worth hearing when those albums are for pure die-hards only? Early Shudder to Think is faster, sure, but lacks any subtlety. Juno’s earliest demos were wisely kept under wraps, since those solo-heavy recordings would have lumped them in with countless Seattle grunge bands. My Bloody Valentine’s early material explored gothic tendencies, not guitar bliss. Overall: Few of my favorite bands boast this flattering of an infancy.* Hum’s Fillet Show is a false start good luck hearing any of those songs in their sporadic reunion sets. Low Points: “I Am Not Batman,” “End” is padding Highlights: “Helicon One,” “Helicon Two,” “Summer” Ten Rapid: Collected Recordings 1996-1997 – Jetset, 1997 This post starts with Ten Rapid and 4 Satin, their first two proper releases. Unlike my Sonic Youth Discographied feature, I will cover the vast majority of Mogwai’s various singles and EPs, since they don’t have fifteen full-lengths to cover. Even if they disdain the genre, it doesn’t deter from their ability to write wonderful songs within it. Perhaps this angst over the genre is due to motifs they originated becoming clichés in lesser hands and then critically re-applied back to their newer work-a point which isn’t entirely off-base-but whereas other prominent post-rock bands have splintered, run out of creative energy, or dropped off my radar completely, Mogwai has persevered. Mogwai bristles at being designated “post-rock,” holding dear to the idea that they’re just a rock band like the Stooges or Black Sabbath, but few bands have dictated the course of post-rock as much as they have. Sure, I’d kill for an album of peaks like “Mogwai Fear Satan,” “2 Rights Make 1 Wrong,” and “Helicon One”-or pay $60 for the limited edition of a live record containing those songs-but virtually every release in their catalog is worthy of attention. I realized two things as I spun the advance leak of Mogwai’s live album, Special Moves, over and over: first, that I’d have to bite the bullet and order the deluxe 3LP+CD+DVD set second, and more importantly, that for all of my frustrations with the band not consistently reaching its transcendent high-water marks, Mogwai is still one of my favorite groups. Mogwai Discographied Part One: Imperfect Sound Forever New Artillery / Hunting for vinyl in Ann Arbor and beyond

New paths to helicon part 2