Customer Reviews

Rock Action

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A Mogwai LP is like deep sea diving. The listener becomes immersed in subtle soundscapes and is led willingly as the environment changes. After an hour, we rise back to the surface, enlightened in some way by the experience.

As I popped Rock Action into my stereo, I was dressed in my mental wetsuit with diving tank strapped on. I was ready. The first sign of trouble came with the LCD display telling me that my journey would be only 38 minutes...which seemed wrong. But I remained the optimist; I trusted these guys.

My listening experience could best be described as expecting to go deep sea diving in the Caymans, and winding up in the fountain at the Public Park. I sat on the step, water lapping at my shins, as the last few notes of Secret Pint faded out.

There are a few moments of genius. Mogwai features a much fuller sound on the few songs they seemed to put a lot of effort into. You Don't Know Jesus and 2 Rights Make 1 Wrong are brilliant, full sounding songs deftly shifting moods, indicating Mogwai's continuing evolution. Sine Wave serves as a perfect intro song, and Take Me Somewhere Nice, though clumsy, is a pretty good song.

Yet, even these songs have a mainstream feel to them; as if Mogwai has lost faith in their ability to convey their moods subtly and effectively. Their music used to speak for itself, now the production does. A further indication of this is that half of the songs feature vocals; something that doesn't seem to belong in a Mogwai album. Mogwai may be evolving, but they seem to be evolving toward where many bands are going, at the price of losing their individuality. Now the junk. Two of the songs, O I Sleep and Robot Chant, are 1 minute filler songs (perhaps to give the CD LP status?) that leave you a bit confused, wondering why Mogwai would bother with songs like that. Dial: Revenge, featuring Gruff Rhys, sounds like a boring Super Furry Animals B-Side. I couldn't enjoy Secret Pint through my disappointment knowing this was it.

I have EP's longer than this, and felt a bit put out paying an LP price for Rock Action. I doubt many other bands can get away with calling an 8 song, 38 minute CD an LP.

Rock Action is like eating a bag of potato chips...they taste good but are rarely satisfying in themselves and provide scant sustenance. For a full meal, refer to older Mogwai and bands like Godspeed You Black Emperor and Labradford, for Rock Action leaves you in the shallow end, shin deep, munching on potato chips.

In their still-brief career Mogwai have come to be regarded as leaders in the modern "post-rock" movement, and "Rock Action" provides convincing proof that the acclaim this band has received is more than justified. Although some of the songs here do contain lyrics, the musicians of Mogwai combine power and nuance so effortlessly that words are rarely needed. With three guitars intertwining shimmering tonalities while the drums march in lockstep behind them, Mogwai's songs are much more than mere mood pieces. They consistently reach for and attain stratospheric heights the likes of which most bands can scarcely dream of, brilliantly exploiting tension and dynamics to create oceanic sounscapes that are staggering in their psychotropic effects. The two centerpieces of the album, the epics "You Don't Know Jesus" and "Two Rights Make One Wrong," best exemplify Mogwai's skills and are easily among the most powerful songs I've heard lately. The former is a cold, stark, eerie tune that combines dense walls of guitar riffs with swirling sound effects for a scintillating head rush of a song; the latter a mountainous rush of noise whose fragile guitar picking and synth backing are highly reminiscent of Godspeed You! Black Emperor even without all the orchestral elements. The other, shorter pieces on "Rock Action" manage to impress as well, showing a band with ample range and sterling consistency. The opening "Sine Wave" is a study in contrasts, as waves of sound continually crash over pacific guitar strumming for a stunning dichotomy of calm and malevolence. "Take Me Somewhere Nice" and "Dial Revenge" are mesmerizing drones of instrumentation complemented by hushed vocals that fade perfectly into the mix. And the downtempo "Secret Pint" ends the album on a quiet note, sounding almost like a chamber piece as it introduces some piano into the mix. All throughout, Mogwai show signs of the relentless creativity and versatility that's continued to serve them well, up through their most recent classic "Happy Songs for Happy People." Both albums come highly recommended.

I think this is the most accessible Mogwai record to anyone.
It is balanced with beautiful singing, nice tunes, atmospeherics, experimentation and offers classic Mogwai slow-build guitar playing.
On the other hand, it may appear that Mogwai are going more into a mainstream direction at this point, having as a guest on track 4 the singer from Super Furry Animals.
Overall the album works because there is something from everyone.
Additionally, despite the fact that there is not much "rock" in this album, I recommend the album just for track 5 "You don't know jesus". This is one of the most powerful tracks ever done by any rock band.

Mogwai - Rock Action.
Se trata de un disco oscuro, de texturas muy bien logradas estilo Pink Floyd o lo que Radiohead pudo haber logrado en Amnesiac. Al parecer Mogwai se mete al estudio para recopilar algunos exorcismos que habian olvidado en los pasados discos. Pero Rock Action compila canciones extremas como Take Me Somewhere Nice (una obra de arte y la mejor de Mogwai). Si escuchas detenidamente cada uno de los temas, veras que encierra una pequeña proporcion del pasado discografico de Mogwai. En fin podria decir mucho acerca de ellos pero diria que el disco en su totalidad es tremendamente bueno... aunque falta ver que sale despues de este disco que denomiria como puestas melancolicas, torcidas, toxicas y hasta viajentes por momentos. Es fascinante encontrarse con discos de tal magnitud artistica.

First album I wanted to by was "Happy songs for happy people", misfortune, they don't have it everytime I go to the music stores. All their albums must be selling because, from week to week, they have different albums of Mogwai in stock. It should not be long to get what I want.

I don't know why I like it so much, maybe because it is delicate, repetitive, mellow and cacophonic. "Sin wave" is a nice frying thing which ends with a long distant etheral guitar. "take me somewhere nice" is repetitive but georgous. "Dial:revenge" is perfect and the nicest song on this album. It will take me time to sing that Welch language!! "You don't know Jesus" is second favorite starts very softly and gets more and more cacophonic to become soft again at the end. "2 rights make 1 wrong" is a nice happy song with delicate banjo at the end (really beautiful).

Quite a unique band.

Rock Action is WAY too short of an album (only six full-length tunes and two ambient interludes), but the quality of the songs themselves makes Rock Action worthwhile. The album begins with "Sine Wave," an epic drone the builds into a symphony of distorted drums and guitar noise. "Take Me Somewhere Nice" is everything Come On Die Young wanted to be, but couldn't. A slow, subdued track with a gorgeous string section with almost whispered vocals, "Take Me Somewhere Nice" takes the quiet tone C.O.D.Y. embodied, and fine tunes it into brilliance. "Dial: Revenge" is a strange tune for Mogwai, a three-minute pop tune that at the same time isn't a pop tune: dark, clean guitar with strings and welsh lyrics from the lead singer of Super Furry Animals. "You Don't Know Jesus" is probably the closest Mogwai gets to their loud Young Team days; the track is great loud crescendo Mogwai epic that was lacking from Come On Die Young. "2 Rights Make 1 Wrong" is easily the record's highpoint, a two-part epic that begins as an orchestral post-rock tune and ends in beautiful electronic ambience. The last section is expertly pulled off, starting with glitchy beats, banjo, and guitar and ending with bells and a wall of layered voices. It's one of Mogwai's best tunes, if not the best (try to find a live version of this track to hear Stuart transform the second half into a wall of beautiful guitar noise). Rock Action might seem disappointing at first due to its short length, but it will grow on you thanks to a strong set of tunes. While the loud days of Young Team seem behind them in some ways, Rock Action takes the quiet mood of Come On Die Young and makes it ten times better.

I first bought this album 2 years ago when it first came out. It was my least favorite Mogwai LP when i first got it, simply because i love them for their loud-soft-brutally loud trademark dynamics. However, after listening to this LP for 2 years, it has grown on me tremendously and is now one of my favorite albums. I agree with a lot of people that have posted a review that "young team" is their best LP, because it is. But "Rock Action" is just as brilliant, but you can't look at it the came as "Young Team," because the albums are completely different concepts. My advice: listen to it all the way through one time. If you aren't convinced, listen to "2 Rights Make 1 Wrong" on repeat. It is by far my favorite Mogwai piece of all time. It is built upon a simple guitar melody. But don't be decieved, it is anything but repetitive. There are a myriad of counter-melodies that beautifully fade in and out of the piece making for a truly memorable track that takes me through my entire lifetime in the form of a musical slide show. Buy this album, it will take you to places you never thought music could take you to.

I saw it sitting there. I knew it was a CD because of the shape of the package. It was wrapped in nice blue and green wrapping paper. My friend usually buys me interesting CD's, so I opened it up quick to see what it was. To my great pleasure the lettering down the side of the CD read "Mogwai Rock Action." I plopped it in the CD player and listened. The music hit my ears like an arancini hitting my stomach, pure bliss.
To cut straight to the point, the world is crazy, listen to Mogwai. Oh yeah, if you give it as a gift, make sure you put a red bow on the top.

To truly understand Mogwai's talent, one needs to incorporate feelings into their beautiful melodies. Be it losing a girl/boy friend, a road trip with friends, or falling in love for the first time, "Rock Action" works best when it is the soundtrack to your life.

I remember a few months ago when I had a fight with my parents about a certain subject. It was very emotional, to the point where I just wanted to retreat to my room, close the door, and be alone. Thirsty for music, I popped "Rock Action" into my CD player and selected track five, "You Don't Know Jesus." As the gentle music got more and more intense, so did my emotions. Eventually, I was on the border line of tears, with every feeling of anger and sadness escalating higher as the music played on.

To this very day, I remember that fight I had with my parents every time I listen to "You Don't Know Jesus." Thankfully, other tracks in "Rock Action" bring to mind other, more happier, days too. "Take Me Somewhere Nice," with its soothing guitar playing, reminds me of youthful days when I was searching for inspiration around every corner (which I still do). And the gentle banjo in "2 Rights Make 1 Wrong" never cease to bring me at ease; I'm not exactly sure what nostalgic memory it brings to mind, but it's a wonderful song nonetheless.

For those in need of a personal soundtrack, I can't recommend "Rock Action" any more than I have now. It will take you somewhere nice.

Rock action es el disco mas "comercial" o mas facil de escuchar hasta la fecha, una de las razones es por que la mitad de las canciones tienen voz y la musica no es tan densa como por ejemplo en "young team", en el cual era completamente instrumental y el disco en si giraba en un cierto estilo mas monotono que este ultimo.
En "rock action" se encuentran varios instrumentos,tanto acusticos como electricos como electronicos lo cual le da un matiz a la musica bastante diversa entre tema y tema, incluyendo obiamente, como ya es sello del grupo, canciones de mas de siete minutos en el cual el juego de improvizacion y experimentacion juegan un papel muy importante en la resolucion de la cancion.
Aunque este disco tenga tan solo ocho tracks uno no queda con gusto a poco al escucharlo, sino que al contrario, le dan ganas de escucharlo de nuevo. Lo que si hay que hacer notar es que la manera de cantar del vocalista es muy rara (en ingles), tanto asi que no se entiende bien lo que trata de expresar, pero en fin, un buen disco para dias calmados.