AMERICAN DONDon Caballero's Fifth full length release. This saw Mike Banfield leave the group and left Ian Williams to create polyphony with a pair of loop pedals (Akai Head Rush I believe). This album saw the group move away from the rocky distorted sounds of previous works and produce a cool, clean and somewhat jazzy guitar tone. Damon Che is as brilliant as ever with his breakbeat influenced drumming to back the superb interlocking guitar lines of Williams. The time signatures featured on the album are spectacular. The first track opens in 7/8 which doesn't dissapoint and the album continues on a journey of complexity. The track titles are as rediculous as ever, for example: 'Details on How to Get ICEMAN on Your License Plate' and 'You Drink a Lot of Coffee for a Teenager'. As if this wasn't enough to satisfy, the album was recorded by the prophet himself, Steve Albini! The panning is perfect, the mix is cool and fresh and I think I had better stop attempting sexual intercourse with this record. Here is the first track, 'Fire Back About Your New Baby's Sex' performed live. Have a listen, it will not dissapoint:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BihNZFkisbs
I don't think any history of the post/math-rock genres is complete without mentioning Spiderland. This was the second studio album from a band called Slint. The Louisville post-rock band created quite a stir with this groundbreaking recording. The first thing any listener will notice are the angular guitar lines, which are common place today but weren't in 1991. Furthermore, there are plenty of irregular time signatures. Not, of course, a new idea by any stretch, but executed in a fasion far more interesting than anything Zappa could come up with. The sharp transitions between sections are also highly influential on the genres we have learned to love. There are plenty of instrumental sections on this record, as well as mumbling, and occasionally shouted, vocals. Although it didn't achieve success when first released, after the band split up it was recognised as a highly influential record and went onto sell over 50,000 copies. Say what you like about Spiderland, if it had never existed, perhaps there would be no More Skin With Milk Mouth today. Listen to the album here:
http://www.last.fm/music/Slint/Spiderland
Heres a contraversial one. It is tempting to argue that this album is just a generic math-rock album from the noughties. It is too recent to gain 'influential' status and too old to be cutting edge. Yet there is something quite beautiful about Loose Lips Sink Ship's split with El Pin Meldou. The guitars are clean and epic, the drums at times sound like they were put together by Origin Unkown and the amount of sections is mind blowing. The first half of the album is cool, minor and thoughtful. It is emotive but still momentous. The second half contains more powerful, sometimes distorted guitars. There are samples. There are break downs and there are semi-demi-quavers. Wow.
http://www.last.fm/music/Loose%2520Lips%2520Sink%2520Ships/The%2520Contemporary%2520Issues%2520of%2520Celibacy%2520%255BEP%255D?ac=contemporary%20issues
Now, this is not to say that Tortoise's first album should not be on this list, but my god this is good. I am fully aware it is not strictly a math-rock album, but post-rock bands, especially Toroise, have had a major influence on math-rock. So, why is this album on this list? Well to begin with, it is very high concept. The first track, Djed, is a twenty minute masterpiece full of beautiful lines and obscurity. The band had at this point had moved from what began as experimental wizardry to euphoric wonderment, and I am at no point trying to suggest this album lacks experimentation.
Although the other tracks aren't twenty minutes long, there are some miniature epics here (Along the Banks of the River, Glass Museum) and lots of great melodic work. Everything becomes electronically processed at one point or another and plenty of odd rhythms. Furthermore, don't forget that members of Slint make up this band. Slint's influence becomes very apparent on some of the darker bass lines. I think the highlight of the record for me is Glass Museum (track 2) All in all a phenominal record.
MORE SKIN WITH MILK MOUTH
More Skin With Milk Mouth is incredible. It has pretentious track names (the second track is called I Am SH(im)er As You Am SH(im)er As You Are Me And We Am I And I Are All Our Together Our Collective Consciousness). It has very very fast guitar lines. It has break beat drums. It has lots and lots of time signature changes. The band move from smooth jazzy lines to heavy shredding to latin grooves and yet demonstrate a mathy enthusiasm throughout. There is not a single filler track on the album. Track two even has a sample of an Alan Watts speech. Do not just download this album, download everything you can find. Do not just go and see this band live, go to every date. Do not just listen to this, destroy your external auditory canals:
DRUGS TO THE DEAR YOUTH
Whatever I think of Tera Melos now, this is magnificent. Heavily influenced by Jazz and Post-Hardcore, this record ticks all the boxes. There are alot of electronic aspects, the entire first track Ambassadors of all That is Good is an electronic introduction to the record before dropping into the obscene 40 Rods To The Hogs Head. The rest of the tracks have unbelievably quick guitar, very, very odd harmomnies and of course great drumming. It is safe to say I think that this was the Trios peak, shortly after the unfortunate depature of Jeff Worms (it may have been even more rediculous had he stayed). The EP is a step away from their straight forward Math-Rock debut and is very experimental. I strongly reccomend this record.
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