Post-rock is a subgenre of experimental rock characterized by the exploration of textures and timbres as well as non-rock styles, often with minimal or no vocals, placing less emphasis on conventional song structures or riffs than on atmosphere for musically evocative purposes. Post-rock artists can often combine rock instrumentation and rock stylings with electronics and digital production as a means of enabling the exploration of textures, timbres and different styles. The genre emerged within the indie and underground music scenes of the 1980s and 1990s, but as it abandoned rock conventions, it began to show less musical resemblance to conventional indie rock at the time. The first wave of post-rock derives inspiration from diverse sources including ambient, electronica, jazz, krautrock, psychedelia, dub, and minimalist classical, with these influences also being pivotal for the substyle of ambient pop.
Slint was an American rock band from Louisville, Kentucky, formed in 1986, after the dissolution of two local bands, Squirrel Bait and Maurice. The band consisted of Brian McMahan, David Pajo (guitar), Britt Walford, Todd Brashear, and Ethan Buckler. Though little known during their original run, they have retrospectively gained a cult following and critical acclaim as one of the pioneers of post-rock and math rock.
Telegram is the first full-length and second overall remix album by Icelandic musician Björk, released on 25 November 1996. The album is a collection of remixes of several tracks from her album Post, which had all previously appeared as B-sides of the UK versions of the singles off Post, except the "Enjoy" remix which was previously unreleased. The cover was shot by Japanese photographer Nobuyoshi Araki. All of the songs on Post were remixed, excluding "The Modern Things" and "It's Oh So Quiet". The collection also included one new song entitled "My Spine" which was originally slated to appear on Post but was pushed out by "Enjoy", becoming the B-side to the UK "It's Oh So Quiet" single instead. The album has sold 228,000 copies in US according to SoundScan.
Spiderland is the second and final studio album by the American rock band Slint. It was released by Touch and Go Records on March 27, 1991. Slint's lineup at the time of recording comprised Brian McMahan on vocals and guitar, David Pajo on guitar, Todd Brashear on bass guitar and Britt Walford on drums. Spiderland was engineered by Brian Paulson and recorded over four days in August 1990. The music and vocal melodies were composed throughout the summer of 1990, while lyrics were written in-studio.
Neu! were a West German krautrock band formed in Düsseldorf in 1971 by Klaus Dinger and Michael Rother following their departure from Kraftwerk. The group's albums were produced by Conny Plank, who has been regarded as the group's "hidden member". They released three albums in their initial incarnation—Neu! (1972), Neu! 2 (1973), and Neu! 75 (1975)—before disbanding in 1975. They briefly reunited in the mid-1980s.
Harmonia was a West German musical "supergroup" formed in 1973 as a collaboration between members of two prominent krautrock bands: Cluster's Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Dieter Moebius joined by Neu! guitarist Michael Rother. Living and recording in the rural village of Forst, the trio released two albums—Musik von Harmonia (1974) and Deluxe (1975)—to limited sales before dissolving in 1976. AllMusic described the group as "one of the most legendary in the entire krautrock/kosmische scene."
David Pajo is an American musician. He has played a wide variety of music, loosely fitting into several other genres such as hardcore punk, math rock, post-rock, electronica, folk rock and indie pop. Though a multi-instrumentalist, he is best known for his guitar work, most notably with Slint. He is currently a member of Gang of Four and musician at large.
Fridge was an English instrumental post-rock band formed in 1995 by school friends Kieran Hebden, Adem Ilhan (bass) and Sam Jeffers (drums). Their rhythm heavy sound was influenced by Krautrock bands such as Can and Neu!, while critics view their early works as following similar paths as the contemporary post-rock groups Tortoise and Do Make Say Think. Over time Hebden's interest in Techno and Drum and bass became predominant, supported by Jeffers' complex drum patterns.
Tweez is the debut studio album by American rock band Slint and the only studio recording released before their disbandment. It was released on the label Jennifer Hartman Records in 1989 as the only record put out by the label, which was run by their friend, Jennifer Hartman. It is the only Slint album to feature bassist Ethan Buckler.
Millions Now Living Will Never Die is the second studio album by American post-rock band Tortoise. The album was released on January 30, 1996, by Thrill Jockey.
TNT is the third studio album by American post-rock band Tortoise, released in 1998 by Thrill Jockey. After Jeff Parker joined the band in 1996, Tortoise recorded TNT over the course of a year with drummer John McEntire acting as producer, editor and mixing. Taking influence from their remix material of the 1990s, the band recorded the album using hard disk technology in a "forward-then-back" approach, with members individually adding parts to tracks at different stages until the tracks were completed. As with previous albums, the band members also shared instrumental roles.
Trenchmouth was an American punk band from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 1988. Throughout its existence, the band mainly consisted of Damon Locks (vocals/percussion), Chris DeZutter (guitar), Wayne Montana (bass), and Fred Armisen (drums).
The For Carnation are an American post-rock band from Louisville, Kentucky, formed in 1994. The band was formed by Brian McMahan, who is the only constant group member. McMahan's previous band Slint hinted at the distinctive sound and sombre aesthetic he would create in The For Carnation.
A Lazarus Taxon is a box set by Chicago post-rock group Tortoise, released in 2006 on Thrill Jockey.
Ear of the Dragon (1995) is a CD album released on the Fortune 5 label in collaboration with A Magazine. It is a compilation of tracks by American and Canadian indie bands which contained Asian-American members. The album contains a broad range of American indie music styles and notable indie artists from the early to mid 1990s including indie rock, punk, ska punk, slowcore (Seam), cuddlecore (cub), and key players in post-rock.
Rhythms, Resolutions & Clusters is a remix album by the Chicago-based band Tortoise. It consists entirely of remixed versions of songs from their first album. Some of the remixes were performed by band members, others by friends of the band including Steve Albini, Rick Brown, Jim O'Rourke and Brad Wood.
Moebius & Plank was a German electronic music duo consisting of musicians Dieter Moebius and Conny Plank. They recorded three albums between 1979 and 1986 as well as two additional albums, one a collaboration with Mani Neumeier and the other with Mayo Thompson. Plank died of cancer in 1987. Their final two albums were released posthumously in 1995 and 1998 respectively
Jeff Parker is an American guitarist and composer based in Los Angeles. Born in Connecticut and raised in Hampton, Virginia, Parker is best known as an experimental musician, working with jazz, electronic, rock, and improvisational groups. Parker studied at Berklee College of Music and then moved to Chicago in 1991.
Bundy Kenneth Brown, also known as Ken Brown or Bundy K. Brown, is an American musician and recording engineer. He is best known for being a founding member of Tortoise and for his production, engineering and remixes in the Chicago post rock scene.
Lem Springsteen is an American songwriter and dance and house music producer. He is best known as part of house production duo Mood II Swing.
