Mogwai Come On Die Young

On the second official studio release by the Scottish Mogwai, the band takes a slightly different turn than what they did on Mogwai Young Team. Instead of the incredible punkish loud/soft slow tempo rocking, they turn it down a notch. While still following the slow tempo rocking pattern, they do it with a little less noise, and a little more atmospheric pianos and clean guitar sounds. The noise is still there on some tracks, and let me tell you it's great, but it is not as evident as it was on Young Team. (ie: Stuart doesn't stomp on the Vox Fuzz quite as hard.) But without being loud, the songs still act as if they were loud. This is hard to explain, but the changes in volume and buildups are really effective.

The album title is once again taken from Glasgow street gang terminology. The FAQs on the official mogwai page explain:

There was a sixties Glasgow gang called 'CODY', which, of course is an acronym of 'COME ON DIE YOUNG'.

Barry Burns' [mogwai's instrument player] dad was a member of this gang.

For those of you outwith this territory, 'come on die young !' is basically similar to the more tacky 'come and have a go if you think you're hard enough !' . . . the doorway to discussion is open as to the relevance of 'CAHAGIYTYHE' is a better title than 'CODY'

The album has some of the best song titles ever too, like "year 2000 non-compliant cardia," "punk rock/puff daddy/ANtICHRISt," and "oh! how the dogs stack up."

Highlights
Ex-Cowboy
A song that goes from pleasant, clean bass melody at the beginning to jetliner landing at O'Hare fury and then back to the nice melody. This is Mogwai's biggest strength, and this song is a great example of it.

Year 2000 Non Compliant Cardia
Quite possibly the greatest song title ever, this song represents the newer Mogwai style on this record. It has spacier noise gurgling, and is driven by a guitar that sounds like a piano. keep mixing it up for us baby!

Audio
Christmas Steps
This is the finest song in the album in my opinion. It's a perfect mogwai track, and it's really the only time on the record that the fuzz is brought straightforward-ly to the front for a good rock out.
Listen (464kb)
(Right click and choose "save as")

BUY! BUY! BUY!
If you like the clip, buy the record. I realize I can't coax you anymore than that. Here's where to do it.

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