IN ITS fusion of metal, jazz, indie, avant garde, and movie soundtracks, post-rock should be a fount of constant fresh ideas. Too often it can sound like a group of lands practising their guitar scales backed by jittery drumbeats.
That is what the entire genre felt like it was drifting into when County Antrim's And So I Watch You From Afar burst onto the scene, before tearing up the rule book, throwing out the clichés, and injecting much-needed fresh ideas into the movement.
From their early releases in the late noughties, it was clear ASIWYFA brought something meaty to the table, the early promise culminating in the critically acclaimed 2011 album Gangs, which fused metal's heaviosity with post-rock rhythm, strong anthemics, but with a sense of the importance of melody and harmony.
Nothing, though, hinted at the revolution to come. With 2013's All Hail Bright Futures, they reinvented the post-rock wheel through Brian May style guitar workouts (‘Big Thinks Do Remarkable’ ), frantic duelling guitars ( ‘Like A Mouse’ ), Terry Reilly styled vocal manoeuvres (‘Ka Ba Ta Bo Da Ka’ ), and Irish trad (‘Mend And Make Safe’ ). The 2015 follow-up, Heirs, continued to explore the possibilties its predecessor opened up, while also hinting at where the band may go next.
The only other group to stand comparison with ASIWYFA are the post-rock grand masters, The Redneck Manifesto, no strangers to freshening up the genre either. What is it about the Irish and this kind of music? Who knows, but post-rock is a lot better off for having such Irish bands.
ASIWYFA play the Róisín Dubh on Saturday April 15 at 8pm. Tickets are available at www.roisindubh.net, the Ticket Desk at OMG Zhivago, Shop Street, and the Róisín Dubh.
Listen to the Galway Advertiser's 'Best Of ASIWYFA' spotify playlist: http://www.advertiser.ie/galway/article/91529/asiwyfa-11-essential-tracks
