FROM THE VAULT: Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend! by Godspeed You! Black Emperor

FROM THE VAULT: Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend! by Godspeed You! Black Emperor

March 23, 2026 · 1h 31m

About this episode

The episode dives deep into the music and politics of Godspeed You! Black Emperor, reflecting on their elaborate compositions and the band's impact.

This week we're throwing back to June 2018, when this pod was only six months old. Things were simpler - the research was less onerous, episodes were shorter (this would easily be a two parter these days), Dave was still part of the crew and the world wasn't ending... Godspeed You! Black Emperor don't really do brevity. They do epic, sweeping, often joyous, always elaborate, suites of music that are designed to move you. They're thorough, crafting songs with painstaking attention to detail. In keeping with the spirit of the band, we thought we'd do the same, so we present to your our longest episode yet. But trust us when we say that it's probably up there with our most interesting listens. We dive deep into the band's back catalogue, stopping along the way to talk about the politics of the band and yes, we do offer a take on some thorny subjects. With this band it's something that can often be inseparable from the way their music, and image, is presented, so it had to happen. The Foo Fighters Nexus also returns (jingle pending) and Chris has a full on GY!BE superfan nerdgasm, while Weaver whacks his politics degree on the table and Mark takes issue with the label "post-rock"…

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Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Godspeed You! Black Emperor

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