Sunday the 29th of September, 2024. “Godspeed You! Black Emperor” take the stage at the Troxy in East London.
The band, known for their long, stirring, instrumental pieces (the longest of which having a 29-minute runtime) managed to sell out their first show in the city in the last two years.
I was lucky enough to bear witness to this phenomenal performance.
At around 8pm, one hour after doors opened, support artist Tashi Dorji appeared on stage for his 35-minute set.
Dorji started his set playing his acoustic guitar, which, after applying lots of different effects and pedals, goes from a bare-bones acoustic sound to a powerful ambient drone that builds and crescendos, something very in-style for a "Godspeed” opening act.
At 9pm, the headliner takes the stage, opening their act with the song most synonymous with their live shows, “Hope Drone”.
This song seems to be improvised for each show, starting with a single note on a violin and building to something much greater, all the while accompanied with a screen showing the word “hope”.
Speaking of screens, GY!BE’s shows are heavily visual, containing projections of many different images; birds chirping, protesters being hosed, or an elderly man crying.
These accompany these swelling musical performances, both helping portray a dire yet hopeful tone.
The band then proceeds to play three songs from their (at the time) unreleased album.
This is normally a taboo for concerts, as audiences want to hear songs that they recognised, yet the sheer magnitude and power of these unheard songs makes them just as captivating and powerful as anything else the band could have played.
At the end of their almost two-hour set, Godspeed play the 8 minute “The Sad Mafioso”, which is followed by the members of the band silently leaving one by one.
The music does not yet stop, as a held drone is played for several minutes, which eventually fades out along with the projections on the screen behind the instruments.
This awe-inspiring performance by “Godspeed You! Black Emperor” is what I believe is an example of what concerts should be: not just a live version of prerecorded songs, but an enthralling, engrossing performance that makes these songs more than just a piece of music.
Outside of their music, the members of the band remain mostly anonymous, and whilst they participate in interviews they tend to stay mostly out of the public eye, wanting their music to be known for their music.
The band are also known for their strong politics, signing an open letter in support of palestine along with other artists like “Rage Against The Machine”.
Their latest album, released October 4th, titled “NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD”, refers directly to the number of dead in Palestine at that time.
The band have recently wrapped up the European leg of their tour, but no doubt they'll be back.
