Redirected from: Goodspeed You! Black Emperor

Play Godspeed You! Black… Radio

Godspeed You! Black Emperor

6,385,345 plays (308,043 listeners)

3,995 shouts

Add to my Library Share

Montreal, Canada (1994 – 2003)

Godspeed You! Black Emperor (formerly punctuated Godspeed You Black Emperor! and abbreviated to GY!BE, GYBE, or just Godspeed) was a Canadian band based in Montreal, Quebec.

Formed in 1994 in Montreal, Canada, the band has been highly influential within the genre. Working with orchestrated arrangements, the nine-piece group created tracks with wide dynamic ranges, a highly evocative use of instrumentation and sounds and uncompromising long form compositions. Their engrossing use of art and visuals in both album packaging and live performances creates an enigmatic aura.

Godspeed You! Black Emperor took their name from a little known 1976 Japanese black-and-white documentary by director Mitsuo Yanagimachi, which follows the exploits of a Japanese biker gang, the Black Emperors.

They are most commonly classified as post-rock, but are just as well recognized outside any established scene and take influences from a range of styles including , , music, composition and the . Each release usually consists of an entire piece divided into movements, mostly between 15 and 25 minutes, sometimes eponymously specified in the liner notes.

GY!BE, althought formed around 1994 with three members, had as many as fifteen members but tended to have a core group of nine. Their instrumentation varied with the lineup but the music is mostly based around electric and bass guitars, as well as a string and a percussion section.
Read more… Edit

Top Albums

See more

Top Tracks

1 Play
East Hastings full track
1,851
2 Play
1,695
3 Play
The Dead Flag Blues full track
1,678
4 Play
Moya full track
1,509
5 Play
1,376
6 Play
Providence full track
1,357
7 Play
1,336
8 Play
1,131
9 Play
965
10 Play
835
11  
684
12  
581
13  
485
14  
428
15 Play
313
See more

Shoutbox

Leave a comment. Log in to Last.fm or sign up (it’s free).
See all 3,995 shouts

Videos

See more

Listeners

See more

Recent Activity

Related Journals

See more

More Information

Links
Band Members
Labels
Other spellings