Slint helped to start so much of what I listen to that I really do owe them a debt of gratitude. Without them, I would have been left stranded without any of the great post-rock bands that came about either directly from them or based off of their ideals. June of 44, Rachel’s, Rodan, and the list continues of various bands created out of that initial “Big Bang” of their implosion. Perhaps they were wound a bit too tight, or maybe they just were sick of spending so much time on something people didn’t immediately appreciate.
Those Post Rock bands that formed after these guys (like ‘Stars of the Lid’, ‘Don Caballero’, etc) were heavy informed by the dynamics set forth by Slint. Stars of the Lid focused on the quiet atmospherics. Don obviously got a lot from Slint’s extremely muscular sound, but maybe went a bit further with the drumming.
Oddly, this obsession with them began years after they had broken up. All these developments occurred after the fact, once the music had begun to sink in with the rest of the world. Even those who weren’t exactly influenced by their music (Tortoise claimed that they knew of bands they liked more) still had to admit that there really was something quite unusual about Louisville, KY’s music scene. Perhaps it was how removed and distant it was relative to any other large major city. Due to this distance it could better form its own identity.
After years of working in other bands, in 2007 Slint reformed. They haven’t released any new music as their band has risen from the ashes, but with the live concerts there’s a hush of anticipation. A certain expectation has been created due to that prolonged period of silence. Plus a new song has been introduced as sort of a perfect closer.
It is called “King’s Approach” it sounds like something that might have come from Rodan. It takes its time in building up, and expands beyond any other song they have in their overture. Depending on their moods, it can last anywhere from 6 to 10 minutes. Hearing it, it does reassure me that they didn’t reform the band simply to make a huge amount of money. Most likely, they are making enough. Besides, their various other projects either as solo (David Pajo) or work in other bands would pay much better.
Over the course of this week, I’ll go into their entire meager discography. Barely 80 minutes of pure music is all they’ve been able to offer the world. Yet it is due to the sheer quality that they have been able to sort of span entire generations of music snobs, from the vinyl to tape to digital (all of whom have their own personal bootlegs of those few 80s concerts they performed). We’ll go from the beginning ‘Tweez’ which they’ve stated repeatedly is stuff they’d like to revisit to their most famous opus ‘Spiderland’.
Reading what few interviews exist with them, it seems telling how they would want to re-tool some of those old songs. How perhaps those songs atmospherics and general pace might not fit people twenty years later who have since started families and had real lives. But yet they known how venerated they are in certain circles and to tweak those songs even slightly would freak out too many.
Above is a surprisingly well-captured video of them performing their newest offering “King’s Approach”