Late last month, Cecil Sharp House, the English Folk song Society HQ in Regent’s Park, hosted the UK debut for Rex and Rachel’s, twin leading lights of a hardy hybrid strain of American post-rock dynamics and folk classical sensibilities. A 500-strong crowd on plastic seating saw Rachel’s showcase last year’s essential Sea & the Bells album, a requiem for clipper ships made up of delicate instrumentals – guitar and drums weaving between strings and piano.
Rachel’s are one of a host of uniformly excellent bands straddling their home, rural Louisville, Kentucky, and the studios and venues of nearby Chicago, who share common aims, a common ancestry and common living and rehearsal spaces. “Louisville is just … out of it,” says Rachel’s guitarist, Jason Noble, “so we all take inspiration from things as diverse as 40-year-old jazz records, reading a lot of books and the climate here, which is very dramatic.”
Louisville was also the home to American post-rock’s pilgrim fathers, Slint, who disbanded at the turn of the decade, core members currently recording with the For Carnation, Aerial M, King Kong and Tortoise. “I saw Slint when I was 15,” recalls Noble. “I could have thought: why bother playing music anymore? That’s as good as it gets. But instead of being dismayed, I was encouraged.”
Ironically, Noble’s own previous band, Rodan, have now assumed the same mythology as Slint, disappearing after one album in 1994 to filter into the finest American bands, the folksy Sonora Pine, symphonically complex noise rockers June of ’44, and the Shipping News, Noble’s current collaboration with Rodan co-founder Jeff Mueller. Their debut, Save Everything (Quarterstick), is a devastating fusion of impossibly heavy guitars and baroque finesse.
Onstage, Rachel’s reflect their disregard for rock conventions. Pianist Rachel Grimes scored their Music for Egon Schiele album as a live ballet soundtrack, and Cecil Sharp House saw Louisville artist Greg King back-projecting appropriate cine-images while Grimes luxuriated in the venue’s grand piano. Support Rex, a New York group commonly assumed to be part of the Kentucky clique, heroically duelled with the venue’s PA’s volume limiter to deliver a curiously appropriate folk-tinged set of thrilling complexity. “We get described as a Chicago band back home in New York,” laughs Rex guitarist Curtis Harvey. “We kind of fell into that group of musicians. I feel lucky and honoured to be part of that scene.”
Rex, whose new album, 3 (Southern), is their most accessible yet, soften and stretch the mathematical geometry of the Slint template with bizarrely successful folk and country influences. The track Waterbug’s chiming music-box strings suggest Michael Nyman scoring Deliverance, while Balloon might be the year’s most beautiful folk song.
Rachel’s and Rex take post-rock full circle. The scene that spawned them broke rock apart, enabling its survivors to make new shapes, alongside influences from folk, country and classical music, which the dogmatists of the 1980s would have gagged on. Now they can engage the heart as well as the head.
Lucinda Locketts, Twitter
Lucinda Locketts, Twitter
Guest1001, Youtube
Guest1001, Youtube
Slothy Matt, Twitter
Slothy Matt, Twitter
Iain, eatenbymissionaries
Iain, eatenbymissionaries
Sweeping Curves, Twitter
Sweeping Curves, Twitter
Pudabaya, Twitter
Pudabaya, Twitter
Karen Laidlaw, Edfringe. com.
Karen Laidlaw, Edfringe. com.
Aiden Hearn, Twitter
Aiden Hearn, Twitter
Emilyistrendy, Youtube
Emilyistrendy, Youtube
Anonymous, The Northfield Patriot
Anonymous, The Northfield Patriot
Z-factor, Twitter.
Z-factor, Twitter.
Fowkes81, Twitter
Fowkes81, Twitter
Nicetime, Guardian.co.uk
Nicetime, Guardian.co.uk
Brendon, Vauxhallownersnetwork.co.uk
Brendon, Vauxhallownersnetwork.co.uk
Lancethrustworthy, Youtube
Lancethrustworthy, Youtube
Visualiser1, Twitter
Visualiser1, Twitter
Rubyshoes, Twitter
Rubyshoes, Twitter
Maninabananasuit, Guardian.co.uk
Maninabananasuit, Guardian.co.uk
Gmanthedemon, bbc.co.uk
Gmanthedemon, bbc.co.uk
James Dellingpole, Daily Telegraph
James Dellingpole, Daily Telegraph
Peter Ould, Youtube
Peter Ould, Youtube
Deepbass, Guardian.co.uk
Deepbass, Guardian.co.uk
Dahoum, Guardian.co.uk
Dahoum, Guardian.co.uk
Gabrielle, Chortle.com
Gabrielle, Chortle.com
Pirate Crocodile, Twitter
Pirate Crocodile, Twitter
GRTak, finalgear.com
GRTak, finalgear.com
Anon, westhamonline.com
Anon, westhamonline.com
Whoiscuriousgeorge, Youtube
Whoiscuriousgeorge, Youtube
Dominic Cavendish, Daily Telegraph
Dominic Cavendish, Daily Telegraph
Meninblack, Twitter
Meninblack, Twitter
Zombie Hamster, Twitter
Zombie Hamster, Twitter
Cojones2, Guardian.co.uk
Cojones2, Guardian.co.uk
Cyberbloke, Twitter
Cyberbloke, Twitter
Anonymous, don'tstartmeoff.com
Anonymous, don'tstartmeoff.com
Bosco239, youtube
Bosco239, youtube
Meanstreetelite, Peoplesrepublicofcork
Meanstreetelite, Peoplesrepublicofcork
Neolab, Guardian.co.uk
Neolab, Guardian.co.uk
Genghis McKahn, Guardian.co.uk
Genghis McKahn, Guardian.co.uk
Frankie Boyle, Comedian
Frankie Boyle, Comedian
Aaron, comedy.co.uk
Aaron, comedy.co.uk
Mpf1947, Youtube
Mpf1947, Youtube
Chez, Chortle.com
Chez, Chortle.com
Shit Crit, Twitter
Shit Crit, Twitter
Jamespearse, Twitter
Jamespearse, Twitter
Richard Herring, Comedian
Richard Herring, Comedian
Fairy Pingu, Twitter
Fairy Pingu, Twitter
Idrie, Youtube
Idrie, Youtube
DVDhth's grandparents, Twitter
DVDhth's grandparents, Twitter
Brighton Argus
Brighton Argus
Cabluigi, Guardian.co.uk
Cabluigi, Guardian.co.uk
Etienne, Chortle.com
Etienne, Chortle.com
Hiewy, Youtube
Hiewy, Youtube
Joskins, Leeds Music Forum
Joskins, Leeds Music Forum
98rosjon, Twitter
98rosjon, Twitter
Peter Fears, Twitter
Peter Fears, Twitter
Tokyofist, Youtube
Tokyofist, Youtube
Sam Rooney, Youtube
Sam Rooney, Youtube
Foxfoxton, Youtube
Foxfoxton, Youtube
Johnny Kitkat, dontstartmeoff.com
Johnny Kitkat, dontstartmeoff.com
Stuart, Chortle
Stuart, Chortle
BBC iPlayer edition of discussion of Stewart Lee on A Good Read
BBC iPlayer edition of discussion of Stewart Lee on A Good Read
Leach Juice, Twitter
Leach Juice, Twitter
Contrapuntal, Twitter
Contrapuntal, Twitter
Horatio Melvin, Twitter
Horatio Melvin, Twitter
Lee Mack, Mack The Life, 2012
Lee Mack, Mack The Life, 2012
Alwyn, Digiguide.tv
Alwyn, Digiguide.tv
Someoneyoudon'tknow, Chortle.com
Someoneyoudon'tknow, Chortle.com
General Lurko 36, Guardian.co.uk
General Lurko 36, Guardian.co.uk
Mini-x2, readytogo.net
Mini-x2, readytogo.net
Lents, redandwhitekop.com
Lents, redandwhitekop.com
Joe, Independent.co.uk
Joe, Independent.co.uk
Funday’schild, youtube.
Funday’schild, youtube.
Mearecate, Youtube
Mearecate, Youtube
Shane, Beverley, Dailymail.co.uk
Shane, Beverley, Dailymail.co.uk
Dick Socrates, Twitter
Dick Socrates, Twitter
Wharto15, Twitter
Wharto15, Twitter
Carla, St Albans, Dailymail.co.uk
Carla, St Albans, Dailymail.co.uk
Mrdavisn01, Twitter
Mrdavisn01, Twitter
Robert Gavin, Twitter
Robert Gavin, Twitter
Ishamayura Byrd, Twitter
Ishamayura Byrd, Twitter
Secretdeveloper, Youtube
Secretdeveloper, Youtube
Anamatronix, Youtube
Anamatronix, Youtube
Al Murray, Comedian
Al Murray, Comedian
Tres Ryan, Twitter
Tres Ryan, Twitter
Tweeterkiryakou, Twitter
Tweeterkiryakou, Twitter
Len Firewood, Twitter
Len Firewood, Twitter
Stokeylitfest, Twitter
Stokeylitfest, Twitter
John Robins, Comedian
John Robins, Comedian
Pudabaya, beexcellenttoeachother.com
Pudabaya, beexcellenttoeachother.com
Clampdown59, Twitter.
Clampdown59, Twitter.
Anon, dontstartmeoff.com
Anon, dontstartmeoff.com
Neva2busy, dontstartmeoff.com
Neva2busy, dontstartmeoff.com
Borathigh5, Youtube
Borathigh5, Youtube
Gwaites, Digitalspy
Gwaites, Digitalspy
Peter Ould, Twitter
Peter Ould, Twitter
12dgdgdgdgdgdg, Youtube
12dgdgdgdgdgdg, Youtube
Yukio Mishima, dontstartmeoff.com
Yukio Mishima, dontstartmeoff.com
Rowing Rob, Guardian.co.uk
Rowing Rob, Guardian.co.uk
Patrick Kavanagh, Guardian.co.uk
Patrick Kavanagh, Guardian.co.uk
Tweeter Kyriakou, Twitter
Tweeter Kyriakou, Twitter
Carcrazychica, Youtube
Carcrazychica, Youtube
Anon, BBC Complaints Log
Anon, BBC Complaints Log
Dominic Cavendish, Telegraph
Dominic Cavendish, Telegraph
Jackmumf, Twitter
Jackmumf, Twitter
Bobby Bhoy, Twitter
Bobby Bhoy, Twitter
Keilloh, Twitter
Keilloh, Twitter
Tin Frog, Twitter
Tin Frog, Twitter
Coxy, Dontstartmeoff.com
Coxy, Dontstartmeoff.com
World Without End, Twitter
World Without End, Twitter
Pnethor, pne-online.com
Pnethor, pne-online.com
Dave Wilson, Chortle.com
Dave Wilson, Chortle.com
Danazawa, Youtube
Danazawa, Youtube
FBC, finalgear.com
FBC, finalgear.com
Spanner, dontstartmeoff.com
Spanner, dontstartmeoff.com
Kozzy06, Youtube
Kozzy06, Youtube
Rudeness, Youtube
Rudeness, Youtube
Syhr, breakbeat.co.uk
Syhr, breakbeat.co.uk
Lenny Darksphere, Twitter
Lenny Darksphere, Twitter
Birmingham Sunday Mercury
Birmingham Sunday Mercury
Microcuts 22, Twitter
Microcuts 22, Twitter
Guest, Dontstartmeoff.com
Guest, Dontstartmeoff.com
A D Ward, Twitter
A D Ward, Twitter
Joycey, readytogo.net
Joycey, readytogo.net
Liam Travitt, Twitter
Liam Travitt, Twitter
Esme Folley, Actress, cellist, Twitter
Esme Folley, Actress, cellist, Twitter
Alex Quarmby, Edfringe.com
Alex Quarmby, Edfringe.com
NevW47479, UKTV.co.uk
NevW47479, UKTV.co.uk
Henry Howard Fun, Twitter
Henry Howard Fun, Twitter
Sidsings000, Youtube
Sidsings000, Youtube