In September 2008, supreme Scottish instrumentalists [b]'Mogwai'[/b] release their sixth album 'The Hawk Is Howling' and [b]'The Sun Smells Too Loud'[/b] is a preview track from the album.
The song starts in familiar style with plodding guitars and drums churning out a melody. Then delicate chord changes and electronic tweaks bring in a startling hazy summers day riff. It is business as usual for the first three minutes before a heavier, more clumsy mid-section of keyboards takes over. For the second half, everything blends together before what is essentially a reworking of the first with added melody. Instead of building to a climax, music is stripped away for the downbeat outro.
'The Sun Smells Too Loud' is a great taster for the new album if only to tell us that in two years not much has changed. But it is far from 'Mogwai' at their majestic best. The song certainly doesn't have the menacing ferocity of 'Mr. Beast' or the subtle beauty of 'Happy Songs For Happy People'. At nearly seven minutes, it is unlikely to be a single, but may suffer the indignity of a radio edit. Only time will tell. Roll on September.
-- CS (for The Music Magazine 2008)
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