Do Make Say Think - Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn (9 tracks) +Album Reviews

Chicago meets Montreal

a1 | 10/14/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Do Make Say Think are instrumental, cinematic indie rock hailing from Quebec. This is definitely a sister album to their previous, "And Yet And Yet", rather than their first two albums. They've departed a little from their original epic buildup sound and become a bit more like Chicago instrumental post rock without the malaise: tighter, snappier, yet still as indulgent as ever with the song lengths (10 minutes tops - no complaints here). I don't want to imply it's a total frenzy though - just lively. They make excellent use of poignant lulls and Mogwai(c) dynamic crescendos. As with &Yet&Yet, lilting waltz-like time signatures, syncopation and jazzy little fills abound. And as with all their albums, Winter Hymns has its few moments of truly transcendent beauty, where the musicianship and the mix comes together and makes your toes curl."

A tale of threes

Jeff Warrington | San Francisco, CA | 11/07/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I got into DMST after their last album And Yet And Yet came out. Often included in the list of bands surrounding Montreal's Godspeed You! Black Emperor, I have found Do Make Say Think to be my favorite by a large margin. The latest release from Do Make Say Think is split into 3's. The title lists the three hymnal sections Winter, Country and Secret. Each sectional consists of 3 songs with Winter being the most overtly rocking and the finale Secret being the mellow comedown (and the shortest section). The Winter section evokes the harsh reality of a cold, dark winter, full of stormy crescendos and a bleak feel. After this trio of songs, the listener will indeed be praying for spring to arrive. The middle section lives up to it's name as it evokes a pleasant stroll through the countryside, at least until the final couple of minutes of the last song of the section where the rock kicks in in a big way. The final section, Secret, has a more ethereal feel to it, one that makes me think of clouds for some reason. There is an intimacy to this section as if the 'secret' is being whispered in your ear.I was disappointed on my first listen to this disc. The second listen changed all that and now I am somewhere in the 50th or 60th listen at this point. Buy this and then run out and pick up the whole back catalogue. You will not be disappointed."

Beauty

N. Turner | 10/28/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"my first introduction to post-rock came a few years ago, with Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and after that initial love-affair i searched endlessly for more bands in the same vein. Many of the GYBE affiliates(a silver mt. zion, fly pan am), as well as others not under the Constellation Records umbrella(mogwai, epxlosions in the sky), but i think i've found my favorite in Do Make Say think. Their album and song titles may sound about as pretentious as any other post-rock outfit, but that's basically where the prententions end.

With Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn, DMST have created a work of pure post-rock perfection. Blending elements of jazz with the chamber rock features of label mates Godspeed, but with the perverbial "fat" cut out of the songs, just pure honest songwriting. You wont find your self fast forwarding through numerous minutes of inaudible ambient noise, no sir, from the upbeat jazzy opener "Fredericia", to the soft, serene closer "Hooray! Hooray! Hooray!", Winter Hymn puts the listener into a state of post-rock haaven, and once the final notes of "Hooray!(x3)" play out, you'll be begging for more, I know I was.

this is a band that plays for the sheer love of music. This is a band that is helping to make the music industry a better place. This album is a must have for ANY post-rock fan, but also worth looking in to for those of you who have never even heard the term "post-rock" in your life. Invest the simple $12 on this album, and let it move you."

Best post-rock album so far

Thaddeus | nyc | 05/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I hate when people say "Best (blank) ever", especially about music because music is so personal. But I've listened to a lot of post-rock (a genre that hates to name itself, by the way) and this album is just so great. I'm so glad to see that the average review is five stars, so few really deserve this much praise. Things that set Do Make Say Think apart from their peers: 1)They have a greatly expanded melodic vocabulary. Not all moments here are somber or angry. 2)There is just so little indulgence in this music. Nothing in here seems to last forever or go off into a place that is unnecessary. 3)The semi-exotic instrumentation (horns and strings, basically) isn't temporary and isn't there to back-up the guitars. The chamber elements used here really function in a way that's integrated. I have a big place in my heart for Godspeed...!, Mogwai and Tortoise, but this album has got them all beat."

They just keep getting better and better

somethingexcellent | Lincoln, NE United States | 11/25/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"When a band just keeps getting better and better with each release, it's easy to start expecting unrealistic things. Even after their first Self-Titled release, I somehow knew that they were a band to keep tabs on. While that first disc wasn't amazing, it had moments on it that gave me chills and marked the band in my mind as one to watch. Over the course of the past couple years (with just about one release per year), the group has quickly grown into one of my favorite bands making music today. With Goodbye Enemy Airship The Landlord Is Dead, they uppped the ante, breaking off into realms unforcasted and completely shrugging off any mentions of them being a Tortoise-clone. With last years & Yet & Yet, they got better again, and when I discovered that members of the group had a hand in both Broken Social Scene and K.C. Accidental, I wondered if they could do any wrong.

With Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn the group has created an album that pushes forth will leaps and bounds while still restraining itself at the same time. There are songs on this 9 track release that will split your head open in a good way, and easily the best work that the group has done. There are also several meandering ones that simply bide their time until the next amazing moment comes along. Maybe the easiest thing for me to say is that while Do Make Say Think has recorded the best tracks they've ever done with this release, it's still not quite their best overall.

That's not to say that the release isn't great, because it is. Some of the blame may simply be traced back to myself with the aforementioned statement of expecting unrealistic things. It's not fair to expect something and even though you aren't quite sure what that expectation is, somehow things don't match up to it when you finally hear the finished product. Simply put, I'm rambling, and this is a great album nonetheless. Broken into three 'sections' (hinted at by the album title) recorded at different times, the disc brings in everything you've come to expect from the group and more. The opening track of "Fredericia" is one of those tracks I mentioned above that will leave you swimming in joy. Opening with a pretty guitar melody over warbles of a bassline, it progresses into a medium-tempo rambler that builds slowly before a (dare I say?) funky bassline unrolls itself and horns and guitars swirl together through a digitally-processed haze before coalescing into one of the heaviest moments that the group has ever laid to tape. The whole thing saws off into quiet before building up into an even louder, frenzied ending, rivaling just about anything labelmates Godspeed You Black Emperor have done.

After a quiet bridging track, things are back full steam with "Auberge Le Mouton Noir," another guitar-driven track that marches steadily along with blinding moments of punctuation before launching into a double-time ending that again lays waste. The longer of the first three tracks are easily some of the most stunning work that the group has ever done, and although the middle, slightly slower and jazzier section is somewhat of a cooldown, it's by no means boring (especially the huge swells on the 10-minute "Outer Inner And Secret"). Just when you thought the group has gone too laid-back on the horn-filled "Ontario Plates," they come right back again with what might be their best song ever. "Horns Of A Rabbit" opens with backwards guitars before building in a huge beat and buzzing synth bassline that layers in horns and delicate guitars in subtle ways before again building to a grand explosion of controlled rock noise that again blows the album open. It all happens in 4 minutes, and it might be the most mindblowing instrumental pop track you hear all year.

The album closes out with a nod to Steve Reich (I think) on the filtered noise of "It's Gonna Rain," before closing things out with their poppiest track ever in the celebratory "Hooray! Hooray! Hooray!" Layers of bubbly keyboards wind around delicate horns and guitars before bursting into a hopscotch synth singalong that ends things on a bright note and makes you want to hear the whole damn thing all over again (just like the quiet voice at the very end of the release states). After all my worries, I guess I had nothing to worry about. Do Make Say Think are still one of the best bands out there, and if you haven't yet discovered their work, it's about time you get on it. Go. Now. And tell them I sent you.

(from almost cool music reviews)"

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	Do Make Say Think Winter Hymn Country Hymn Secret Hymn Genres: Alternative Rock, Special Interest, Pop, Rock Track Listings (9) - Disc #1 Fredericia War on Want Auberge le Mouton Noir Outer Inner & Secret 107 Reasons Why Ontario Plates Horns of a Rabbit It's Gonna Rain - Do Make Say Think, Gano, Gordon Hooray! Hooray! Hooray!
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