Gasgiant - An Uncertainty Principle
[Self Released]

We Scots are proud of our musical heritage. Granted, we have unleashed some god-awful bands on an undeserving world. But for every Proclaimers we’ve given a Mogwai or Aereogramme, for every Del Amitri there has been a Primal Scream or The Jesus & Mary Chain – and you cannot blame us for Snow Patrol, they are Irish and just happened to re-locate to our land.

You get the picture; Scottish music has helped shape and define numerous scenes and genres. From the C86 sounds of BMX Bandits and The Cocteau Twins' ethereal shoegaze through to Alan McGee’s Britpop revolution and Mogwai’s classic quiet/loud post-rock formula. For such a small nation, Scotland ’s output is nothing short of exceptional.

Enter Gasgiant, another Scottish instrumental outfit. Accusations of plagiarism cannot, however, be leveled at this Edinburgh-based group. These guys (and one girl) are no thieves; they have been around for a long, long time. Almost 17 years to be exact, round about the time Kurt Cobain was in the process of defining an era with a song about an obscure deodorant. Gasgiant have been there from the outset, even supporting Mogwai way back in their early Wurlitzer Jukebox days.

Besides their brand of instrumental music shares more in common with early 90’s bands like Sonic Youth and Swervedriver than any current trend, while their explosive nature points to influences of seminal outfits like Codeine and The God Machine. However, a nomadic existence and revolving-door line-up has hindered this band’s progress. They have managed to record just two albums in their career. Such a timescale between releases makes even Axl Rose look prolific.

But Gasgiant are unconcerned with such trivial matters. The compositions on “An Uncertainty Principle” emanate with a real aura of vast, wide open spaces within their searching instrumental sound. The guitars are suitably stentorian, the percussion robust and dynamic and the songwriting absolutely narcotic. This band gets on with things in an unassuming manner, devoid of any of the self-importance that mars countless other acts.

The superb, slow-burning “Slocore” layers varying chord sequences and tranquil guitar notes over subtle percussion for several minutes. Crucially, there is direction to such a piece, the band do not go for the jugular immediately, instead prefer to let their music breathe. But when they do crank up the drama, the result is like been hit with a tonne of bricks. There are parts of “Slocore” that explode so venomously that you are aware that you are almost willing Gasgiant to let go, during the build-up. When they hit 6th gear it’s more than worth the wait, recalling the sprawling parts of Sonic Youth’s “Daydream Nation” and “Goo” albums.

A number of tracks run like this, lushly layered guitar interplay around a brooding framework, followed by volleys of distorted vitriol. Perhaps this is where “An Uncertainty Principle” loses some points. But on tracks like “Opium” the guitar work is simply mesmeric, while the underlying orchestration in “Coppafeel” and “Math4stupid” compliments the elastic nature of Gasgiant’s sound perfectly.

Elsewhere, key psychedelic influences can be heard in numbers like “Loverboy”, "Are We All In?" and the sinister “Untitled”, implying there is more to this band than meets the eye.

“An Uncertainty Principle” demonstrates the fact a band doesn’t need hype, unlimited recording time or legions of adoring fans. All you need is strong songwriting and a set of good tunes. Gasgiant have both in abundance. A welcome, if incredibly late, entry into the annals of Scottish guitar music. It’s about time!

Track Listing:

1. So sorry
2. Loverboy
3. Agnes
4. Aloha
5. Math4stupid
6. Coppafeel
7. Opium
8. Slo-core
9. Are We All In?
10. Untitled