Bostonian Post-Rockers Caspian to Play Modernsky Lab, May 1

It's easy to be dismissive of post-rock. After all, the genre's filled with bands that write complex, dense, lyric-free, and lengthy jams that are as impressive as they are heady and aloof. Right?

Wrong. Though it has a niche, albeit highly dedicated audience in the West, post-rock has become one of China's most dominant genres. Chalk that up to the very things that can make it less than accessible to casual North American listeners, but the lack of lyrics as well as the juxtaposition of dreamy instrumentation against swelling climaxes are the same features that enamor the genre to Chinese fans.

These factors point to Bostonian band Caspian receiving a warm reception in the capital when they perform at Modernsky Lab on May 1, only several short months after their last stop in Beijing in early 2016 (when they played at Yugong Yishan). After all, they are one of the few post-rock bands – along with elder groups who influenced them like Mogwai and Sigur Ros – that have broken through to a wider audience in the West, while still maintaining their hardcore base.

Yes, Caspian has spent years opening people's minds to a genre that is too often unfairly dismissed as a subset. One reviewer, for instance, called Caspian's 2012 album Waking Season, "a record that pushes the boundaries of post-rock to stratospheric new levels," while another hailed the LP as a "triump." The praise is justified, thanks to the peaceful piano notes and breezy feedback on the opening and title track, to the hypnotic guitar riff on "Porcellous," to the chillingly distorted synths on "Fire Made Flesh."

While Waking Season served as the band's breakthrough, they've since gone on to record other successful LP's, the most recent being 2015's Dust and Disquiet. Clash praised the record, and Caspian in general, calling them "a band who crescendo unlike anyone else. They combine intricate and lovingly constructed melody with the ability to be punishingly loud." Pop Matters concurred, saying the LP's "cinematic swells and retreats in a mélange of delicate arpeggios, thrashing metal, and haunting vocality" all defy much of the formulaic fare that have hampered the post-rock genre in recent years.

The band are now set to shake the rafters of Beijing, a joy for those who like it loud, while hooking the uninitiated with intricate and subtle melodies guaranteed to lull gig goers no matter where they're from.

Caspian will perform at Modernsky Lab on May 1 at 9pm. Tickets are RMB 150 at the door, and RMB 120 if you get them in advance. For more information, click here.

Photos: theculturemag.com, vsmusicnet