Back when post-rock was still in its blissfully innocent infancy, one of the many bands that sprouted was ef. They charmed audiences just about immediately, and even though those weren’t great in numbers, they made up for it in heart. Sailing through the past two decades with what is now a backlog of five records, each with its own characteristic beauty, at some point about six years ago, the band went silent. Speaking of this silence, the band chalks it up to something that can be pretty much summed up as the fact that life just happens sometimes. That’s totally understandable. However, it does seem that the pandemic-induced static permanence has stoked the fires of creativity, leading the members to write new material. How fortunate, particularly for us, the listeners!
ef are returning to us with a record that’s called We Salute You, You and You!, and it will be out on November 4 via Pelagic Records. So, you know, definitely keep an eye out for that. In the meantime, though, we’ll be giving you a taste of this new album, in the form of a music video for the first single, titled most post-rock-ishly “Moments of momentum”.
“Moments of momentum” dispenses with the usual pleasantries we associate the genre with and just dives right into what’s going on. Retaining the soul of the band with a visually eliciting and lush sound, this particular song drifts into something epic that doesn’t need to be thunderous to attain that feel. It stays anthemic without feeling forced, or too large to digest. It’s cinematic without the insanely demanding structure and length.
As we see the band play in the video, overlapped with natural landscapes and other wistful imagery, it makes all the sense. The demeanor of the music is as effortless and beautiful as nature. It doesn’t need to do anything else – it simply is.
ef themselves had the following to say about their new song:
First proper song from us in 6 years. First single from our new album. Our first album in 10 years.
A catchy little tune but fully loaded with emotions. A glimpse of our momentum to come.
What does seem a little off-kilter is the pacing and resolution of the song as a single. I mean, it’s an apt first taste of the album, but at the same time, it’s not clear where it will go. Mind you, this is the very first song off the record as we check the track list, so we know enough to say that it’s a bold intro. To me, it sort of hints at the type of album that doesn’t really keep track of songs and is just one massive unit that’s split into songs for the sake of convenience. I guess we’ll find out sooner rather than later.
In the meantime, check out ef on Facebook, Instagram, Bandcamp, and Spotify!
