Mogwai
Photo: Brian Sweeney
Mogwai play Atomic / 20.00
Maybe it’s because of the famously bad weather, maybe it’s the solitude of the wide greens of Northern Britain. It’s probably the rough, used appeal of the rinsed Scottish cities, the scotch, ale, and other substances. That’s how we’re able to fathom why Mogwai play the kind of music they do play. These acoustic magnificent buildings for daydreamers, hobby astronauts, and sensitive forest spirits. And because their compositions of the last 21 years evoke so many images in such bright colors, hardly anyone is as qualified for good soundtrack work as the four Scotsmen. Les Revenants and Zidane, A 21st Century Portrait are followed by their latest work in this field: Atomic. It has been created as the setting for an eponymous BBC documentary about nuclear energy and its dangers. The band and the film crew went to the Japanese town of Hiroshima among other places – the site of the first nuclear strike. In the run-up of Pop-Kultur, 2016 – taking place from August 31st to September 2nd – Mogwai accompany the impressive images of Atomic in a live show – a unique film concert and a German premiere.