Ongoing History of New Music

Episode: What Exactly is Post-Rock? (Part 1)

Host: Alan Cross
Release Date: January 21, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, Alan Cross embarks on a journey to deconstruct and define the elusive musical genre known as "post-rock." Through a historical and sonic exploration, he traces the roots of post-rock from the 1960s Velvet Underground to the experimental innovations of Germany, the post-punk movement, Britain's ambient scenes, and into the 1990s UK, Chicago, and Canadian post-rock scenes. This is the first of a two-part series aiming to clarify what post-rock is, how it differs from conventional rock, and why it's so difficult to categorize.

Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Instinct to Categorize Music

• Music Genres as "Piles": Humans instinctively organize things into labeled categories—music included.
• Some genres fit neatly; others, like "post-rock," resist clear definition and become a kind of musical "junk drawer."
• Quote:

  "Sometimes the labels that we give these piles are clear and concise. Other times, not so much. Because the sort of music we're trying to categorize doesn't want to be categorized." — Alan Cross [05:34]

2. The Name "Post-Rock"

• The prefix "post" implies coming after, but rock as a genre still exists. So, what makes music "post-rock"?
• Alan suggests post-rock is still rock—just different enough to stand apart from "normal" rock.

3. Historical Foundations of Post-Rock

The Velvet Underground ([09:45])

• Alan identifies The Velvet Underground as proto-post-rock due to their experimental approach, bizarre subject matter, departure from AM radio-oriented "rock and roll," and inability to be neatly categorized.
• Quote:

  "The Velvet Underground was not normal for 1965... They were so far outside the common standards of the cars and girls thing of the day that no one really knew what they were." — Alan Cross [10:20]

Krautrock (West Germany, 1970s) ([14:24])

• German musicians distanced themselves from past traditions, creating what they called Kosmische Musik or "Krautrock" (named by British critics).
• Bands like Kraftwerk, Neu!, and Can experimented with driving rhythms, electronics, and diverse influences—rock, but different.

4. The Post-Punk Evolution ([19:48])

• Post-punk is more easily defined: it’s music after punk, incorporating "deeper waters," avant-garde attitude, synthesizers, world music, funk, jazz, and more.
• Simon Reynolds' definition:

  "Music that wasn't punk. But you could tell by listening to it that punk had to have happened." — Alan Cross recalling Reynolds [20:37]

• David Bowie's Low album, Brian Eno's ambient records (Music for Airports, 1978), and Public Image Limited's Metal Box are cited as prime examples pushing musical and conceptual boundaries.

5. No Wave Scene (Late 1970s, New York) ([29:37])

• A deliberately avant-garde, anti-commercial, and abrasive scene (ex: Sonic Youth, Lydia Lunch’s Teenage Jesus and the Jerks), chronicled in the No New York compilation.
• No consistent sound, but unified by a rejection of all rock conventions—even those of punk and new wave.

6. The Actual Term "Post-Rock" ([36:03])

• Origins:
  • The term appears as early as 1967 in Time magazine (re: The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper), but Simon Reynolds popularizes it in the '80s and '90s while describing Bark Psychosis's 1993 album Hex.
• Reynolds’ Criteria:

  "Using rock instrumentation for non rock purposes." [36:46]

• Guitars and instruments serve texture and atmosphere over riffs or power chords.

7. Backward Glances: Retrospective Post-Rock

• Elements found in:
  • My Bloody Valentine (shoegaze, texture-heavy)
  • Cocteau Twins (dream pop)
  • Throbbing Gristle, Einstürzende Neubauten (early industrial)
  • Talk Talk (experimental, textural, "Radiohead before Radiohead") ([39:50])
• Early post-rock creators challenged the primacy (or necessity) of electric guitars and traditional song structure.

8. Stereolab and the UK Experimental Scene ([41:55])

• Stereolab merges krautrock, vintage synths, French pop, funk, jazz, surrealism, and philosophy.
• Alan recommends exploring bands like Laika, Seefeel, Moonshake, and Disco Inferno for more early '90s UK post-rock immersion.

9. The Chicago School of Post-Rock ([44:32])

• Focus on instrumentation, tight performance, and non-traditional percussion (e.g., Tortoise).
• Tortoise’s 1995 album Millions Now Living Will Never Die is a key release—multi-bass, multi-percussion, not exactly rock but rock-adjacent.

10. The Canadian Post-Rock Movement ([48:31])

• Toronto: Do Make Say Think—instrumental, jazz-influenced post-rock.
• Montreal: Godspeed You! Black Emperor—highly influential, political, mostly instrumental, sprawling compositions with spoken word, field recordings, and "dystopian" themes.
• Godspeed’s Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven (2000) marks a high-water moment.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "It was outlier music for outsiders." — Alan Cross on The Velvet Underground [11:00]
• "Rock, right? Right… Maybe, but also something beyond it." — Alan Cross (regarding Can's "I Want More") [17:32]
• "Punk itself was not revolutionary; it was reactionary… The next generation of musicians was free to build things up again using different tools and different attitudes." — Alan Cross [20:19]
• "Eno took things to an extreme again… The goal was mood, not necessarily telling a story of any kind with lyrics." — Alan Cross [24:56]
• "Tony Wobble was fond of saying that 'rock is obsolete.'" — Alan Cross on Public Image Limited [26:41]
• "No wave artists professed to reject all conventions of rock, even as it was expressed in punk and new wave. It was nihilistic, it was pessimistic, it was confrontational. But it was also wrapped in an artsy guise that included cinema, fashion and all manner of visual art." — Alan Cross [29:59]
• "Using rock instrumentation for non rock purposes." — Simon Reynolds, via Alan Cross [36:46]
• "Tortoise: not exactly rock, but certainly with rock DNA… DNA that was somehow mutated into something more. Kind of like Peter Parker when he was bitten by a radioactive spider." — Alan Cross [45:51]
• "Godspeed is highly influential in the post rock universe. Most of their stuff is instrumental, although they do make use of spoken word monologues and field recordings. Tracks can extend to 20 minutes or more, but they need that time to build and set the mood, to create the atmosphere, to build to a crescendo and then back down again." — Alan Cross [50:41]

Key Timestamps

[05:34] — The challenge of music categorization: how genres emerge and break down
[09:45] — The Velvet Underground as a proto-post-rock band
[14:24] — Understanding Krautrock and the meaning of "cosmic music"
[19:48] — The post-punk movement and Simon Reynolds’ definitions
[24:56] — Brian Eno, ambient music, and breaking the rock mold
[26:41] — Public Image Limited and the idea of "rock is obsolete"
[29:37] — No Wave scene: noise, art, and nihilism in late-70s New York
[36:03] — The first uses of the term "post-rock" and Simon Reynolds' influence
[39:50] — Talk Talk and the move towards textural, non-traditional rock
[41:55] — Stereolab and the early '90s UK experimental post-rock scene
[44:32] — The Chicago school and Tortoise’s redefinition of rock instrumentation
[48:31] — Canadian contributions: Do Make Say Think, Godspeed You! Black Emperor

Conclusion and Look Ahead

The episode concludes with Alan Cross teasing the second part of the series, promising deeper exploration into the global reach of post-rock and its profound influence on bands like Radiohead, Arcade Fire, The National, and more. He emphasizes that post-rock, often overlooked by mainstream radio, is essential for the ongoing health and evolution of rock music—inviting listeners to explore beyond their usual boundaries and “open your ears to just a little bit more.”

Tip: For listeners seeking primer artists and recordings, Alan highlights:

• The Velvet Underground (early proto-post-rock)
• Can (“I Want More”)
• Brian Eno (Ambient works)
• Public Image Limited (Metal Box)
• Talk Talk
• Stereolab
• Tortoise
• Godspeed You! Black Emperor

End of Part 1.
Stay tuned for Part 2 for further explorations of the post-rock universe.