Rating: NNNN

Epic by design, godspeed you black emperor! have always struggled with getting the massive throb of their live shows onto tape. Hooking up with Steve Albini might not have been the most obvious solution, but the cranky Chicago producer appears to have kept out of godspeed’s way and allowed the group to slowly build up steam. Wrapped in printed rants about unexploded ordnance, Ariel Sharon and an elaborate chart linking the major record labels to the weapons industry, the three lengthy instrumental tracks here have an apocalyptic grandeur. The familiar godspeed structure of slow-burning intros gradually giving way to crashing conclusions remains, but there’s a rawness and brutality the group hasn’t managed before.