by Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Released October 9, 2000 via Constellation Records
Reviewed October 15, 2020
Top tracks (based on community voting)
Storm (90%), Sleep (87%), Static (72%)
Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s sophomore effort is the embodiment of a musical epic. An hour and a half of musical landscapes spread over four behemoth sized tracks may seem daunting initially, but once you begin the journey it becomes an addictive experience. Ambience and slow buildups fill this record until the mind-blowing crescendos reveal themselves. It may not be an easy listen, but it challenges you as a listener in the way that all great art should. – Jared (10/10)
Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven sits in a class of its own -- not necessarily stylistically, as others works of a similar vein do exist, but there are few to none that achieve what Godspeed You! Black Emperor did with this record. Split into four songs, all of which are about the length of a standard EP, it is a rather long and intimidating tracklist, but one well worth the plunge. Experts in creating suspense through ambience and slow buildups, it’s hard to put this one down once you start. The individual movements within the four instrumental tracks are consistently captivating and feed into each other to craft a beautiful cinematic-like experience. – Dominick (9.5/10)
Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven masterfully portrays all the beauty and terror (emphasis on terror) that this crazy world has to offer. The peaks and valleys created by the Montreal-based experimental rock band are nothing short of awe-inspiring, with the first movement of “Storm” serving as one of the most climactic builds in all of music. A pivotal record in expanding the possibilities of what rock music can sound like, this album transcends the all-too-often worldly arrangements of the genre and elevates it into a stratosphere rarely traveled. It is not the most accessible piece you’ll come across, but given time and proper context, its instrumental brilliance and topical poignancy will shine through tenfold. – Enth (9.5/10)
The start of the millennium turned out to be a scorcher of a year in the canon of contemporary music. All corners were covered and who better to represent the post-rock world than Godspeed You! Black Emperor? Releasing what may be the quintessential post-rock release in Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven, GY!BE transcended themselves. Some of the most beautiful and heart wrenching passages of music to be brought to life are captured on this 90-minute epic. It is packed full of passionate passages and works best when approached as a movie of the mind. Perfecting a craft is a thing of extreme rarity—if even possible. The post-rock 'formula,' for the most part, hasn't been improved upon outside of Godspeed's offerings to the scene. Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven was released in 2000, but its essence existed long before and will exist long after. An album free of the shackles of time and space, a monolithic piece of art, and a magical melding of sound and spirit. – Peter (9/10)
Cam: 10/10 | Jared: 10/10 | Dominick: 9.5/10 | Enth: 9.5/10
Hadley: 9.5/10 | DeVán: 9/10 | Peter: 9/10
