Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra

Experimental rock outfit Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra is not Godspeed You! Black Emperor and nor was it intended to be.

Formed in 1999 by Godspeed guitarist Efrim Menuck in the midst of touring, the project was conceived of as an outlet to write songs Menuck believed would not fit under Godspeed’s grandiose brand of post-rock.

Thee Silver Mt. Zion shares many of the same ingredients as its better-known sister act — spoken word samples, ponderous song lengths, orchestral flourishes and the occasional sense of overwhelming dread.

With its seventh studio album, “Fuck Off We Get Free We Pour Light on Everything,” the Montreal collective uses these elements to further refine its sound and to create another respectable, if occasionally frustrating, album.

On the opening track “Fuck Off Get Free,” pounding drums and warped symphony of guitars and violins set the tone for much of the album’s art punk sound.
Menuck’s eccentric vocals bring to mind the likes of Joe Strummer or a particularly drunken Damon Albarn.

Unlike past Thee Silver Mt. Zion efforts, most of the songs lack significant changes in dynamics.

Songs that start loud end loud — like Take Away These Early Grave Blues — and those that begin softly drift off unobtrusively, such as in the tender closer, “Rains Thru the Roof of thee Grande Ballroom (For Capital Steez).”

On most pop albums this would not be a problem.

But considering half of Thee Silver Mt. Zion song’s last longer than 10 minutes, these long periods of sustained mood grow tiring.

The record also falls short of achieving any significant emotional resonance.

It lacks the intimacy Menuck was presumably trying to tap into when he started Thee Silver Mt. Zion.

At the same time, the album’s refusal to indulge in the epic half-hour masterpieces that placed Godspeed among the world’s best post-rock bands is frustrating.

It’s pointless to use nearly all the elements of a Godspeed record to create something that is not a Godspeed record.

“Fuck Off Get Free We Pour Light on Everything” is a good album. It will undoubtedly satisfy Menuck’s fans and probably land them on a few year-end best-of lists.

However, despite its newfound punk ferocity, the record feels emotionless.

Musicians will no doubt appreciate it, but the average music fan looking for a good case of “the feels” will only be confused.