Math Rock - Contemporary Math Rock

Contemporary Math Rock

By the turn of the 21st century, most of the later generation bands such as Thumbnail and Sweep the Leg Johnny had disbanded and the genre had been roundly disavowed by most bands labeled with the "math rock" moniker. However, the influences of the movement can clearly be heard in the abiding avant-garde and indie rock scenes in bands such as The Rose West. Many more bands, consisting of both those from the original wave of the genre and those of the new generation, have managed to be tagged with the moniker of "math-rock". Cinemechanica run contemporary math rock label Hello Sir Records out of Athens, Georgia. The British band Foals exemplify the angular guitar sections and start/stop dynamics of the math rock sound particularly in their earlier demos; however they lack the mixture of time signatures or the odd time signatures needed to be thought of as a proper math rock band. The Edmund Fitzgerald is a band containing members of the band Foals, with the addition of the use of complex time signatures and time changes. Other British math rock acts of the 21st century such as The Murder of Rosa Luxemburg who toured with screamo band Circle Takes the Square before breaking up in 2004 have stood out in the UK scene but have been less successful. Youthmovie Soundtrack Strategies are another British band who use angular guitar sections, as well as some post-rock techniques and the use of different time signatures. This Town Needs Guns, an Oxford based band, predominantly use asymmetrical time signatures, typical math rock characteristics, as well as complex finger picking.

In the mid-2000s, many math rock bands enjoyed renewed popularity. Slint and Chavez embarked on reunion tours, while Shellac toured and released their first album in seven years. The members of the short-lived Seyarse formed a new band under the name of Piglet, releasing Lava Land in 2005, putting them on the chart as a pioneering new math rock band. Don Caballero reunited with a new lineup and released an album in 2006, while several of its original members joined new projects; Mike Banfield has formed the band Knot Feeder in 2006, while bassist Pat Morris joined The Poison Arrows in 2005.