"Superheroes of BMX" is 1997 a song by the Scottish

post-rock Post-rock is a subgenre of experimental rock that emphasizes Texture (music), texture, atmosphere, and non-traditional song structures over conventional rock techniques. Post-rock artists often combine rock instrumentation and rock stylings wit ...

group

Mogwai Mogwai () are a Scottish post-rock band, formed in 1995 in Glasgow. The band consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). Mogwa ...

, released on their '' 4 Satin'' EP and on the 2000

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EP+6 An extended play (EP) is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 15 to 30 minutes. An EP is usually less cohesive t ...

''.

Musical and structure

"Superheroes of BMX" is an eight-minute-long

instrumental An instrumental or instrumental song is music without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through Semantic change, semantic widening, a broader sense of the word s ...

which makes use of a Bontempi Organ, which is built upon throughout the song. The song features an electronic drum beat produced through a BOSS DR-550 Dr. Rhythm

drum machine A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument that creates percussion sounds, drum beats, and patterns. Drum machines may imitate drum kits or other percussion instruments, or produce unique sounds, such as synthesized electronic tones. A d ...

. A live version of the song appeared on the live compilation album, '' Government Commissions: BBC Sessions 1996-2003'', recorded at The

Golders Green Hippodrome The Golders Green Hippodrome was built in 1913 by Bertie Crewe as a 3,000-seat music hall, to serve North London and the new London Underground Northern line expansion into Golders Green in the London Borough of Barnet, London, England. Tak ...

on December 22, 1996 by

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...

. The "whooshing" noise heard in the song is made by a

RoboCop ''RoboCop'' is a 1987 American Science fiction film, science fiction action film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner. The film stars Peter Weller, Nancy Allen (actress), Nancy Allen, Dan O'Herlihy, Dani ...

figurine, which can be seen briefly in ''

The Recording of Mr. Beast ''Mr Beast'' is the fifth studio album by Scottish post-rock group Mogwai. It was released in 2006. Overview The album ''Mr Beast'' was released on 6 March 2006 in the UK and 7 March 2006 in the United States, in double LP vinyl format, a regul ...

'' documentary. The song was originally titled "Dominic", after

Dominic Aitchison Dominic Aitchison (born 11 October 1976) is a Scottish bassist and songwriter. He is best known as the bassist and founding member of post-rock band Mogwai. Aside from Mogwai, he also played bass guitar in Crippled Black Phoenix and Stage Blood. ...

, Mogwai's bassist. Similar to their song " Tracy", the track begins with recorded a phone call (which can be heard throughout most of the song) between

Stuart Braithwaite Stuart Leslie Braithwaite (born 10 May 1976) is a Scottish musician, singer and songwriter. He is the guitarist of post-rock band Mogwai, with whom he has recorded ten studio albums. He is also a member of the British alternative rock supergrou ...

and friend David Jack, whilst an electronic drumbeat plays. At (0:18), they are joined by the sound of a Bontempi Organ playing an A♯ major chord, followed by a D minor chord, which is repeated throughout the song. Layers of synth and a guitar riff play over the chords. A whooshing noise can be heard at various points. At (1:56) acoustic drums can be heard playing the drumbeat, until (2:30), when it goes back to electronic drums. At (3:53), distorted guitars begin playing along and feedbacking with the chords in the background. This guitar noise and feedback continues, fading in and out gradually for the next few minutes, until it becomes almost overbearing, at which point the song ends abruptly.

Legacy

The track was one of the earliest singles to bring Mogwai to critical acclaim. "Superheroes of BMX" was an early band name for the English

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

group

Bloc Party Bloc Party are an English Rock music, rock band that was formed in London, England, London in 1999 by co-founders Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, piano, sampler) and Russell Lissack (lead guitar). Their first four albums all featur ...

Personnel

* Stuart Braithwaite – guitar, organ, monologue * Dominic Aitchison – bass guitar * John Cummings – guitar * Martin Bulloch – drums * David Jack – monologue * Andy Miller – producer, mixer

Notes

External links

"Superheroes of BMX"
at

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{{Authority control Superheroes of BMX 1997 songs Songs written by Stuart Braithwaite Songs written by Dominic Aitchison