"New Paths to Helicon, Pt. 2" (almost always referred to as "Helicon 2") is a song by Scottish band

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). Mogw ...

. It was first released as a double A-side with "

New Paths to Helicon, Pt. 1 "New Paths to Helicon, Pt. 1" (almost always referred to as "Helicon 1") is a song by Scotland, Scottish band Mogwai. It was first released as a double A-side with "New Paths to Helicon, Pt. 2" on Gramophone record, 7" limited to 3,000 copies. It w ...

", on 7" limited to 3000 copies. It was later included on the 1997 compilation album, ''

Ten Rapid (Collected Recordings 1996-1997) Ten, TEN or 10 may refer to: * 10, an even natural number following 9 and preceding 11 * one of the years 10 BC, AD 10, 1910 and 2010 * October, the tenth month of the year Places * Mount Ten, in Vietnam * Tongren Fenghuang Airport (IATA code ...

''. The single reached #2 in English radio presenter

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

's 1997 Festive Fifty Chart.Festive Fifty: 1997 Chart
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Overview

A live version of "Helicon 2" (recorded live by

from a

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering th ...

Session at

Maida Vale Maida Vale ( ) is an affluent residential district consisting of the northern part of Paddington in West London, west of St John's Wood and south of Kilburn. It is also the name of its main road, on the continuous Edgware Road. Maida Vale is p ...

on 20 January 1998) can be found on Mogwai's 2005 live compilation album, '' Government Commissions: BBC Sessions 1996-2003''. The last track on ''Ten Rapid'', "End", is simply "Helicon 2" played backwards. "Helicon 2" was featured on the Scottish Association for Mental Health's 2004 compilation album, ''One-In-Four''.

Musical composition

The track begins immediately with a quiet guitar melody, and soft drums which are repeated along with bass and guitar doubling them. At (0:34), the guitar goes on to play a lead part, while the other guitar plays soft harmonics. At (1:08), they slide back into the main riff. At (1:42), a stronger, more distinctive lead part is played. This continues until (2:16), when the main riff is repeated for the last time. At (2:32), the song ends abruptly.

Personnel

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

Notes

External links

Guitar Tablature for "Helicon 2"Last.fm page for "Helicon 2"
{{Mogwai Mogwai songs 1997 singles Rock instrumentals