Instrumental rock music has always been a little underground. From its origins in surf rock to the many post-rock bands of today, there have been few moments where it has reached the attention of the mainstream music fan, which makes playing in a post-rock band a true labor of love. Artists like Godspeed You! Black Emperor or Explosions In The Sky have amassed significant followings, but many practitioners of the style remain in obscurity, and that is just fine.
As an appreciator of this variety of rock, I am happy to be a part of that niche and always excited to see emerging artists putting their own spin on it. Enter Iowa City’s Moscow Puzzles, a two-piece post-rock/math rock band consisting of Tobin Hoover (guitar) and Tony Andrys (drums) whose latest album, Vast Space Of The Interior explores the push and pull of musical tension, repetition and dynamics. Without the benefit of a 10-piece band, or even a four-piece, Moscow Puzzles delivers an intriguing exercise in minimalism and DIY on this project.
Opening track, “Highway Apathy,” kicks off with what could be considered a post-hardcore or emo kind of riff, calling to mind artists like Thursday or Unwound. This transitions into a steady beat with layered guitar loops building on each other, an approach to music making that isn’t too far removed from krautrock or even how techno composers create motifs over loops. This takes the listener away from those earlier artist comparisons, even if the chosen tones would still fit comfortably in that arena. The ascending repetition evokes an emotional uncertainty, like a steely-eyed stranger in a dark alley.
“Unknown Fixed Object” expands on these ideas, adding more complex drumming and melody into the mix, approaching the transfixing instrumentation of Slint or Shellac. Midway through the song, tension crescendos and drops out into a post-punk riff that again builds upon itself into another crescendo, like waves of rock shaping the shoreline of your consciousness.
The centerpiece of Vast Space Of The Interior is a song in three parts, titled “Monumentation.” It takes Moscow Puzzles’ approach to songcraft and extends it into an entire suite. This isn’t a sudden shift to prog-rock extravagance, though. Their minimalism remains intact as they create a long-form journey into their ideas, more melodic and slower at first, before the second movement throws some heavier distortion into the mix. “Monumentation (II)” serves as a bridge into the third section, harder and heavier still.
The final track is a long one. The 14-minute “Every Tongue Will Confess” leans even further into mathy arrangements and progressive tendencies, channeling Chicago alt and indie sounds like The Sea and Cake, Stander or Tortoise, a meticulous and thoughtful journey into the variety of textures their respective instruments can create.
Moscow Puzzles build more than they break. The crescendos don’t necessarily erupt, but the scaffolding is in place for those kinds of payoffs. Vast Space Of The Interior is a meditative rock record that rewards listeners with lots of head-nodding beats and engaging dynamics. These songs will surely electrify their already impressive live shows.
This article was originally published in Little Village’s March 2025 issue.
