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So, I once had a really boring night and went through all the post-rock stuff I've ever listened to. Then I categorized all of them to subgenres in a txt file and gave the subgenres a brief description. I've had this on my hard drive for couple of months now and I've sometimes updated it a little, but I just thought to share it here in my journal.

Why categorize post-rock into subgenres, what's the bloody point?

Everyone hears music differently according to their earlier listening experience overall and their experience on that particular genre. Therefore I think it's pointless to argue about which band belongs to some particular genre, it serves no purpose. But the purpose of describing different music with labels, genres and subgenres, is to give a quick hint what the music is like. Like I said, we all have different opinion about these, we all hear the music differently, but maybe these will give some direction.

Post-rock has come a very wide genre. Before it described as non-rock music that was played with rock instruments (read a proper definition from wikipedia), but nowadays it seems to be mostly guitar based instrumental music. Because the genre is so wide, and it doesn't really have much real subgenres, I've made a lot of these up and categorized the bands how I felt like. This is only my own opinion and I'm not even standing behind it; some of these artists are categorized only by listening to one or few song(s). (Those unknown artists are usually at the end of the list.)

So, let's get on with it.

Post-rock "subgenres":

-Traditional*/Epic* Post-rock
--Epic post-rock, artists that has many different instruments and songs consist of many different parts. Songs are also usually quite long, more than 10 minutes.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor, A Silver Mt. Zion, Set Fire to Flames, Mono, Sickoakes, The Evpatoria Report, All Angels Gone, La Zona, Our Last Hope Lost Hope, Yndi Halda, Sparrows Swarm and Sing, (Ef), Daturah

-Regular* Post-rock
--4-5 member band, which will play mostly by "quiet-loud-quiet-loud" approach. More straightforward than traditional, but not as straightforward as straightforward post-rock, d'uh.
Mogwai, Explosions in the Sky, (Mono), Do Make Say Think, The Album Leaf, Casbian, September Malevolence, This Will Destroy You, Milhaven, Emery Reel, The Samuel Jackson Five, Furniture, Jasmin, Maserati, This Is Your Captain Speaking, Moly, Silence Kit, Sublux, On Fire, Úlpa, A Northern Chorus, Vehicle, This is a Process of a Still Life, Plain Fade, They Don't Sleep, Rarae Avis, (Loss of a Child), Ef, Don't Mess with Texas, Destroyalldreamers, Burn Rome In A Dream, Giardini Di Mirò, Andydicktracymorganfreeman, Ctrlaltdelete, Neil on Impression, Sharks Keep Moving, Solomon: As Pilot, Ellis the Vacuumchild, From The Sky

-Straightforward* Post-rock
--Post-rock that cuts on the song length and tries to create the atmosphere of traditional/regular post-rock much quicker.
God Is an Astronaut, Saxon Shore, Laura, Upcdowncleftcrightcabc+start

-Atmospheric* Post-rock
--Songs are less based on guitars, but the overall sound is more important where many instruments back each other up, so that the complete sound of the band is harmonic.
Sigur Ros, Emery Reel, The Mercury Program, (Broken Social Scene), Gregor Samsa

-Chamber* post-rock
--Simply post-rock that is based more on violins than guitars.
Esmerine, As the Poets Affirm, Bell Orchestre, Bright Red Paper, Valley of the Giants, Dirty Three, (A Northern Chorus),

-Indie Rock/Post-rock
--Indie rock with post-rock elements. Often has vocals too.
Hope of the States, Broken Social Scene, Stereolab, Yo La Tengo, Jeniferever, RedJetson, Cyann & Ben, (Silence Kit), The Zephyrs, Mice Parade, Solbakken

-Jazz influenced post-rock
Tortoise, Fly Pan Am, (La Zona), The Samuel Jackson Five

-Alt-country or latino influenced post-rock or something?
Hrsta, Friends of Dean Martinez, Clogs, (Dirty Three)

-Ambient post-rock
--Post-rock that has very minimal (or not at all) drumming, and the music is very smooth and relaxing.
The Dead Texan, (Stars of the Lid), Labradford, Bosch's With You, (Aarktica), (Nels Cline and Thurston Moore)

-Experimental Post-rock
--Post-rock bands that try to create something new and before unheard with their sound, often with electronics.
65daysofstatic, Meanwhile, Back in Communist Russia..., Crombie, Magyar Posse, Dont Look Back, World's End Girlfriend, (From Monument To Masses), Mountain Men Anonymous, (Cyann & Ben), Mice Parade, Piano Magic

-Progressive Post-rock or Progressive Instrumental Rock
--Post-rock which has progressive elements, for example odd time signatures, complex song structures and tempo changes. Quite the opposite of atmospheric post-rock.
Shora (Malval), Russian Circles, Red Sparowes, Cue, From Monument To Masses, Friends In The Mountains, Cinemechanica, (Maserati), Tracer AMC, Fight fire with water,

-Math Rock
--Similar to progressive, but more rhythm based, usually odd-time. Closer to punk rock too.
Slint, Ulan Bator, (The Antarcticans),

-Post-metal or post-core (NOT Post-hardcore, it has totally another meaning!)
--Post-rock meets hardcore. Bands that sound partly like hardcore and partly like post-rock.
Isis, Cult of Luna, (Pelican), Russian Circles, Old Man Gloom, Rosetta, Bossk, Amenra, Circle Six, Envy, Mouth of the Architect, From Now On, Overmars,

-Sludge Metal
--Close to Post-rock/hardcore, but with less post-rockish elements. It's between metal and hardcore.
Neurosis

-Post-Doom*
--Doom metal that has post-rock elements. Heavy music with very dark atmosphere.
Pelican, Jesu

-Shoegaze Post-rock
--Post-rock bands that creates a shoegaze style of sound.
Hammock, Monoland, Jakob, Jessica Bailiff, (Japancakes), Paik, Yume Bitsu, Loss of a Child, (Gregor Samsa), Aarktica, A Beautiful Machine

-Electronic/IDM artists that have shoegaze elements
M83
Ulrich Schnauss
Port-Royal

-Electronic/IDM artists that have post-rockish elements or similar atmosphere
Múm
Efterklang
Four Tet
Dntel
Under Byen
Hood
Apparat
Julian Fane
Jóhann Jóhannsson
Sebastien Tellier

Other music that has (might have) some post-rockish elemets:
Kayo Dot (avant-garde)
Jaga Jazzist (jazz)
Rachel's (chamber/classical)
Bark Psychosis (experimental/electronic)
Piano Magic (experimental)
Arab Strap (indie rock/folk)
...And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead (indie rock)
The Frames (indie rock)
Nels Cline and Thurston Moore (experimental)

Uncategorized bands:
Grails, Landscape (Frech), The Swords Project, The Timeout Drawer

* I've probably made this genre up.