Explosions in the Sky | |
|---|---|
 From left to right: Mark Smith, Michael James, Munaf Rayani, and Chris Hrasky | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Austin, Texas, U.S. Midland, Texas, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Labels | Temporary Residence Limited,Bella Union |
| Members | Chris Hrasky Michael James Munaf Rayani Mark Smith |
| Website | www.explosionsinthesky.com |
Explosions in the Sky is an Americanpost-rock band, formed inAustin, Texas in 1999. The band is a quartet, composed of drummer Chris Hrasky and guitarist/keyboardists Michael James, Munaf Rayani and Mark Smith. The band originally played under the name Breaker Morant, then changed to the current name in 1999. They primarily play with threeelectric guitars and adrum kit, although James will at times exchange his electric guitar for abass guitar and all three guitarists also add additional keyboard and synthesizer parts. The band later added a fifth musician to their live performances, largely to accommodate for these bass and keyboard parts. This role was occupied by multi instrumentalist, Carlos Torres, from 2010 to 2018, and reprised in 2024. The band has released eight studio albums to date; their most recent,End, was released in September 2023.[1]
The band has garnered popularity beyond the post-rock scene for their elaborately developed guitar work, narratively styledinstrumentals – which they refer to as "cathartic mini-symphonies" – and their emotional live shows.[2]
Originally calledBreaker Morant, Explosions in the Sky was formed inAustin, Texas, in 1999. Drummer Chris Hrasky is fromRockford, Illinois, and the rest of the band hails fromMidland, Texas. The new name of "Explosions in the Sky" came from a comment Hrasky made in reference to the noise[3] or sight[4] of fireworks when they leftKVRX on the night they played their first set and recorded their first track, "Remember Me as a Time of Day", that would be released on a compilation.[3] Their 2000 debut album,How Strange, Innocence, was locally distributed in the form ofCD-Rs. Rehearsal footage is featured on the feature filmCicadas, which won anAustin Film Festival award.[5]
Explosions in the Sky quickly gained a reputation for themselves among other established bands such asLift to Experience.Temporary Residence Limited signed the band on the strength of their demo after only half a listen; the demo was submitted by fellow Austin bandThe American Analog Set with a brief note saying, "This totally fucking destroys."[6]
They garnered a small amount of media attention with their second album,Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever, due to rumors linking it to theSeptember 11, 2001 attacks. The band denied any connection in interviews. The album art shows an airplane with the caption "This plane will crash tomorrow." There were false reports that the last track was called "This Plane Will Crash Tomorrow" and that the album was released on September 10, 2001;[7][8] the concept had actually originated in 2000, and the album was officially released on September 4, 2001. Bassist Michael James was detained in an airport as a threat to security, and had to explain why his guitar contained the words "this plane will crash tomorrow".[3]
The band also received a considerable amount of attention playing before large audiences as the opening act ofFugazi's spring 2002 US tour in support ofThe Argument.[9]
The band releasedThe Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place in 2003 and this is generally considered their most famous album.[10] The album has been described as aconcept album and was stated by guitarist Munaf Rayani as the band's attempt at love songs.[11]
After being contacted by Brian Reitzell, Explosions in the Sky wrote the soundtrack for the 2004 filmFriday Night Lights. Despite having access to rare equipment in the studio for that project, the band kept to their songwriting style in creating original material.[12]
Their albumThe Rescue was written and recorded in eight days as part of the TRLTravels in Constants series. As such, the album was originally only available at the band's live shows.
Explosions in the Sky's fifth studio album,All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone, which debuted February 20, 2007, exists as both a one-disc version and a two-disc special edition featuringremixes by multiple artists.[13]The band began touring on February 19 in the U.S. and Canada.[14]
On April 26, 2011, the band released their sixth studio album,Take Care, Take Care, Take Care.[15]
The band served as one of the support acts forNine Inch Nails on their North American leg of theTwenty Thirteen Tour in late 2013, alternating dates withGodspeed You! Black Emperor.[16] Following a period of seldom live shows across 2014 and 2015, the band returned in 2016 with their seventh studio album,The Wilderness. Two singles were released from the album prior to its April release: "Separation Anxiety" in January,[17] and "Logic of a Dream" in February.[18] The band toured extensively in support of the album throughout 2016 and into 2017, playing over 140 shows worldwide.
In April 2023, the band announced via their website their first North American tour since 2019. The tour was dubbed "The End Tour", leading to speculation that the tour could be their last.[19] On July 17, however, their official Twitter account announced the release of their eighth album, titledEnd, for September 15.[20] In a press release for the announcement, they explained that the title came from "the concept of an ending—death, or the end of a friendship or relationship", and does not imply that it would be the band's final album.[1]
Explosions in the Sky is known for their "cathartic, heavily dynamic instrumental rock" sound, described as "moody" and "crescendo-heavy".[21]
Although the Explosions in the Sky is known for eschewing the conventions ofpopular music, Hrasky has compared the band's use ofhooks to those ofpop music, "like immediately grabbing your attention and getting to your emotions."[22] Although many major publications have classified Explosions in the Sky as apost-rock group,[23] Rayani has stated that the band members prefer to simply be called a "rock band".[24]
In a post-show interview clip onAustin City Limits, guitarist Munaf Rayani said about their status asinstrumentalists, "I mean, I think we discussed singing for half a second, and then it just kinda, we just dropped it. We just didn't go back to it because we were comfortable enough." Drummer Chris Hrasky added, "I think we just liked the idea of a band that there was not a leader or main songwriter, everyone sort of collaborating and has their own say. I don't think any of us want the sort of 'leader role', so a leaderless band is kind of the best option for us."[25]
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Most notably, Explosions in the Sky's music is heavily featured in theFriday Night Lightsmovie andtelevision show. It is a common misconception that the band wrote and recorded the television show's theme song. Instead, it is an original composition byW. G. Snuffy Walden. Music by Explosions in the Sky has been used in several television programs and commercials:
Current touring musicians
Former touring musicians
And the creepiest detail of all is that the record had a track that was titled, unbelievably, "This Plane Will Crash Tomorrow," which was subsequently removed from the album.
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