Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever

Today's Music of the Day is Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever, by Explosions in the Sky. By now, Explosions in the Sky should be a fairly well-known commodity, even if their music doesn't appear in daily media or life in general without some seeking. EitS makes dramatic, guitar-driven music that would not sound out of place as the score of a film; indeed, many of their songs seem to have a progressive, uplifting quality that condenses the emotions of a film into six or eight minutes of rocking audio. It's not much to sing along with, and maybe it leads with the heart too much for some, but the end product has both originality and spirit that are hard to deny.

Those... is EitS's second album, and is perhaps a little more primal than some of their later works. It might not be as relateable (is that even a word?) as The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place, but what it lacks in congeniality it makes up for with raw fury. No, this won't be mistaken for a Mastodon album (now there is a group that warrants a review here), but it definitely has some sharp edges. The drums in particular are awarded some welcome spotlight here - they really drive the mood and sound of some tracks on this album.

The slightly edgier sound works nicely for Those...; there's certainly nothing 'wrong' with the later albums, but this one lends some evidence to the belief that EitS have made a conscious choice not to force the listener into submission, but certainly aren't incapable of such. For a first-time listener, this might not be the best introduction to the adventurous, singing guitar style of EitS, but this album can hardly be considered a failure. The tracks aren't interchangeable, to be certain, but one doesn't represent a qualitative gap over another. "Greet Death" takes a bit to get started, but is a nice introduction to the album.

So, to summarize, Explosions in the Sky have something to say about America's pop-radio calloused listening habits, and more people should pay attention. This is a fine album that should be listened to by anyone who considers the electric guitar to be a viable instrument.

In Other News:
Apparently there is a special bonus disc of EitS' latest album, All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone, consisting of remixes. I wouldn't know what to expect from this but I'm very curious, especially considering that one of the remixes is done by Four Tet. Now I really want to listen to that album as well!

I had three separate dreams last night, all about people breaking into my home. So you know, if you do this, you are asking for trouble.

The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place

Today's Music That Should Have Been Discussed Long Ago is Explosions in the Sky's The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place. This is an album I've been in possession of for over two years, and I've really enjoyed it.

Explosions in the Sky are the kind of band that won't have a dramatic difference in style from album to album, and their music is very much the definition of post-rock. By that, 'post-rock', I mean songs that have very few to no vocals and don't have radio-friendly song lengths all the time.

EitS manages to tell fantastic stories without any words; their particular brand of post-rock sounds exactly like what the band name would convey, a spectacular event that is too far away to completely absorb. The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place may not be their greatest album, but it's certainly an accomplishment, a triumph for anyone who appreciates the guitar. This album is full of six-and-eight minute epic songs, led by a ringing guitar that you might expect if the Edge had left U2 in 1988 and lived alone with some decent amphetamines. While this isn't really a 'hard' rock album in most senses of the word, I'd be lying if I said the guitar didn't kick things up a notch (I suspect that somewhere, in the belfry of the band's repertoire, there are guitar riffs that would cause Slash to melt or at least stop pimping Guitar Hero all over the place).

It probably is worth noting that EitS did the score for "Friday Night Lights", a decent movie about a small town and its football team, and the music really works in the context. Is there anything EitS can't do?

Anyway, I wholly recommend this album, as long as radio hasn't ruined your tolerance for actual music. Think of this album as being full of little symphonies if you will, or a guitar out on an adventure to save you from Nickelback, but just listen to it. I could go on and on about this album. The entire album really works as a whole, but the individual songs stand alone; in particular, the closer, "Your Hand in Mine"

Plus, this album cover is glorious. Look at it:












Please, Explosions in the Sky, don't sue me for using this, it just looks great. I'll take it down if you want.

In other news:
Hooray for Friday.