Explosions in the Sky

Infobox musical artist
Name = Explosions in the Sky


Background = group_or_band
Origin = Austin, Texas, USA
Genre = Post-rock, instrumental rock, art rock
Years_active = 1999–present
Label = Temporary Residence Limited, Bella Union
URL = [http://www.explosionsinthesky.com/ www.explosionsinthesky.com]
Current_members = Mark Smith
Chris Hrasky
Munaf Rayani
Michael James

Explosions in the Sky is an American instrumental post-rock band from Texas. The band has garnered popularity beyond the post-rock scene for their cinematic, elaborately developed guitar work, narratively styled instrumentals, what they refer to as "cathartic mini-symphonies," and their enthusiastic and emotional live shows. [ [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=8073247 NPR Music] ] They primarily play with three electric guitars Fact|date=April 2008 and a set of drums, while band member Michael James will at times exchange his electric guitar for a bass guitar. Fact|date=June 2008

History

Originally called Breaker Morant, Explosions in the Sky was formed in Austin, Texas in 1999. Drummer Chris Hrasky is from Rockford, Illinois, and the rest of the band hails from Midland, Texas. The new name of "Explosions in the Sky" came from a comment Hrasky made in reference to the noisecite news
url = http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/print?oid=oid%3A183039
title = Born on the Fourth of July
author = Michael Chamy
work = The Austin Chronicle
date = 2003-10-24
accessdate = 2007-06-28] or sight [cite web
url = http://www.kvrx.org/locallive/performance.php?pid=183
title = Explosions In The Sky, 4 Jul 1999
publisher = KVRX
date = 2006-03-24
accessdate = 2008-01-13] of fireworks when they left KVRX 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. Their 2000 debut album, "How Strange, Innocence", was locally distributed in the form of CD-Rs. Rehearsal footage is featured on the short film "Cicadas", which won an Austin Film Festival award.cite web
url = http://www.mywire.com/pubs/Muze/2006/10/01/728372?extID=10051
title = Explosions in the Sky
publisher = Muze
date = 2007-02-01
accessdate = 2007-06-28]

Explosions in the Sky quickly gained a reputation for themselves among other established local bands such as Lift 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 band The American Analog Set with a brief note saying, "This totally fucking destroys." [cite web
url = http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&searchlink=EXPLOSIONS|IN|THE|SKY&sql=11:fnev97bskrkt~T1
title = Explosions in the Sky > Biography
publisher = Allmusic
accessdate = 2007-02-08]

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 the September 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; [cite news
url = http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2002/11/15/179685
title = Post-rock explodes in Taipei
author = David Frazier
pages = 17
work = Taipei Times
date = 2002-11-15
accessdate = 2007-06-28] [cite web
url = http://www.blacktable.com/mayle050126.htm
title = The day the music died an accidental death
author = Adam Mayle
publisher = The Black Table
date = 2005-01-26
accessdate = 2007-06-27
quote = 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.] the concept had actually originated in 2000, and the album was released on August 27, 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".

After being contacted by Brian Reitzell, Explosions in the Sky wrote the soundtrack for the 2004 film "Friday 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. [cite web
url = http://www.explosionsinthesky.com/fnl.html
title = "Friday Night Lights Original Soundtrack"
author = Explosions in the Sky
accessdate = 2007-02-08]

Their most recent 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 featuring remixes by multiple artists. [cite web
url = http://www.spin.com/features/news/2006/11/061114_explosionsinthesky/
title = Explosions in the Sky Album Details Surface
publisher = "Spin"
date = 2006-11-14
accessdate = 2007-02-08] The band began touring on February 19 in the U.S. and Canada. [cite web
url = http://www.explosionsinthesky.com/shows.php
title = Shows
publisher = ExplosionsInTheSky.com
date = 2007-02-03
accessdate = 2007-02-08] They played a shortened version of "Welcome, Ghosts" on the February 20 episode of "Late Night with Conan O'Brien".On May 10, they canceled the shows up to August due to a family illness. [cite web
url = http://www.explosionsinthesky.com/news_archive.php?articleID=25
title = Shows
publisher = ExplosionsInTheSky.com
date = 2007-05-10
accessdate = 2007-05-11] They performed on "Austin City Limits" on June 29, 2007. [cite web
url = http://www.explosionsinthesky.com/news_archive.php?articleID=27
title = Austin City Limits
publisher = ExplosionsInTheSky.com
date = 2007-06-25
accessdate = 2007-06-27] They have been announced as the curators of the UK-based All Tomorrow's Parties music festival in May 2008.

Music styles and characteristics

Although the band's music deviates from pop, Hrasky said that they have similar goals "like immediately grabbing your attention and getting to your emotions." [cite news
url = http://media.www.dailynebraskan.com/media/storage/paper857/news/2004/10/15/Arts/Explosions.In.The.Sky.To.Light.Up.Sokol-1743264.shtml
title = Explosions in the Sky to light up Sokol
author = Billy DeFrain
work = Daily Nebraskan
date = 2004-10-15
accessdate = 2007-06-28] Rayani said, "We don't consider ourselves post-rock at all; we consider ourselves a rock band."

In a post-show interview clip on Austin City Limits, guitarist Munaf Rayani said about their status as instrumentalists, "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 weren't comfortable enough." Drummer Chris Hrasky added "There were a couple of instrumental bands at the time that we were heavily into; Dirty Three and Mogwai; we were listening to those bands a lot. And I think we just liked the idea of a band that there was not a leader or main songwriter, everyone 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 best option for us." [cite web
url = http://www.pbs.org/klru/austin/artists/3302_eits_interview.html
title = Austin City Limits
publisher = PBS.ORG
date = 2007-06-25
accessdate = 2007-10-17]

Band members

*Munaf Rayani – guitar
*Mark Smith – guitar
*Michael James – bass and guitar Fact|date=July 2008
*Chris Hrasky – drums

Discography

tudio albums

* "How Strange, Innocence" (17 January 2000; reissue 11 October 2005)
* "Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever" (27 August 2001)
* "The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place" (4 November 2003)
* "The Rescue" (11 October 2005)
* "All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone" (20 February 2007)

oundtracks

* "Friday Night Lights" soundtrack (29 October 2004)

Compilations

* "Remember Me as a Time of Day" on "Refurbished Robots" (1999)
* "The Long Spring" on "Thank you" (2004)
* "Destroy Independent Music!" (2006-2007, Temporary Residence Limited) sampler

In popular culture

* The song "The Moon is Down" was featured in the 2003 film "All the Real Girls" by David Gordon Green, who had also lived in Austin.

* In addition to the film, the television series "Friday Night Lights" also prominently features Explosions in the Sky's music throughout its first season, with the songs being licensed by NBC from the band's previous catalog rather than being specifically recorded for the score, as was the case with the film. [cite web
url = http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003528775
title = Explosions In The Sky Ready New Album, Tour
author = Todd Martens
publisher = Billboard.com
date = 2007-01-08
accessdate = 2007-06-28] However the title music for the TV series was composed by W. G. Snuffy Walden.

* "First Breath After Coma" was used in the trailer for the 2005 film "Shopgirl". As well, it was also used in the Israeli film "Close to Home", and in the "Montage of Discontent" section of the skateboarding film "Good and Evil", put out by the company Toy Machine. The song "A Poor Man's Memory" was also used in the Good & Evil special features.

* "Your Hand in Mine" was featured as background music before an NFL Game during a montage when several Hall Of Fame athletes and prestigious members of the sporting world delivered Brett Favre a "Legends Tribute"

* "Your Hand in Mine" is partially featured in the trailer for the 2007 film "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly".

* "Six Days at the Bottom of the Ocean" and "Your Hand in Mine" played in the background of two Cadillac commercials. This caused a debate among fans on their website, which was settled by a long message from the band regarding the practicality of the situation.cite news
url = http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/24/AR2006092401053_pf.html
title = Out of Texas, a Wordless Wonder
author = Juliet Eilperin
work = The Washington Post
date = 2006-09-25
accessdate = 2007-06-28]

* "Six Days at the Bottom of the Ocean" is used in the third episode of the HBO documentary series "Mayweather-Hatton 24/7".

* The first three words of the song title "With Tired Eyes, Tired Minds, Tired Souls, We Slept" is the name of the French Explosions in The Sky Website, created in 2003.

* "With Tired Eyes, Tired Minds, Tired Souls, We Slept" was the title of the 16th episode of the third season of the TV series "One Tree Hill", while "The Birth and Death of the Day" and "All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone" were the titles of the final two episodes of the 4th season. "What Do You Go Home To?" was the title of the 13th episode of season 5.

* The song "Have You Passed Through This Night?" from the album "Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever" contains sampled dialogue from the movie "The Thin Red Line".

* Several of their songs have been used on NBC after the licensing for NFL games and "The Road to the Final Four" program.

* The title track from Placebo's "Sleeping With Ghosts" contains a reference to the band's name.

* They have also been name checked in a scene of US drama "Dirty Sexy Money".

* The song "Your Hand in Mine" was played during a look back at the 2008 Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony on NBC.

* Popular ESPN Page 2 Sports Columnist Bill Simmons referenced them in a reader mail column, highlighting one reader's comment that listening to Explosions in the Sky makes any experience, no matter how ordinary (such as walking one's dog), seem transcendent. [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/080214 "Mailbag: Where was the Rocket's red glare?", "ESPN.com"] 14 February 2008.]

* "The Birth and Death of the Day" was used in an advertisement for the BBC documentary "Lost Land of the Jaguar".

* At Lollapalooza 2008, Brand New frontman Jesse Lacey caused a stir, shouting "you fools should be watching Explosions in the Sky," as the two bands were playing at the same time on opposite sides of the park.

* "The Only Moment We Were Alone" is partially featured in the trailer for the 2008 film "Australia"

References

External links

Official

* [http://www.explosionsinthesky.com/ Explosions in the Sky]
* [http://www.temporaryresidence.com/ Temporary Residence Limited]
* [http://www.bellaunion.com/ Bella Union]

Fansites

* [http://www.rectangular.org/explosions/ Explosions in the Sky] En icon
* [http://www.withtiredeyes.net/ With Tired Eyes...] Fr icon
* [http://www.explosionsinthesky.de/ Explosions in the Sky] De icon
*

News and media

* [http://webinfront.net/?p=862 Podcast of Explosions in the Sky's 2008 Lollapalooza performance]
* [http://www.kvrx.org/locallive/performance.php?pid=183 Downloadable recordings of the very first EITS performance at KVRX]
* [http://www.asilenceproduction.com/ Explosions in the Sky live @ Wall Of Sound Festival 2007] from A Silence Production.
* [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9146453 Explosions in the Sky live show, 930 Club in DC] at NPR.
* [http://www.archive.org/details/ExplosionsintheSky Live Audio Archive] at the Internet Archive
*
* [http://pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/39771/Explosions_in_the_Sky_Miss_Everyone_Share_ Pitchfork Media article] with stream of "Welcome Ghosts" from "All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone".
* [http://www.semtexinc.com/interviews/interview.php?ID=41 Explosions in the Sky interview] at Semtex Magazine (Feb 2007).
* [http://www.twistedear.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1502&Itemid=29 Explosions in the Sky live review] at Twisted Ear (Jan 2008).
* [http://groundcontrolmag.com/detail/1/209/1/ Explosions in the Sky interview with Chris Hrasky] at Ground Control.
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/jontintinjordan/16196818/in/set-271201 Photo of "EitS" at Manchester Night & Day]
* [http://wannabes.be/artiest/explosions-in-the-sky/ Pictures of "EitS" in Belgium]
* [http://www.webcutsmusic.com/news56.html Explosions in the Sky interview] at Webcuts (Feb 2008)