Explosions In The Sky, a quartet from Austin (Texas) fronted by guitarists
Mark Smith and Munaf Rayani pushed the wild dynamics
of Godspeed You Black Emperor
to new heigths (sonically speaking) of epic instrumental post-rock.
After a tentative self-released
How Strange Innocence (2000 - Temporary Residence, 2005), the proper
debut album,
Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die (Temporary Residence, 2001), indulged
in oblique strategies of sudden self-annihilation, in traumatic stylistic u-turns:
the pounding ecstasy of Have You Passed Through This Night? (unnecessarily ushered in by two minutes of spoken vocals),
the massive riff of Greet Death (followed by interstellar guitar tapestries that, after three minutes, relinquish all power to a gentle Eastern-tinged melody),
the mellow strumming of Yasmin the Light that explodes in a terrifying guitar freak-out and then resumes again as if nothing had happened.
The 10-minute tinkling fantasia Moon is Down (that, unfortunately, picks up speed and volume in the last three minutes)
sounds like King Crimson's Moonchild for the age of hyper-terrorism,
stately while dejected.
The highlight is the closing 12-minute
With Tired Eyes Tired Minds Tired Souls We Slept, that strives to find
a balance between guitar impressionism, Glenn Branca-esque minimalism and
Indian raga, and, after a fibrillating crescendo, ends up recycling upon
itself.
Chris Hrasky, Munaf Rayani, Mark Smith and Michael James had mastered the
praxis of improvisaiton/composition that had been appropriated by post-rock
after being refined over the centuries by classical music (the fantasia) and
by jazz (the jam).
The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place (Temporary Residence, 2003) is
relatively upbeat and way less catastrophic. That means pieces such as
First Breath After Coma and The Only Moment We Were Alone are
not quite as menacing as the ones on the debut, and the
requiem Six Days at the Bottom of the Ocean is actually quite moving,
and Your Hand in Mine is almost tender.
But they remain, fundamentally, copycats of
Godspeed You Black Emperor's most basic
technique.
The general feeling of dejavu is redeemed by Memorial.
|
(Translation by/ Tradotto da Antonio Buono)
Gli Explosions In The Sky, un quartetto di Austin (Texas), hanno spinto le dinamiche selvagge dei Godspeed You Black Emperor a nuove altezze (musicalmente parlando). Dopo un tentativo di auto-produzione con How Strange Innocence (2000 - Temporary Residence, 2005), il vero debut album, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die (Temporary Residence, 2001), sferra l’improvviso colpo Have You Passed Through This Night?, il riff massiccio di Greet Death, il silenzio di Yasmin the Light. Le lunghe Moon is Down e With Tired Eyes Tired Minds Tired Souls We Slept sono le Moonchild (King Crimson) dell’era dell’iper-terrorismo, maestose e demoralizzate al tempo stesso. Chris Hrasky, Munaf Rayani, Mark Smith e Michael James hanno imparato alla perfezione le prassi di improvvisazione/composizione delle quali si è appropriato il post-rock dopo essere che queste sono state affinate nel corso dei secoli dalla musica classica (la fantasia) e dal jazz (la jam).
The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place (Temporary Residence, 2003) è più ritmato e meno catastrofico. Le tracce principali come First Breath After Coma e The Only Moment We Were Alone non sono tanto minacciose come quelle dell’album precedente, e il requiem Six Days at the Bottom of the Ocean è in realtà abbastanza toccante, mentre Your Hand in Mine è quasi tenera. Ma restano, fondamentalmente, copie delle tecniche basilari dei Godspeed You Black Emperor. Il generale senso di dejavu è riscattato da Memorial.
|
