2008 Woodie Awards
Something to Believe In
Explosions in the Sky Rock the Ottobar
Scott Sell
Issue date: 10/13/04 Section: Arts and Entertainment
It is funny to think of how many people I have met and articles I have read in the past few years, that claim this city is dying, maybe even dead, unable to be revived.
Sure, there are people dying here every day, and soulless Washingtonians invading cheap Baltimore City property is a bummer, but if there was anything to reassure me that there is still hope left in Charm City, hope left in humanity, seeing Explosions in the Sky play at the Ottobar last Monday night was it.
Something happens when you hear this band, something that is not common when listening to your average rock band. It could be the lack of lyrics that make you listen more intently or the volume that rises all of a sudden in the midst of one of their anthem-like songs.
Still, you can play classical music or, hell, even Mogwai at a gathering and leave it alone as background music.
But Explosions demands your full focus and concentration on what they're shooting for on their records, specifically on last year's epic The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place, as well as what they're doing up on stage.
Their style of soft to loud instrumentation (or as Insound writer Patrick O' Brian calls it, "sheer silence to sheer violence"), the constant ebbing and flowing throughout songs, has become a popular theme in post-hardcore music, but no one does beauty like these dudes.
They fill each and every space with sound. You can actually feel the pinnacle of each song moving slowly through the floorboards and rising in your chest, causing your heart to surge before it bursts. I am not kidding. They want you to feel what they feel, all the sadness and elation and confusion and tragedy and anticipation. And damn it if they do not do a standup job of it.
Watching them play is a particularly moving affair as they do not fool around. They silently set up while guitarist Munaf Rayani thanks the crowd for coming out to their rock 'n roll show. Then they play their hearts out, thanking us again when they leave without an encore.
Sure, there are people dying here every day, and soulless Washingtonians invading cheap Baltimore City property is a bummer, but if there was anything to reassure me that there is still hope left in Charm City, hope left in humanity, seeing Explosions in the Sky play at the Ottobar last Monday night was it.
Something happens when you hear this band, something that is not common when listening to your average rock band. It could be the lack of lyrics that make you listen more intently or the volume that rises all of a sudden in the midst of one of their anthem-like songs.
Still, you can play classical music or, hell, even Mogwai at a gathering and leave it alone as background music.
But Explosions demands your full focus and concentration on what they're shooting for on their records, specifically on last year's epic The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place, as well as what they're doing up on stage.
Their style of soft to loud instrumentation (or as Insound writer Patrick O' Brian calls it, "sheer silence to sheer violence"), the constant ebbing and flowing throughout songs, has become a popular theme in post-hardcore music, but no one does beauty like these dudes.
They fill each and every space with sound. You can actually feel the pinnacle of each song moving slowly through the floorboards and rising in your chest, causing your heart to surge before it bursts. I am not kidding. They want you to feel what they feel, all the sadness and elation and confusion and tragedy and anticipation. And damn it if they do not do a standup job of it.
Watching them play is a particularly moving affair as they do not fool around. They silently set up while guitarist Munaf Rayani thanks the crowd for coming out to their rock 'n roll show. Then they play their hearts out, thanking us again when they leave without an encore.