Explosions In The Sky / Take Care.. / Temporary Residence
Anyone who has seen Explosions in the Sky play a festival will probably remember the great sonic array they are capable of putting forth – and also, maybe, that they’re not always the most dynamic performers onstage. Hey, it takes a lot of effective pedal manipulation to make some of the transcendent sounds that have made them household names, and that sort of treatment doesn’t permit a lot of onstage movement. It’s ironic, because when you close your eyes while listening to Take Care, Take Care, Take Care, in your mind’s eye you’re not seeing the guys down on their knees, smacking their fret boards and spinning dials – far from it. You’re picturing nature documentaries on fast forward, maybe even satellites zooming through space.
Take Care… is the instrumental post-rock group’s sixth album and doesn’t represent a stunning change from what fans are used to – you won’t here a lot of metal blast beats or vocal harmonies, for example. But there is plenty worth noticing; the pained exclamations on “Trembling Hands” (yes, actual voices); the bittersweet tender respite of complementary strings in “Be Comfortable, Creature”; the distant alien serenity heard throughout “Human Qualities”. Take Care… is defined by this critical distance – as if the music is the spoken language of another species observing but not quite understanding life on Earth. Movements are light and curious – and less seems to be at stake. It makes for some shining moments, but some of the longer tracks (only one is under seven minutes) lack the emotional range experienced in songs like “Snow and Lights”.
Download: “Trembling Hands”, “Human Qualities”
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I found this album too much like their last. I was disappointed with the lack of experimentation.
Eloquent review though, Bert.