Explosions in the SkyAll of a Sudden I Miss Everyone | Temporary Residence  March 12,
2007 6:02:03 PM
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Explosions in the Sky are certainly symphonic, and devoted to bigness in the absence of a vocalist. But “post-rock” is just the wrong label. And any similarities with, say, Mogwai or Tortoise are purely coincidental. On All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone, particularly in the roars of distortion near the beginning of “It’s Natural To Be Afraid,” they start to sound a little like a black metal band — Drastus, say — who enjoy melodies and haven’t resolved to kill themselves or anyone else just yet. The disc is suffused in a kind of sad hope. But if the crystal clarity of 2003’s The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place seemed to suggest that everybody was going to make it after all, there’s something more desperate, more wild-eyed, even a little threatening here. Chris Hrasky’s drumming has improved, and you don’t really hear the loud parts coming — which makes it all the more thrilling. The band have discovered the dangerous side of redemption; if there are a few dull moments, that’s all part of recording an album that functions like one extended, magnificent achievement of a song.
Explosions in the Sky + The Paper Chace + Eluvium | Middle East downstairs, 480 Mass Ave, Cambridge | March 21 | 617.864.EAST
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