Post-rock (read: pretty instrumental rock) juggernaut Explosions in the Sky (October 7 @ Sound Academy) will be plucking arpeggiated heartstrings this Friday. There’s an interview floating around the Internet with another Texan post-rock outfit, This Will Destroy You, where the members discuss the their decision to make music without vocals or lyrics and claim that removing the barrier of specific language allowed them to emotionally connect 100 per cent with their fans. That just about summarizes the appeal of Explosions. Go check out the comments on their YouTube videos: nowhere else on the Internet will you find so many people openly admitting that something moved them to tears. Being made to break out the waterworks at a rock show probably isn’t for everyone, but to their fans, Explosions in the Sky are nothing short of heroic.
Once you’ve had a day to recover from the transcendent beauty of Explosions in the Sky, hypnotic, down-tempo trip-hoppers Portishead (October 9 @ Sound Academy) will be dropping by to emotionally devastate you this Sunday. In 15 years of activity (not counting their hiatus), the band has released only three full-length records, each of which are basically regarded as modern classics. Portishead are also legendary live performers; bleak and frequently uncompromising minimalistic compositions perfectly showcase Beth Gibbons’ haunting, broken-bird voice. Contra everything we just said about instrumental rock and direct emotional connection, here’s Beth hanging off a mic stand, burning cigarette in hand, giving a truly no-guts-no-glory performance; we defy you not to feel the pathos.
Okay, it’s a little bit mean to put them right next to the two legends above, but Dinosaur Bones (October 6 @ Lee’s Palace) are still a great Toronto band that can hold their own. At the heart of their shadowboxing sonic trickery’s winning formula is its unpredictability; expect the unexpected while they trade off far-off atmospherics for airtight stutter-step riffery for down-tempo buildups.
Awolnation (October 6 @ Sound Academy) fall into roughly the same category as Foster the People: we don’t know whether to thank them or kill them for having saturated the summer airwaves with their omnipresent hit "Sail." Likewise, we don’t know whether their trademark sound, featuring heavily-doctored vocals and effects-heavy pop that blurs the line between electronic and live instrumentation, is an admirable sonic innovation or a candy-coated copout. We are, however, fairly certain that this is the silliest music video we’ve ever seen. It’s not exactly “NSFW” in the traditional sense, but if your boss catches you watching it he will definitely think you’re on drugs. Cheerleaders, ninjas and Star Wars force lightning? C’mon guys, really? We think Foster the People win this round.
