Something that I've done for the past two Augusts is blog while listening to my favorite album in the entire world, Explosions in the Sky's The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place. I've enjoyed doing this twice from Stonehill, but for one reason or another, I can no longer experience this album from a New Hall suite. Although that's kind of the point of doing this not once, but twice before, right?
First Breath After Coma
0:37. I remember once comparing the beginning of this song to the beginning of a play. The second guitar to come in is synonymous with the lead role's first lines. This sense of "Okay, we can move on now" kind of deal. And then another guitar, and some drums/cymbals, and we're off.
2:28. Or maybe it was here that I thought represented the opening lines of the lead...hm...
3:19. For anyone familiar with my favorite poem in the entire world, "The Journey" by Mary Oliver, this is what makes me think about stars burning through sheets of clouds.
5:33. If there's ever an opportunity for me to ask an infinite number of questions to EITS, one of my first will be how they come up with song titles, and whether or not they have a story in mind when composing their songs. I know that they've said that the vast majority of their albums and songs were written with the intent to be played live, but there still seems to be a storytelling aspect behind it. Or perhaps, I want there to be one, so I try to create my own version of the story.
8:11. And there's the feedback. One minute, seven seconds of buildup.
9:18. The release.
The Only Moment We Were Alone
0:40. I've actually been able to learn most of this on piano this summer, which has been incredible. It's a little tough to transcribe three guitars into two hands on one piano, but it sounds close enough to the song, which is all I'm going for. For those who have enough knowledge of this song, I tend to stop playing right before the giant crash. Just seems to heighten the anticipation of it when I leave the piano a note short.
3:50. This is the fun part on piano; all of the guitars flow really well together and it's difficult to create the same feeling on piano, but then it gets into it soon enough.
4:52. Another stars-burning-through-sheets-of-clouds moment. A careful violence. I'm starting to fall in love with the phrase "musical chaos," and this seems like an appropriate place to cite an example of it.
6:32. Perhaps a better example of musical chaos, especially at 6:55. This part is super fun to play on piano, and super fun to watch EITS perform live. You can tell how into it they are at this point, and there's a quick release before another buildup.
7:52. I never fail to try and count the beats (two measures of six) during the silences. I never get there the same time as the music, which always bugs me a little. I'm usually slower than the song.
Six Days at the Bottom of the Ocean
0:55. I feel into a rut for a while (and still may be in it) where I only really felt the need to listen to the first two songs on the album and call it a day, and was thisclose to doing it again here. But I persist.
2:31. If there's any part of the song that gets me out of that rut, it's this one. Might not be on stars-burning level, but as I mentioned in the second post doing this, the guitars fighting right against each other is perfect. It's something you have to listen for if you're familiar with the song.
3:54. For the first time listening to this song, from which the title references the sinking of a boat, I thought about people just floating around the depths of the ocean. Seriously, first time. Think of it like liquid particles slowly moving around.
5:55. Particles fighting for their life, scratching and grabbing hold of anything they can get their hands on.
7:17. It's actually not eighth notes here, it's the two guitars playing off one another, a cross-beat.
Memorial
0:08. If you pay close attention to the first note, and carry it as the beginning moves along, you can hear a pulse. It took me forever to pick up on it because, well, it's one note, but listen for it and see if you can pick it out. It's really cool.
2:12. I've always been a fan of the bass here, but haven't mentioned it, so, I'm a fan of the bass here.
3:50. Having seen Explosions in the Sky live once before, this would top my list of songs-they-didn't-play-when-I-saw-them-but-would-want-them-to-play-the-second-time. Hopefully I have a catchier title for this list before the next time I see them.
5:26. FYI, their only scheduled show on their website is October 4 in Sacramento. Needless to say I'll wait until they're a little closer. Although I did think about it a month ago.
7:21. And, go. Aside from the end of The Only Moment, this is the most violent part of the album. Love it.
Your Hand In Mine
0:41. I almost want to leave this song alone. By which I mean listen to it, but keep my words short of the ends of my fingertips. For whatever reason, that just feels right in this moment.
4:38. The tremolo, the drums...if there's any part of this album that makes me think of stars burning through the sheets of clouds, it's this part. A perfect, innocent, take-my-hand-and-run that doesn't come close to lasting long enough.
7:43. One final note, fading away into forever.
So that's that. A quick 45 minutes, but one always worth taking. As usual, thanks for reading along and listening. No grand gestures or imploring you to find greater meaning in anything this time around. Same music, but different context and different emotions. Hope you enjoyed.
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