{"id":2440,"date":"2020-04-15T16:37:56","date_gmt":"2020-04-15T20:37:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/parsons\/?p=2440"},"modified":"2021-03-04T11:32:43","modified_gmt":"2021-03-04T16:32:43","slug":"arachnophonia-explosions-in-the-sky-the-earth-is-not-a-cold-dead-place","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/parsons\/2020\/04\/arachnophonia-explosions-in-the-sky-the-earth-is-not-a-cold-dead-place\/","title":{"rendered":"Arachnophonia: Explosions in the Sky “The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place”"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note:<\/strong> Arachnophonia<\/a> is a regular feature on our blog where members of the UR community can share their thoughts about resources from the Parsons Music Library<\/a>\u2018s collection.<\/p>\n

All links included in these posts will take you to either the library catalog record for the item in question<\/a> or to additional relevant<\/a> information from<\/a> around the web<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s installment of Arachnophonia<\/a> is by student worker Cole (class of 2021) and features Explosions in the Sky’s 2003 album The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place<\/strong><\/a>. Thanks, Cole!<\/em><\/p>\n

Explosions in the Sky<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Explosions<\/p>\n

You\u2019re watching a film. It\u2019s a sports movie about a chippy group of underdogs defying all odds and barreling towards impossible success. Or it\u2019s a coming-of-age story about teenagers coping with the incredible, ineffable weight of being. Or it\u2019s a true story of human struggle in the face of calamity–a military operation gone wrong; an oil rig exploding. What music is playing? If the film was made in the past two decades, there\u2019s a very good chance it\u2019s post-rock<\/a>. <\/p>\n

The term \u2018post-rock\u2019 was coined by music journalist Simon Reynolds in 1994. It is used, broadly, in reference to any music that uses rock instrumentation but doesn\u2019t adhere to rock song convention. Post-rock songs are most often long instrumental pieces that focus on musical texture and build to all-out climaxes, a subgenre affectionately dubbed \u2018crescendocore.\u2019 <\/p>\n

In 2003, Texas-based post-rock band Explosions in the Sky released their third studio album, The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place<\/a><\/em>. This album is widely regarded as their greatest work, and is considered one of the essential works of the genre. Explosions\u2019 brand of post-rock — layers of reverb and delay-laden guitars punctuated by the ever-marching cadence of a snare drum — came to define the genre in the early 21st century, due in no small part to the 2004 film Friday Night Lights<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

\"Explosions<\/p>\n

After Explosions released The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place<\/a><\/em>, they were approached by Brian Reitzell<\/a>, a Hollywood composer, producer, and film music supervisor, about soundtracking the upcoming big-budget sports film Friday Night Lights<\/em>. At this point, having a relatively unknown post-rock outfit soundtrack a major Hollywood release, let alone a sports movie, was unheard of. Rocky III<\/a><\/em>\u2019s “Eye of the Tiger<\/a>“, this was not. <\/p>\n

After Reitzell demoed the group’s music to studio executives, permission was granted to bring the band on board. Musically, the soundtrack to Friday Night Lights<\/a><\/em> retains much of the aesthetic of The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place<\/a><\/em>. The band even adapted the song \u201cYour Hand in Mine<\/a>\u201d from the album for the film. <\/p>\n