Take Care, Take Care, Take Care by Explosions in the Sky

Explosions in the Sky has been a strong proponent of post rock since their debut album in 2000. They have been one of the most popular bands in the genre throughout their career. Their instrumental sound has always been guitar based and relied on songs centered around buildups going from soft to loud. While the other post-rock bands that were popular around the same time as Explosions in the Sky have mostly moved on to different styles or disbanded completely, the band has kept a consistent sound.

While the band has certainly perfected their sound by now, they really perfected it some time before 2003’s The Earth is not a Cold Dead Place, their third album. Up until now, Explosions in the Sky consistently turned out a new album every two years or so. With Take Care, Take Care, Take Care they have taken four years since their last album. With the long wait, one might expect the band to have been laboring over a new sound, or at the very least that the band was attempting to turnout something stronger than its predecessors. However, for anyone wanting more, Take Care is a slight disappointment.

Though it is solid, the album feels out of place in today’s musical landscape. Explosions in the Sky don’t seem to care if they sound outdated. They are good at what they do, and they are sticking with it. To a certain extent, the band’s apparent stubbornness is commendable. Why should they change a sound they have spent years creating and perfecting? This is the sound fans have come to expect from the band, and anybody wanting to hear this sound will not be disappointed.

Explosions in the Sky’s music has always been fantastic at establishing mood. Their songs have even been included on various soundtracks, most notably the group recorded music for the movie and television series Friday Night Lights. The songs on Take Care often feel like soundtrack music to a film that doesn’t exist. Though their talents could easily be used in a similar way to Tangerine Dream in the eighties, with further soundtrack work, Explosions in the Sky are either not that interested in this field, or the offers just aren’t coming in.

Either way, there is something to be said about their music in album form. Instead of the songs being associated with specific images, the band’s moody music can provide the soundtrack for the listener. Still, it seems Explosions in the Sky’s fan base will decrease if the group continues to play it so safe on future albums.