More than three years after their last visit, Texans Explosions in the Sky returned to Barcelona, this time at Sala Razzmatazz, to present their latest work “END”.
They were joined by Catalan experimental music duo B1N0, who presented their take on samplers, synthesizers and electronic rhythms, easing us into the mood as the venue filled up and more than a few necks started warming up.
Explosions in the Sky + B1N0
Organiser: Live Nation
Venue: Razzmatazz
Photography: Jordi Amela (@amela_photo_concert)
Writer: David Montón
It was just a few minutes past the hour when the lights went down, and out of an atmosphere of smoke and very dim light the band from Austin appeared, opening by greeting the crowd in Spanish and kicking off the set with a gentle “Somos Explosiones en el Cielo”
With the venue completely full after the Sold Out sign went up, Loved Ones, from their latest album, started to play, followed by the classics The Birth and Death of Day and Catastrophe and the Cure.
They carried on presenting their latest work with Peace or Quiet, before later returning to their roots with Greet Death and With Tired Eyes, Tired Minds, Tired Souls, We Slept, from their second album Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever.
We could reach for clichés to introduce one of my favourite songs by the band, Your Heart in Mine, but we won’t — or maybe we will, since it kicked off the final stretch of the show, and after leaving the room utterly hypnotised (a cliché that’s entirely earned here), they went back to END to play The Flight and wrapped things up with The Only Moment We Are Alone.
The band treated us to excellent playing and sound, but what was really moving was the connection with the crowd — the atmosphere they managed to create with their music brought back feelings that only this genre can stir up.
Instrumental post-rock isn’t an easy genre — it might not grab you straight away, but once you let it in, it never leaves.