#40
Artist: Explosions in the Sky
Album: Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Die, Those Who Tell the Truth Shall Live Forever
Year of Release: 2001 (same day as this)
Label: Temporary Residence
A lot of the albums on this list fall into the loose grouping of sounds known as "post-rock." Explosions in the Sky is one of the most straightforward such bands, which makes them an excellent gateway to the concept. In fact, you've probably already been introduced to them through their contributions to the Friday Night Lights series, numerous commercials, and...everything else. They are an unmistakable band whose works translate to live shows quite well.
The price of being (in part) a gateway to other music is that you necessarily become known as reductive. Their most well known album, 2003's The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place, suffers slightly in this regard, largely because of its own constraints. Music destined to be a soundtrack for some other non-specific work has to sacrifice the peculiarity necessary to make the thing itself truly great. But Those Who... mostly avoids this problem. It's rawer, more sparse, and more varied than most all of the band's subsequent work. After nearly two decades I can confirm that this record will never get old.
Having this be part of the album art on a record released on 9/4/2001 is a little too on the nose. Going to have to take this one back to the writer's room.
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