Progress has hardly been the modus operandi of Austin, Texas quartet Explosions In The Sky. Over six albums, from their debút How Strange, Innocence through to 2011’s Take Care, Take Care, Take Care, they have deviated little from the schematics they drew up a decade and a half ago; long instrumental, recycling passages that start off quiet, burst into life and then die out again, usually over a period of five to 10 minutes. Post Rock 101.
So even though ‘Logic Of A Dream’ isn’t revolutionary in and of itself, for long-time fans of the band it feels somewhat radical for two reasons; the sound and the structure. It begins with organ swells that recall Nils Frahm on his recent epic ‘Says’, swells which give way to military snares and a post-metal guitar riff. As you expect it to build and build, into one of their typical crescendos, repeating the riff as it does so, it instead ceases at the drop of a hat and is replaced by twinkling, interlocking guitar melodies that have no link to the swells, melodies and riffs that have preceded them. This is a trademark of artists such as Motoro Faam, Hopeless Local Marching Band and World’s End Girlfriend but something entirely unusual for Explosions In The Sky.
The changes are so vast (again, for Explosions In The Sky, at least) that ‘Logic Of A Dream’ sounds more like an album trailer composed of various morsels from an entire album than a single track. As a taster for upcoming full-length The Wilderness it certainly piques the interest, and as a standalone offering it is interesting enough.
