Show Review: Explosions in the Sky @ ACL Live
Ola Podrida opens for Explosions in the Sky in a homecoming show for the local instrumental rock band vaulted to relative stardom because of a TV Show about High School Football. ACL Live plays host as a loyal audience takes in a meandering mix of songs over EITS’s successful by instrumental rock standards career.
Jump for impressions and pics…
Quick set up, my partner in crime for the night was sidelined by a moving injury. Unfortunately, photographers were limited as reviewers by strict access. I had to leave the camera behind for the opener and make the run back to the car before the opener finished and after our time taking pics. Sorry, missed out on some of the show so the review is more about the pics. I will say I was really enjoying the subtleties of Ola Podrida’s set. ACL Live was a perfect venue to expose a larger audience to their great melodies. So yeah, no photos of the opener. I felt bad, but mgmt rules were what they were. I am looking forward to hearing more of the new stuff soon.
Having seen EITS open for Arcade Fire, I had hoped for a new opening ten minutes, but no. That’s cool because it is a solid ten minutes. This longer set was more cohesive, subtle yielding to loud, yielding to release. Every song spilled into the next, vocally book-ended only by an intro and thanks for coming out. Fans were thrilled, at one point yelling “thank you” as the band transitioned from one song to the next. The venue suited the band. They sounded great, amazing really.
So here’s my complaint…
WE WANTED MORE!
It is a homecoming show. Headlining this time. Let your freak flag fly. Give us one of those twenty-minute encores that people say is epic. No encore at all. Good show but it could have been great.
More pics available over at the photo site…