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Explosions in the Sky + Lanterns On The Lake
Venue: O2 Academy Leeds
Date of gig: Tuesday, 24th January 2012
People too often associate going to gigs with the potential threats of arrogant crowds, excessive booze spillage and next day's ringing ears. But you'll find none of these things at an Explosions in the Sky concert. The crowd a collection of calm and collected like-minded individuals, the booze firmly grasped, and instead of ringing ears, you'll wake up with a smile on your face.
Newcastle post-rock come melodic indie brigade Lanterns On The Lake were the only supporting act at the O2 on Tuesday night, but they made sure that their time on stage was well spent. The sense of community between all members was uplifting, as each played their part and even shared instruments, moving around the stage and making the space their own. Vocalist Hazel Wilde gave a hair-tingling performance, warm enough for us to fall in love with her on the spot, but chilling enough to remind us exactly where we were. The band's performance was quieter overall than Explosions', but it felt like an appropriate warm-up.
Lanterns' debut album only hit last year, and as such they only had a handful of songs to play next to the big boys. However, everything they did have was put to good use, with their biggest track "Lungs Quicken" blowing everyone in the room away. The band ended on the humble note of thanking everyone for simply paying attention to the support band. The comment was met by rapturous applause and the lanterns dimmed alongside the stage lights.
As casually and coolly as could possibly be, the cast of Explosions in the Sky then took to the stage. After a brief but heart-warming introduction by Munaf Rayani, the band's youngest member, they launched into a show that could, essentially, have been one long song. This is something that EITS do extremely well; take the songs they wish to play and seamlessly blend everything into a non-stop marathon of pure talent, spanning from soft melodic post-rock to four man shredding symphonies. Complimenting this was a fantastic selection of material spanning the band's entire career. Far too often you find that bands relentlessly push their newer material at shows, even if it's unwelcome. Explosions got the blend just right, and I was happy to hear a few tracks from my favourite album, including "Your Hand In Mine" and "The Only Moment We Were Alone".
The fearsome foursome showed real emotion and power that night. It was evident not only from how well they performed, but also from their body language. There was a level of enthusiasm and passion in their playing that's hard to find today, and the sincerity in the music really touched a pleasant nerve. One of the band's most powerful songs, "Greet Death", left the audience in a sort of stunned and silent limbo, and there was no point in the whole show where anybody lost attention. Munaf ended the set with an intense tambourine-meets-floor smashing session before calmly re-addressing the audience for the second and last time, and as swiftly as they had appeared, the explosions disappeared into the distance.
Written by: Ben Goulden
