NBC feat. Explosions in the Sky

I have to give it to NBC. I’m a huge sports fan and there’s nothing like a well put together sports montage. Now over the past year I’ve seen a common occurrence in NBC’s sports montages and that’s the use of Austin’s very own Explosions in the Sky for the soundtrack. While watching the Olympics NBC was nice enough to put together a compilation of the opening ceremonies accompanied by a fine EITS piece when it came to me. This was not the first time I had heard them used by NBC. I thought back and there are at least 2 other times I can remember hearing them in a sports montage for the network. Who knows if there are more. If anyone else out there has notice this too let me know. Kudos to NBC for not going with a top 40 hit to sell the Olympics.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with EITS, they got their first break by getting making the soundtrack for the football film “Friday Night Lights”. There music catalog is not 6 albums deep and they are only getting better with age. The instrumental quartet has impeccably clear rhythms and driving drums to take you on a journey through each and every song. Sure, sounds cheesy, I know. This isn’t a new age instrumental medley or anything like that. It’s what instrumental rock music should be. A typical EITS song will take about 7 minutes to listen to but what it accomplishes in that amount of time is unmatchable. The cohesiveness of the group along with spectacular instrumentation and song structure create more emotion than any singer could ever muster. I’ll admit I’ve gotten my share of goosebumps from listening to them. Aside from their stellar live performances EITS has been a common prescription for amateur film students. Just couldn’t get your shots to portray that emotion you need. Spice it up with some EITS. Now here’s a few EITS songs courtesy of a few of those amateur filmmakers. Let me know what you think.

• Now Playing: Explosions in the Sky – First Breath After Coma