AGENTS OF CHANGE
Explosions in the Sky ‘always looking for ways to make our music different’
Chris Hrasky is starting the next leg of his tour in Albuquerque.
And he’s excited to get back to town.
“Albuquerque has always been a place that embraced us,” he says in a recent phone interview. “We’ve continued to grow the shows out there.”
Hrasky is a member of the Texas-based rock band Explosions in the Sky.
The band has been performing under the name since 1999. It has released seven studio albums, with 2016’s “The Wilderness” being the latest.
Michael James, Munaf Rayani and Mark Smith round out the band with Hrasky.
Explosions in the Sky plays mostly instrumental music.
This leg of the tour will be the last for a while for the band, which will then take a short hiatus off the road to rest.
“We still love playing shows,” he says. “We’ve been doing this nonstop for 18 years. We’re ready for a little bit of a break.”
Hrasky says the members reached an agreement to take a break about six months ago.
“We feel very lucky that we’re able to make this decision,” he says. “Each tour seems to be a little bit bigger. It was a gradual ascent. We started playing to two people in the audience, and now it’s thousands at times. It’s been part of why we have lasted so long. We took each step as a band and made sure each one of us was on board.”
Hrasky says Explosions in the Sky has also done music its own way from the beginning of the band.
In having the majority of its music as instrumental, he says, it’s important for each band member to challenge themselves.
“If you listen to our catalog, you can see the biggest jump from our first to second albums,” he says. “Our process has changed over time, and we’re always looking for ways to make our music different. On this last album, we were so immersed in the entire process.”
Hrasky says getting some time off will also help give the band some new inspiration.
“We’ve been on the road and together for so long that sometimes we can go stir-crazy,” he says with a laugh. “The relaxation will be nice and a great way to start up working on the next album.”