I’ve never been a big fan of solely instrumental songs or instrumental bands for that matter. Music without lyrics always made me think of movie soundtracks or classical music, two things I wasn’t into at all.
But there was a problem for me as a music lover. As a writer in my day job, I find it nearly impossible to write while listening to songs with lyrics. I needed to find something inspiring and not distracting. I needed to find a band that could create something that could be the soundtrack to my life, representing ups and downs, triumph and tragedy, anger and frustration, while tying it all together with the essence of cool and a touch of mystique. Enter San Marco, Texas band This Will Destroy You and their self-titled 2008 release.
Often compared to Explosions in the Sky, which was recommended by several of my friends over the years which still haven’t dove into yet, this quartet burst onto the scene in the early 2000s and quickly gained notoriety among the most prestigious critics. Their sound has been called “near perfect,” their overall tone referred to as, “it doesn’t get much better,” and one critic, in particular, claimed their debut to be “an astonishingly beautiful work that promises a bright future,” priming the record for many best-of lists that year.
Fast forward to last Friday night (7/6), the band would be performing a special one-off gig before taking the stage as openers for The Cure’s 40th-anniversary show in London’s famed Hyde Park. It’s the one time a band can actually pull off a “free-form jazz exploration in front of a festival crowd,” as Spinal Tap’s David St. Hubbins would say. But the night before would find the band headlining and performing two of their most celebrated works in their entirety.
No frills, no fluff, no opening acts—this show would be for the hardcore fans, and they showed up to fill the room. This Will Destroy You took to the stage to play their 2016 album Young Mountain in its entirety, before diving into their eponymous self-titled record which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.
Highlights from the set—well, the whole fucking self-titled record I would say. I only wish they would have opened with that one as it was an incredibly tricky shoot and the first three songs of that record, in particular, would have netted out to around 15 minutes of shooting time. Maybe it was better so that I wasn’t consumed with battling stage monitors and deeply saturated lights and I could focus on enjoying the show (something that rarely happens these days inclusive of the first three songs).
Either way, it was great to hear that record from start to finish, as it was meant to be. It’s honestly a work of art, and it’s become my go-to soundtrack—that one versatile record that compliments a hellacious week at work while also inspiring new ideas for moving forward.
