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**Take Care, Take Care, Take Care**
★★★★☆

The Texas post-rock titans known for their cinematic soundscapes and ability to make grown men weep in darkened venues have never been ones to rest on their laurels, but *Take Care, Take Care, Take Care* finds Explosions In The Sky at a fascinating crossroads – one that would prove to be both an artistic triumph and a subtle harbinger of the band's eventual hiatus in 2016. Looking back now, as the quartet has reunited and continues to tour sporadically, this 2011 release feels like the sound of a band pushing against their own established boundaries while simultaneously perfecting them.

The album emerged during a period of intense creativity and external pressure for the Austin-based instrumental outfit. Fresh off their acclaimed work scoring Peter Berg's *Friday Night Lights* film and the subsequent television series, Explosions In The Sky found themselves in the peculiar position of being both underground heroes and mainstream darlings. The cinematic work had introduced their expansive, emotional post-rock to millions of viewers, but it also raised questions about whether they could maintain their artistic integrity while operating in Hollywood's orbit.

*Take Care, Take Care, Take Care* serves as their emphatic answer: a collection of six sprawling compositions that feel both intimately personal and grandly universal. The band – guitarists Munaf Rayani and Mark Smith, bassist Michael James, and drummer Chris Hrasky – crafted these pieces over months of writing and rewriting, stripping away excess to reveal the emotional core of each track.

The album opens with "Last Known Surroundings," a 13-minute opus that perfectly encapsulates everything magnificent about Explosions In The Sky's approach. Beginning with delicate, interlocking guitar lines that feel like morning light filtering through venetian blinds, the track builds with the patience of a master storyteller, adding layers of percussion and bass until it reaches a cathartic crescendo that could soundtrack either a romantic reunion or the end of the world – sometimes both simultaneously. It's the kind of song that reminds you why instrumental music can be more emotionally articulate than any lyric.

"Human Qualities" stands as perhaps the album's most immediate and accessible track, featuring a central melody so achingly beautiful it borders on the manipulative. The interplay between the dual guitars creates a conversation that feels both urgent and contemplative, while Hrasky's drumming provides a heartbeat that anchors the ethereal proceedings. Meanwhile, "Trembling Hands" showcases the band's ability to find power in restraint, building tension through repetition and subtle dynamic shifts rather than obvious volume swells.

The centerpiece "Postcard From 1952" reads like a love letter to classic Americana, its nostalgic melody evoking images of small-town diners and endless highways. There's something deeply cinematic about the track – unsurprising given the band's film work – but it never feels calculated or manipulative. Instead, it captures that peculiar melancholy of looking backward while moving inexorably forward.

Musically, the album finds the band operating firmly within the post-rock tradition they helped establish, but with subtle innovations that keep things from feeling stale. The production, handled by the band alongside John Congleton, strikes a perfect balance between clarity and atmosphere. Each instrument occupies its own sonic space while contributing to a cohesive whole, and the dynamics – always crucial in post-rock – feel organic rather than programmed.

What sets *Take Care, Take Care, Take Care* apart from its predecessors is its sense of maturity and restraint. Where earlier albums occasionally indulged in bombast for its own sake, these compositions feel carefully considered, each crescendo earned rather than imposed. The band had learned to trust silence as much as sound, space as much as density.

The album's legacy has only grown in the years since its release. While it may not have achieved the cultural penetration of *The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place*, it's increasingly viewed as the band's most cohesive artistic statement. The influence of its patient, emotionally intelligent approach can be heard in countless post-rock acts that followed, and its integration of cinematic sensibilities into the band's core sound paved the way for their continued film and television work.

*Take Care, Take Care, Take Care* ultimately stands as a testament to Explosions In The Sky's ability to evolve without abandoning their essential identity – a rare achievement in any genre, but particularly impressive for a band working within post-rock's sometimes restrictive parameters.