Friday Night LightsI checked out the beginning of a bootleg of the new Billy Bob Thorton movie, Friday Night Lights, this afternoon. The film, shot near Austin, starts off with a compelling sequence of clips depicting a Texas high school football team holding its first practice of the year. The visuals are set to a very powerful instrumental piece of music performed by Austin’s Explosions in the Sky. Checking the film’s soundtrack, it looks like Explosions in the Sky are responsible for most of the music in the movie. I haven’t seen more than the first five minutes, but off the strength of those five mintues, I’m thinking now of going to see a matinee tomorrow afternoon.

Explosions in the Sky are a great local band, by the way. They grew up as skaters in Midland, Texas and moved here several years back. You can hardly catch them in Austin, though, because they are constantly touring. Jason Lee is also a big fan of them and I’m wondering if he may have helped pass their CD’s to the right hands which might have helped get them this high-profile soundtrack deal. Last time I spoke with the band, I told them how Midland has a great skatepark. They’re pissed it had to come about after they spent so many years there without one.