“I was living in a devil town/ didn’t know it was a devil town,” sings Tony Lucca as he covers Daniel Johnston’s 1990 song, “Devil Town.” Johnston had no idea his “devil town” would be Dillon, Texas, the imaginary town profiled in “Friday Night Lights,” but his song, reprised in a huskier tone yet with a whimsical air by Lucca, is one of the standouts of the show. The track, like many others, is repeated throughout five seasons, each time eliciting tears and reminding the audience just how much we love the starring Taylor family, the Dillon Panthers and the entire West Texas town.
This “football drama” is about much more than the sport, and the music used magnifies every emotion for its audience. “FNL’s” creators managed to seamlessly mix genres, from locker room pump–up music to indie rock to honky tonk country perfect for rides in fullback Tim Riggins’ Chevy truck.
Snuffy Walden, the show’s resident composer, composed the “Friday Night Lights” opening theme, though many confuse its sound with that of the instrumental group Explosions in the Sky, who are also prominent in “FNL’s” mix. Their songs bring the show’s audience along for an orchestral ride, from their slow buildups into a crescendo of electric guitars and drums. “First Breath After Coma,” “Your Hand in Mine” and “The Only Moment When We Were Alone” are each featured throughout the seasons to accompany momentous victories and demoralizing defeats, both on and off the field. It’s only fitting that the band hails from Midland, a West Texas town just miles from the imaginary Dillon. As each episode ends with Explosions in the Sky’s “Your Hand in Mine,” one can’t help but feel the urge to say, “Texas forever.”
Other songs:
Jakob Dylan: Something Good This Way Comes
Runaway: The National
Like Rebel Diamonds Remix: Read My Mind
AA Bondy: World Without End
The Avett Brothers: If It’s The Beaches
