Antidotes, 2008

Foals is gonna be the most important band in 2008. Mm, that’s right. The hype is now long gone and you know what? I found that very convenient. Now we can really concentrate on listening to the music. And this band is really making good music.

Foals is a band from Oxford, UK. The band members went to university together and gave this up because they wanted to play music instead. Now, three years after the band was formed, they released their long play debut. Foals themselves describe their new album as a dualistic combination of dansable and thougthful music – an album for the friday nights but also an album you would reflect on at home. Furthermore, this description includes an odd artistic reference as Gwen Steffani. The refenrences that the music press has offered are genres like dance pop mixed with afro beat and distinctly math rock. Actually Foals is doing anything in their power to avoid the manipulating, hyping music press – especially the british. And the ferocious press has been out there, just waiting to pronounce the coming of ‘the next big thing’, namely Foals. Right at the beginning the members agreed on their position on music. It should be pop music with a cutting edge, cointain elements from all over the world and first of all the music should be anti-élitist. They intend to maintain a close relationship to their roots. Foals make music for people to enjoy it, that’s all.

With an admirable opinion to music Foals indirectly proclaime themselves as best new act this year. ‘Antidotes‘ is an amazing album. Bringing a whole new musical perspective to life Foals has commited an absolutely original piece of musical art. These five guys from oXXXford invented their own retarded, stoned, anti-pop. Accompanied by the New York-based afro beat collective Antibalas Foals merged math rock and world music, and what came out of it is this exciting new pop music. Anti-pop, Antibalas, Antidotes.

All tracks are great but the brilliant ones are songs like ‘The French Open’, ‘Olympic Airways’ and ‘Two Steps, Twice’. In the french opening is easy to hear their inspiration of world music. The horns and guitar rythems has a distinct foreign character. With the intensity increasing as the beat goes faster the first (french) words seems like punchlines for me: “Un peu d’air sur la terre” (a bit air on Earth) – building up a massive amount of energy and releasing it at once: “Wasted games / Rackets and gadgets”. ‘Olympic Airways’ has an amazing passage with a double guitar figure while ‘Two Steps, Twice’ alike the first track is very energetic.

‘Heavy Water’ and ‘Electric Bloom’ are great live performance songs. Foals commited an absolutely fantastic gig at Train, Århus, the 8th of March.

Hummer EP, 2007

None of the previous myspace-hits or rather singles Foals made before the album is included on the album. All songs on ‘Antidotes’ are brand new and the first single is called ‘Balloons’. Later on Foals launched ‘Cassius’ and ‘Red Socks Pugie’ as the second and third single from the record. The previous singles ‘Hummer’ and ‘Mathetics’ are to be found on the ‘Hummer EP’ from 2007 which also contain the brilliant ‘Astronouts and All’. Foals did not want to release a record which people already heard.

Facts:

• Dave Sitek (from Tv On the Radio) recorded and produced but the final mix was declined by Foals. They wished a different sound.
• Foals was formed in 2005.
• Foals play math rock, afro beat and pop.
• Foals’ friends are making their coverart and music videos. The guy who makes Foals’ music videos works full time at a kebab bar.
• The famous afro beat band Antibalas made additional horn music on ‘Antidotes’.
• Foals should be seen live (accompanied by Antibalas).

Foals on Myspace

Foals.com

Foals on virb.com