Foals’ recent album What Went Down is easily one of the strongest indie-rock records of 2015. Title track, and the opening single on the album, What Went Down, is an explosive, brash single that I’ve probably listened to a couple hundred times since it was released. Now, in an interview with NME, frontman Yannis Philippakis has shared the story of its origin.
The track was written in Oxford at Foals’ recording studio, so small that the band could barely fit inside.
“The song came out of a jam,” he says. “We started riffing on the opening, this drone, and we started puncturing it with the big guitar hits.”
In terms of lyrics, he explains, “I remember thinking I wanted to write a song that was set in a weird city, where I was this droog, this dystopian, weird, skulking character, this menace who was both heartbroken and vulnerable, but also threatening and with a big ego, wanting to burn everything down.”
Explaining that the lyrics came from “the same place dreams come from,” he can’t exactly recall their origin – but he can recall that he was left with so much energy that he wanted to physically smash up the recording room.
Watch here:
Foals will be in town across the New Years period to headline Falls Festival, as well as two sideshows:
Tues January 5: Hordern Pavilion, Sydney
Thurs January 7: Festival Hall, Melbourne
Click here for our full list of Falls sideshows.
Last week, Foals front-man Yannis Philippakis took to Twitter to call out sexual harassment at live shows.
https://twitter.com/YnnsPhilippakis/status/663134404060016640
In an interview published by DIY yesterday, the singer further elaborated on what prompted the Tweet, and why he felt the need to raise awareness to the issue of safety at concerts.
“I think there was a girl – I’d read something – that was complaining about how she’d been treated in one of the moshpits… I used to love moshing, and there’s an inherent aggression and violence to that type of thing that goes on at a show, particularly if it’s like a circle-pit type thing. I think there’s gotta be some common sense. But I also have seen, not necessarily at our own shows but just over the years, people can get sucked into those things when they don’t really want to be, and I think that just having an element of compassion for people that are in the set and you can see if someone’s not enjoying it or feels threatened or feels like they’re getting hurt, then I think it’s a small thing to say, just to say ‘look out for whoever’s there.”
Yannis continued, stating that, “Particularly there’s an increasing awareness of maybe the fact that certain girls don’t get treated like they should…there’s some shady shit that goes on, and I don’t like to hear about it sometimes.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_EIE5f2t6M
The comments come as an increasing number of gig goers to vocalise their concerns. Anti-sexual harassment group GirlsAgainst was established recently in order to raise awareness to the issue faced by women at certain shows, with artists such as Harry From Peace, Spector and Austin Williams from Swim Deep all joining in the chorus of concern.
https://twitter.com/HarrisonKoisser/status/651521204118011904
https://twitter.com/Spector/status/653501982007783424
@girlsagainst it's great to see a bunch of you taking these horrid matters into your own hands and raising awareness. Power to you! X
— austin williams (@austinwilliamsw) October 9, 2015
One can only hope that this ‘Macho behaviour’ is nowhere to be seen when Foals visit our shores for the Falls Festival and their own shows across the New Year period.
FALLS FESTIVAL
Lorne, VIC: Dec 28, 2015 0 Jan 01, 2016 in Lorne, VIC
Marion Bay, TAS: Dec 29, 2015 – Jan 01, 2016 (All ages)
Byron Bay, NSW: Dec 31, 2015 – Jan 03, 2016
FOALS SIDESHOWS
Tues January 5: Hordern Pavilion, Sydney
Thurs January 7: Festival Hall, Melbourne
Click here for all Falls sideshow details!
Guys, we have less than two months until Foals grace our shores once again. The UK rock heavyweights released what’s perhaps their best album to date, What Went Down, earlier this year – and along with the release came the beyond-exciting news that they’ll be touching down in Aus to headline Falls Festival across 2015/16 New Years! They last performed here as the last-minute fill in headliners at Splendour in the Grass 2014, at which point they blew our minds. We’ve bene recovering ever since, but we’ll be ready for them come December 30.
Along with the news that they’ll be headlining Falls alongside Disclosure and Bloc Party, came the highly anticipated reveal, that Foals would be performing a few headline shows too! Okay well, just two to be specific, but we’ll take what we can get.
Support acts have now been announced, and they’re absolutely incredible. One of my favourite parts of festival season is that so many bands are in town at once, that they all just play together – so Foals attendees will be treated to a brilliant musical triple threat, ft. London’s Django Django and Sydney natives Mansionair! Both acts will be performing at Falls Festival too, but here’s your chance to catch all three in action from the comfort of your home city (if you live in Sydney or Melbourne).
Norweigan producer Hans-Peter Lindstrom is no stranger to tackling some of the biggest bands on the planet for his remixes. Past challenges have included re-works of classics by Franz Ferdinand, LCD Soundsystem and even Best Coast.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-ocFgZ4Sd8
However, his new remix of Foals‘ You Gave It All may be his most ambitious yet, transforming the mournful, five-minute atmospheric slow-burner into an eight-minute verified Scandinavian Trance-Banger.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a00CocDCed4
Lindstrom takes his time with the build, allowing his own up-tempo beats to establish the groove around the haunting guitar leads and ‘ooos’ of the original for nearly four and a half minutes. When the lyrics finally kick in, the music builds around the howls of vocalist Yannis Philippakis, before the ‘drop’ settles back into the hypnotic trance established previously. Listen below.
It’s not the first time we have seen a Foals remix, with the Holy Fire Remixes emerging in 2013, including contributions by Hot Chip, Friendly Fires and Casino Times, all reworking tunes from 2013’s Holy Fire.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXDFL38eL1c
Howl and Echoes has always had a soft spot for Foals, with their most recent offering, fourth album What Went Down, earning the title of “fucking stunning” when we reviewed it earlier this year.
Foals will be hitting Australian shores for this year’s Falls Festival in their first visit to the country since their surprise visit for Splendor In The Grass last year. Don’t miss one of their sideshows!
If you’ll just give us a minute to pick ourselves up off the floor… Foals have surpassed even the blazing energy of their most recent record with their cover of Florence + The Machine’s What Kind Of Man. Performing on BBC Radio 1’s Live Lounge this week, Yannis and the band absolutely ripped up Flo’s stomping, empowered anthem, bending the track to their own explosive will.
Exchanging the original orchestral arrangements for synths and electronic ambience, and carrying the riff with a pumping electric guitar – weighed down by more distortion than even a self respecting metal band might opt for, the band blew the track apart with this rendition. In Foals’ hands, Florence’s distinctive sound takes on an 80’s vibe, echoing new wave synths and industrial feels. Wailing grit from Yannis Philippakis stretches out the lyrics, barely holding onto them through his slightly unhinged delivery. Without over egging the performance, Foals manage to create a massive sound to match the original.
And just when you think it’s over, they rise again with a rendition of the breakdown from their album title track What Went Down. Rattling over the string of disturbed mutterings, launching the band into the final frenetic push with a return Florence’s refrain, thrashing out blood, sweat and tears with their finish. It’s a punishingly brilliant cover, and as the band themselves point out, it’s a high bar to reach. Check out the video below to see what we mean.
And now if you’ll excuse us, we’re just going to go sit quietly for a bit…
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEa5ezzvpd4&w=560&h=315]
English emotional rockers Foals released what this site thinks is one of the best albums of this year in the form of What Went Down a few months ago. Blistering, crashing, heart wrenching tracks spanning a variety of different styles and genres comprise the record in what is the band’s most explosive effort yet. Seeing them transition even further away from the math-rock roots to more accessible indie rock, the band concentrate on their ability to bring even the strongest of listeners to tears whilst showing off just how goddamn skilled they are with their instruments.
It is hard to pick a favourite track off the album – each one serves its own purpose and has its own place on the record. However, there are a few clear standouts for each individual, and the band’s latest single happens to be mine. Having teased the release of of a video for their track Give It All on social media with the simplistic caption of “Tomorrow” (I mean, what else could you really say), the band have now come through with the goods and then some with this latest clip.
Teaming up with longtime collaborator Nabil, the clip for Give It All is all you would think it would be and more. Judging from the record, it was one of the more intimate songs on an already intimate album, and one that would be a total tearjerker to see live. Frontman Yannis Philippakis‘ voice coaxes you in – gentle but still so commanding – whilst the lyrics slowly tear you down, detailing a relationship falling apart. Leaving enough room for you to fill your own story of heartbreak in, the track is a light touch on the break pedal in the whole of What Went Down, but is a pang of sadness as a standalone song. The clip only amplifies this, following actor Jérémie Renier as he grapples with his inner demons and memories of his lover (Caroline Fauvet). It’s a relatively simple clip, but Nabil manages to build and build the emotion and intensity to an almost unnervingly heartbreaking clip in just a few minutes.
FOALS – Give It All – director cut from nabil elderkin on Vimeo.
Foals are currently in the midst of a world tour, and will be heading to Australia for the Falls and Southbound festivals for New Year’s Eve, as well as a few sideshows as well. If there are any remaining tickets to any of their shows, we strongly recommend you get on those now – this is not a band you’ll want to miss.
Penned by Lauren Ziegler, James Tait and Emma Jones
Howl & Echoes has a longstanding affair with UK alt/indie rockers Foals. We’ve been excited about their fourth album What Went Down for a long while – since their surprise headline set at Splendour ’13, to be precise – and three of us decided to review it track by track.
Foals will be in town this December and January to headline Falls Festival, and hopefully a series of sideshows for those who can’t make it to the campsites.
What Went Down
J: As soon as Yannis wails ‘Buried my heart in a hole in the ground’ and those massive guitars kick in, you know you’re in for a blinder of an album.
E: What an opener! This is, in my opinion, the best song of the year. All out, heavy, hard rock; it’s Foals at their most liberating and emotional.
L:I love this song. I love it. It’s one of my favourite tracks of the year so far. Heavy, passionate, perfect.
J: Easily cracking the top five songs of 2015, this is a beautiful, heartrending voyage of a song.
E: This is the My Number of the album – but that’s definitely not a bad thing. It’s slightly heavier but easily one of the more accessible tracks, and would be an awe-inspiring track to see live.
L: My least favourite single, mostly because WWD left me hanging for something so much more epic. Bring on the singalongs!
Birch Tree
J: Effortless in delivery and utterly breathtaking, like stepping in from the rain and the wind of Mountain At My Gates and taking a long, hot shower.
E: This is classic Foals, and that means Foals at their finest. Intricate guitar melodies and staggered drums with a classic hook – they’re playing to their strengths here and it shows.
L: This is an example of why I love Foals so much. I’d usually find a song like this so boring – those electro/house elements and a sedated melody should be putting me to sleep, but it’s just so gorgeous and well-balanced that it works.
Give It All
J: A fantastic build up to a mesh of haunting synths, a pounding drumbeat and that mesmerising voice of Yannis behind the wheel all the while.
E: There’s something about Yannis’ voice over the fluttering synths in the first few seconds of this one that had me captivated. He’s so powerful and commanding, as is this song. Definitely one of my favourites.
L: I can so vividly picture this taking place at the Falls/Splendour amphitheatre with thousands of people humming along. Those drums are fucking gorgeous, too.
Albatross
J: Picking up the pace again, the drums galloping along and pounding you into submission for the roaring crescendo.
E: Is anyone else not surprised there is a Foals’ song called Albatross?
L: I love Albatrosses. This song is cool, but underwhelming and repetitive. Sorry guys.
Snake Oil
J: Foals get amazingly heavy, their guitars all but caked in grime for this total belter of a song that will stop you in your tracks.
E: So fucking badass, this is a ripper of a tune from start to finish. They kick the door in and proceed to tear down the walls with Snake Oil, and I am totally okay with it.
L: Definitely my favourite track. It reaches the unleashed intensity that I’ve been waiting for – screamy Yannis is my favourite Yannis. I LOVE this tune.
Night Swimmers
J: Lightly smoked in some spices from the Caribbean, the breakdown into more dirty riff-ery splitting the song down the middle is most welcome.
E: Returning to the math rock side of things, just listen to the intricacies of this bad boy. For those who are questioning their musical deviation to the heavier side of rock, this track well and truly silences the haters.
L: Okay so it’s slightly too tropical for me, but apart from that, a nice trip down Foals’ memory lane.
J: A stunning and melancholic look at life on the road told oh so evocatively from behind a piano.
E: Much like Spanish Sahara before it, London Thunder is one of those songs that makes a beeline for your heartstrings and tugs at them so hard. Mesmerising.
L: When they said that the album was inspired by 130 bottles of wine, this is the kind of output you expect. Deep, dark and emotionally stirring, lyrically and melodically.
Lonely Hunter
J: The chorus grabs you immediately, the penultimate track as consistent in quality as the rest.
E: Yannis apparently wrote this when he was “crushed”, and crushing it is. There are some deep lyrics here about new beginnings, and Phillippakis’ ability to cut to the core of you is shown off in all it’s glory here.
L: A restrained and introverted tune that leans more towards the lo-fi side of things. It’s missing an explosion, but besides that, it’s one of my favourite singalongs on the album.
A Knife In The Ocean
J: Majestic. As. Fuck. This blew me out of the water and chilled my bones and I haven’t stopped listening since.
E: I cannot stop listening to this song; the perfect closer, summing up everything you’ve just experienced from the previous tracks so elegantly. I think I have this one on repeat because I really just don’t want the album to end.
L: Fucking stunning. A fucking phenomenal single and album closer.
My, my, my, the new Foals album, What Went Down is shaping up to pretty pretty damn good. I mean, not that you could expect anything less, but it’s getting a bit ridiculous. Maybe the fast-run release of what are now four tracks has been some kind of penance for being away for far too long, or maybe Foals are just as excited as we are for August 28 -aka International Foals Day- as everyone else.
Whatever the reason, we’re glad we can now add London Thunder to the list of singles because this Friday still seems kind of far away. The track joins previously released lead single and title track What Went Down, along with Mountain At My Gates and A Knife In The Ocean.
Like its predecessors, London Thunder is accompanied by a video. This one is comprised entirely of CCTV footage: black, white and melancholic while the song weaves a story of the feeling of absence and the strange in-between state of airport dwelling – all of which comes with touring. Speaking to NME, frontman Yannis Philippakis said of the song: “It’s about being away and having some sort of experience that changes you, and waiting to return, knowing that the world you’re returning to will be subtly different because you are.” In other words, its fucking beautiful.
Two and a half years isn’t that long between albums in the grand scheme of things, but its sure as hell feels like long enough. We’re on the edge of our seats, hanging out for this Friday when the album officially drops (hope you pre-ordered!). What Went Down is without a doubt one of the most highly anticipated albums of 2015 thus far. Between the teaser trailer, the previous three tracks and this new single, its pretty clear to understand why.
What Went Down tracklisting:
What Went Down
Mountain At My Gates
Birch Tree
Give It All
Albatross
Snake Oil
Night Swimmers
London Thunder
Lonely Hunter
A Knife In The Ocean
Another new Foals track? Has Christmas come early or something?
In the lead-up to their upcoming album, the hotly anticipated What Went Down, Foals have blessed us with two incredible new singles, What Went Down and Mountain At My Gates. Now they’ve added a third track to their impeccable artillery, with the overnight release of the lyric video for A Knife In The Ocean. It’s set to be the closing track for the album, while the first two singles were the openers – meaning we’re ever more curious to see what’ll be sandwiched in between them.
Sure, the lyric video isn’t as gripping as the interactive, virtual reality clip for Mountain At My Gates, but the montage footage of waves crashing, huge fires and general natural magnificence is still pretty great – watch below.
The track itself is beautiful. From Yannis Philippakis’ soaring, hollowed vocals and big, billowing chords, the track grows and grows, as rhythms and instrumental layers splash colour into the intense, rich atmosphere. With a more ambient post-rock sound than their last two singles (which in turn were vastly different,) the sheer diversity within these three tracks alone indicates that we’ve got a pretty incredible album to look forward to.
What Went Down on comes out on August 28, and they’ll be in town over New Years to headline Falls Festival. Check out the full lineup here.
What Went Down tracklisting:
What Went Down
Mountain At My Gates
Birch Tree
Give It All
Albatross
Snake Oil
Night Swimmers
London Thunder
Lonely Hunter
A Knife In The Ocean
UK folk band, Foals, have dropped a new interactive video for track Mountain at My Gates. Directed by Nabil (who you may remember from his work with Frank Ocean and The Weeknd), the track uses GoPro’s new spherical camera mount to allow viewers to rotate the camera as they watch, using the A/W/S/D keys on their keyboard.
Videos grow more and more creative by the day. From the Jack White to Bjork and everyone in between, now, more than ever, have songs been accompanied by expansive and astounding short films. Virtual reality in this sense is a really interesting, exciting way to bring life to such a great track – one which I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of in the future.
The video shows the band playing while surrounded by a flock of birds, which can be be viewed from any angle at all – you choose your own adventure.
It’s an addictive new approach to music videos, and certainly one that will attract multiple re-watches from viewers.
Foals will be releasing their highly anticipated new album What Went Down on August 28, and they’ll be visiting us for a very special headline performance at Falls Music & Arts Festival over the New Years period.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_EIE5f2t6M&w=560&h=315]
What Went Down tracklisting:
What Went Down
Mountain At My Gates
Birch Tree
Give It All
Albatross
Snake Oil
Night Swimmers
London Thunder
Lonely Hunter
A Knife In The Ocean