#foals into the surf

[iero]

ENSWBL pt 2 for the album ranking asks!

Oof... Ranking the Everything Not Saved's... A weakness of mine... Okay, let's see:

Wash Off

Neptune

Dreaming Of

The Runner

Black Bull

Into the Surf

10,000 Feet

Like Lightning

Red Desert

Ikaria

Thank you Maddie! 🫶🏻

#answered #palebluedream #I go back and forth on Black Bull/Into the Surf being my 5th/6th. Depends on if I'm feeling angry or sad LMAO. #Also I didn't know that Like Lightning is like a universally disliked Foals song by most fans until this week which does suck to hear... #I mean it's down there for me too but I absolutely don't hate it. I don't not like any song on this album actually. #Also this album is like Stardust in that my personal fave (Wash Off) overpowers the obvious best song on the record (Neptune). #I have many thoughts and feelings about this album and part 1 as well. <3

[areyoudreaminof]

No Regrets in this Life: A Cassian Playlist

We're back with our good ol' Lord of Bloodshed. Cassian has had a lot of assumptions and descriptors thrown his way. Bastard, warlord, General, bastard, and himbo (my own personal favorite). But underneath his humor, you've got this very loving and empathetic man, who has a lot more emotional complexity than he gets credit for underneath that humor. So I really let myself have a lot of fun with this playlist. I branched out more sonically and lyrically. So come take a look with me behind the cut! And Listen Here!

Ares-Bloc Party

War, war, war, war I want to declare a war My fist breaks your porcelain nose There are other things my hands can do To create or to destroy Mini gods and goddesses First person singular Set it, set it, set it off

The Man-The Killers

Nothing can break, nothing can break me down Don't need no advice, I got a plan I know the direction, the lay of the land I know the score like the back of my hand Them other boys, I don't give a damn

Inhaler-Foals

So can you not go away If just for one day? Impossible, possible How do you feel now? How do you feel now in a war? War sends out for you And throw your fortune away

After Hours-The Weeknd

Thought I almost died in my dream again Fightin' for my life, I couldn't breathe again I'm fallin' in too deep Without you, I can't sleep 'Cause my heart belongs to you I'll risk it all for you I want you next to me This time, I'll never leave

Careful You-TV on the Radio

Not to say, not to say That you shouldn't share the blame There is a softness to your touch There is a wonder to your ways Don't know how I feel, what's the deal? Is it real? When's it gonna go down? Can we talk? Can we not? Well, I'm here, won't you tell me right now? And I'll care for you, oh, careful you

Bite Down: Bastille vs HAIM

You don't have to look any further I've been waiting here for you for time You don't have to look any further You're missing what is right before your eyes No one's gonna stick the pieces Together for you, together for you

HEADBOARD-Lil Ugly Mane

Caught in a fire Buried with you Off in a dream, dream, dream All I know is right now, I'm through

waves-Miguel

Don't stop, I wanna ride that wave All night, I'm gonna ride that wave Look here, I'm gon' surf in it baby Get turnt in it baby, put work in it baby Keep workin' it while I ride that wave Put it out, I'm on fire, fire That’s what I’m about, take me higher, higher, tonight (I'm gonna ride that wave) You got a body built for the beach Do you got that ocean? Body surf, don't sleep, body surf on me

Don't Wanna Fight-Alabama Shakes

What you like, what I like Why can't we both be right? Attacking, defending Until there's nothing left worth winning Your pride and my pride Don't waste my time I don't wanna fight no more

The Fire-The Roots & John Legend

There's something in your heart And it's in your eyes It's the fire, inside you Let it burn You don't say, "Good luck" You say, "Don't give up" It's the fire, inside you Let it burn

10 Lovers-The Black Keys

When I hear them use your name I get all choked up inside It's not only from the shame It's like ten different lovers died Except you're still just a mile away But there's nothing left to say Don't leave us down and out again Cause we might break instead of bend

Who-David Byrne & St. Vincent

Who’ll help the tired soldier? Far from his own hometown Carry these men and women Who get lost when the Sun goes down? Who is an honest man?

TKO-Justin Timberlake

Fair fight, knocked down, then I got over you Can't fight no more, you knock me out What am I supposed to do? Don't understand it Tell me, how could you be so low? Been swinging after the bell and after all of the whistle blows Tried to go below the belt, through my chest, perfect hit to the dome Dammit, babe

Young Men Dead-The Black Angels

And out of the black a figure forms A soldier in the sky With a drop of love Trying to set you free Run for the hills, pick up your feet and let's go We did our jobs, pick up speed now lets move The trees can't grow without the sun in their eyes And we can't live if we're too afraid to die

Good Times, Bad Times-Led Zeppelin

I know what it means to be alone I sure do wish I was at home I don't care what the neighbours say I'm gonna love you each and every day You can feel the beat within my heart Realize, sweet babe, we ain't never gonna part I feel good when I look into your eyes

taglist: @octobers-veryown, @melting-houses-of-gold, @velidewrites, @reverie-tales, @thesistersarcheron@ultadverb, @c-e-d-dreamer, @andrigyn, @foundress0fnothing, @vulpes-fennec ,@asnowfern,@mossytrashcan, @thelovelymadone, @the-lonelybarricade, @shadowriel, @separatist-apologist , @fieldofdaisiies, @stickyelectrons, @vanserrass, @panicatthenightcourt, @krem-does-stuff, @iftheshoef1tz, @damedechance, @headcanonheadcase, @cursebrkr, @andrigyn, @mossytrashcan, @thelovelymadone, @wilde-knight, @moonpatroclus, @stickyelectrons, @kataravimes-of-the-shire, @mossytrashcan, @sunshinebingo, @filthyglamdoll, @ablogofbipanic

#acotar playlist project #cassian #pro cassian #a little something for the cassian girlies #Spotify

[landgraabbed]

was tagged by @venriliz in the thing where you put your playlist on shuffle and post the first ten songs. tysm! i’m not tagging anyone bc idk who’s done this already haha

1. led zeppelin - kashmir 2. the daughters of eve - hey lover 3. foals - surf, pt. 1 4. austin wintory - second confluence 5. talos - your love is an island 6. takénobu - reversing 7. xutos & pontapés - circo de feras 8. orville peck - roses are falling 9. depeche mode - policy of truth 10. conan osiris - adoro bolos

#p #tag stuff #feel free to do it and tell em i tagged hehe

[barve-oceana]

URL Song Game

Thank you @fuckthemforthis the tag 😊

Rules: spell your url with song titles and then tag as many people as there are letters.

Hold Me - Fleetwood Mac

Ona - Joker Out

Sympathy - Declan McKenna

Sédè - N3

Eat Your Young - Hozier

I'm Fine - Dađi Freyr

Not Another Rockstar - Maisie Peters

Into The Surf - Foals

Sinner - The Last Dinner Party

Timezone - Måneskin

Enter Sandman - Rina Sawayama

Waste My Life - Alice Merton

Yesterday- The Beatles

I’m tagging (feel free to ignore if you don’t find it fun) : @jerichoes, @lauranodin, @krixt667, @laszlocravenworth, @alexturner , @girljeremystrong, @nucleartextbooks, @deez-no-relation, @auxiliarywardrobe, @lady-arryn, @daniel-bruehl, @billlybutcher @daleks-in-221b

#music tag #tagged

[oakthcrn]

It was bitterly cold. December was upon them, and with it, a command to shroud Ravka in a thick layer of powdered snow. It didn't seem to deter the nobles from their pointless celebrations. They would be feasting in a few hours while forgetting those starving and freezing. While they danced their cares away, their surfs would suffer from working in such conditions, or the armies would spread even thinner to protect them in their glass palaces. Disgust pooled in her chest as she watched with a vacant look as carriages upon carriages were loaded to the brim with presents and gold. Gold that could be used to aid the suffering armies.

They needed better defenses to stall the Druskelle from impeding their lands. However, the nobility and the Ravkan crown ignored it all. What did they care if some grisha orphan was snatched from the line of duty? As long as Prince Vasily's birthday was celebrated, who cared if those of lesser stations disappeared?

Lark inwardly sneered at the thought. Prince Vasily is the prodigal son and future king of Ravka. If fate was setting up a joke, Lark failed to see the punchline. Ravka is on the brink of ruin with apathetic rulers at the helm.

Her thoughts were steered back to the Darkling whom she accompanied. When he spoke his command, she followed him obediently. She clicked her tongue quietly as the dapple-grey stallion under her moved to follow behind her General.

Once, they were a safe distance away from any prying ears. Lark slowly glanced up at General Kirigin. Her verdant hues studied his dark visage in silence.

" The prince is sleeping off his drink from last night; I doubt he will arrive at his birthday celebration on time. " She said. " There isn't much to report. He continues to spend his days drinking, hunting, or visiting various brothels." Lark attempted to hide the disgust from her tone, but it was for naught. Her expression hardened as she kept her eyes on the General.

" He's no more ready to be king than a foal is ready to walk on their legs." She shook her head. " A waste of a man." She paused then.

" However, I recently became acquainted with his younger brother, that one is much more clever and has a habit of collecting friends." She said. " My question is, sir. Should I allow him to collect me? "

@luminescenc1e // continued from here: xxx

#luminescenc1e #. the prince guard and the kings blade ( grishaverse ) #. stories fade into legends and myths ( thread )

[providnce]

Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost Parts 1&2 (can I include both?)

Hi Em! 👋 Of course! Two incredible Foals albums, here’s mine:

ENSWBL Part I:

Syrups

In Degrees

White Onions

Sunday

On the Luna

ENSWBL Part II:

Neptune

Black Bull

10,000 Feet

Dreaming Of

Into the Surf

Send me an album and I’ll say my top 5 favourite songs from it!

#just listened to both back to back and i’m still in awe of how good they are #ask game

[mournmourn]

heyyooo <33

ur rb about ur last liked song on spotify reminded me that ferrari was spinning round my head yesterday also and it's one of my fav tommy cash songs rn (even tho it doesn't rly count 'cause he's a feature but still :') it's just so fun and was stuck in my head all yesterday so... twins !! 💖⭐⚡

also if u want, here are some bowl cut buddy recs for the artist sethu in case u want to check him out at any point:

... he doesn't have many songs as he's a relatively young artist etc, but you'll find most of the goods on this ep ('cause perse' was his esc italian nf song, but i also rec 'sottoterra' and the 'charlie fa surf remix ' which is a cover) ♡

yippee twinsies! ✨🧡 the funny thing about tommy cash is that every time im just going about my day listening to his songs on spotify im like 'ohh i like this one' and its someone elses song with him as a feature lol happened with 'who' by modeselektor too

thank you for the bowl cut buddy recs! His stuff gives me foals vibes, am i crazy for that. Cause perse, i forgot that song completely, its such a nice banger. the finn in me dies a little bc of that title. koska perse 💀

#ask #charlie fa surf rmx is a summer song agreed?

[privateersandpoems]

As if anything would keep us apart.

There's a lighthouse in the dark, a garden in the past Under bruisings of a night sky Be like water, when I rise, Plant a jasmine in the night

There's a serpent on the beach If I'm out of reach, Place a garland in the sea for me

When the tide comes rolling in Please be sure to send A blood moon for me A garland in the sea And if I don't make it home Wrap the jasmine 'round my bones Into the Surf, Foals (2019)

#Steven Patrick #Aylais #poetry #poem #music #song #lyrics #verse #garland in the sea #blood moon

[consultingzoologist]

MUSIC TAG GANE

Rules: you can usually tell a lot about a person by the type of music they listen to. Put your playlist on shuffle and list the first 10 songs then tag 10 people. No skipping!

Thank you @rustandruin !

This is from my General Purpose Mix

1. Shout - Tears for Fears

2. The Great Escape - Woodkid

3. Wake Up - Arcade Fire

4. Accidentally in Love - Counting Crows

5. After Glow - Foals

6. Turn Out The Lights - The Crane Wives

7. The Sound of Settling - Death Cab for Cutie

8. Somebody to Love - Queen

9. When You Were Mine - Joy Crookes

10. Into The Surf - Foals

These are all absolute bangers and I think it sums up my music taste pretty well? I love rock and indie alternative stuff, and anything with an interesting sound, especially something I can listen to with my whole body. Foals combine all of those!

Tagging: @willowbilly @a-fucking-velociraptor @spindletrees @jealousofthetea @smugglerofsass @stereolights @the-portal-rule-book @em9515 @dashjangles @doodleborg

#rust i love you i love music i love to share music!!! #i will be checking out your ten songs because uh fast car gets to me and i do love the paper kites and i spent last week listening to billy #joel for writing reasons #my close good friends #music #tag games

[pidge-poetry]

At the Anthem, an electric look back by British indie band Foals

Review by Teta Alim | December 14, 2022 at 2:33 p.m. EST | Washington Post

As Foals frontman Yannis Philippakis’s breathy singing sauntered behind the sound of waves and a somber melody at the start of 2010’s “Spanish Sahara” on Tuesday night at the Anthem, a memory of the British rock band from a past era washed ashore.

It was June 2013 in New York City. A tropical storm left Randall’s Island, the site of that year’s Governors Ball Music Festival, a muddy mess. But on the final day of the festival, a bright sky served as a picturesque backdrop for Philippakis’s crowd-surfing antics. At that point, Foals had released its third album, “Holy Fire,” leading its sharply intersecting guitars and tectonic drums to wide-open festival-ready fields. Grouped with Arctic Monkeys and Sky Ferreira, Foals became part of an aesthetic and musical era that today’s casual internet historians have dubbed “indie sleaze.”

After losing two founding members in recent years, the band is now a trio: Philippakis, drummer Jack Bevan and guitarist Jimmy Smith. Foals’ seventh and latest album, “Life Is Yours,” is an over-the-shoulder glance at the swirling pulses of its 2008 debut, “Antidotes,” but this time with less geometry and more funk-aspiring fizzy pop.

Though Foals albums can sometimes feel like the fossilized amber of an early 2010s rock soundscape, live performances invigorate the band and serve as its best context. “For me, the very core of being a musician isn’t sitting around in a studio. It’s performing and connecting with people,” Philippakis told the Guardian this year.

His showmanship at the D.C. concert was more understated, though he still strolled off the stage to get closer to the audience. He wore his performing experience well, which stood out after the two opening acts seemed to fade under the bright lights.

Foals transformed into a six-piece band onstage, with deft touring support, opening its set with the espresso shot of “Wake Me Up,” from “Life Is Yours.” The band’s newer songs, such as the prowling “2001” and delirious “2am,” stretched as empty-headed dance tunes, were anchored by Philippakis’s lively delivery.

Still, it was with its older material that Foals seemed most electric. When the guitars could finally chase each other through the blistering curls of Bevan’s drumming, as in the disquieted “Black Gold” and intricate “Two Steps, Twice,” it clicked why the band has endured nearly two decades after its formation. And Foals will continue its worldwide touring into 2023, partly with fellow music veterans Paramore and Bloc Party.

#foals #liy tour #washington #yannis philippakis #interviews

[iero]

Both ENSWBL parts I and II for the album asks? 🩷

It's like you and Maddie both knew my favorite Foals album(s) are the Everything Not Saved's... and you're both right! The first one was answered right here, but for the second one! Let's see:

Wash Off

Neptune

Dreaming Of

The Runner

Black Bull

10,000 Feet

Into the Surf

Like Lightning

Red Desert

Ikaria

Thank you Fresa! 🫶🏻

#answered #faaallout #They're like sisters to me... I could not separate them even if I wanted to. <3

[areyoudreaminof]

A Quiet Dreamer: An Elain Archeron Playlist

Here is the long in the works Elain playlist! I was too scared to post it because I didn't think anyone would be interested. But now, I don't care! Music is magic and sensory. Elain is light and kindness, life and power. She's got so much to offer. Listen here! And come take a lyrical deep dive on the tracklist behind the cut!

Oh, What a World-Kacey Musgraves

Northern lights in our skies Plants that grow and open your mind Things that swim with a neon glow How we all got here, nobody knows

These are real things These are real things

Oh, what a world, don't wanna leave All kinds of magic all around us, it's hard to believe

Helplessness Blues-Fleet Foxes

If I know only one thing, it's that everything that I see Of the world outside is so inconceivable Often, I barely can speak Yeah, I'm tongue-tied and dizzy And I can't keep it to myself What good is it to sing helplessness blues? Why should I wait for anyone else? And I know, I know you will keep me on the shelf I'll come back to you someday soon myself

When I'm Asleep-Jesca Hoop

With every beat my heart's skipping You'll know what I'm made of I keep light on and the bed warm Shelter from the storm and I'm keepin' our love

Victory Dance-My Morning Jacket

Should I close my eyes and prophesize Hoping maybe someday come? Should I wet the ground with my own tears Crying over what's been done? Should I lift the dirt and plant the seed Even though I've never grown? Should I wet the ground with the sweat from my brow And believe in my good work?

Hey there, I'm flying up above Looking down on the tired earth I can see, I can see potential

My Body is a Cage-Arcade Fire

I'm living in an age That calls darkness light Though my language is dead Still the shapes fill my head I'm living in an age Whose name I don't know Though the fear keeps me moving Still my heart beats so slow

My body is a cage that keeps me From dancing with the one I love But my mind holds the key

I Speak Because I Can-Laura Marling

I speak because I can To anyone I trust enough to listen You speak because you can To anyone who'll hear what you say

The Bug Collector- Haley Heyndrickx

Oh, and I digress 'Cause I must make you the perfect morning And I try my best To prove that nothing's out to get you

Morning Sun-Dave Bixby

The sun in the morning The new day is dawning Look out your window And see yourself walking Through fields of love And the sky up above Is with you

Queen of Peace-Florence + The Machine

Oh, the queen of peace Always does her best to please It isn't any use Somebody's gotta lose

Atomic Number-case/lang/veirs

I'm not the freckled maid I'm not the fair-hair girl I'm not a pan of milk for you to spoil Why are the wholesome things The ones we make obscene?

Red Heart-LAYLA

I'm all stolen, curious Bright, oblivious Eluding gravity I'm a super-realist Absurd thrill for this life I see I've got a red heart I've got a gold spark

I Will Love Again-Bat For Lashes

One of these nights One of these days I will love again Oh, I was a deer in the lights I was lost in the waves But I will love again

Heartbeat-VÉRITÉ

Can you feel my heartbeat Pounding into nothing? Broken bones are floating In my empty body Can you feel it reaching Moving through the feeling?

Flowers-Anais Mitchell

Dreams are sweet until they’re not Men are kind until they aren’t Flowers bloom until they rot and fall apart Is anybody listening? I open my mouth and nothing comes out Nothing Nothing gonna wake me now

Flowers, I remember fields Of flowers, soft beneath my heels Walking in the sun

Into the Surf-Foals

There's a lighthouse in the dark, a garden in the past Under bruisings of a night sky Be like water, when I rise Plant a jasmine in the night

Dreams-Fleetwood Mac

Like a heartbeat drives you mad In the stillness of rememberin' What you had and what you lost And what you had and what you lost

Third Eye-Florence + the Machine

Hey, look up You don't have to be a ghost Here amongst the living You are flesh and blood And you deserve to be loved And you deserve what you are given And oh, how much? 'Cause there's a hole where your heart lies And I can see it with my third eye

#elain archeron #acotar playlist #Elain #pro elain #pro elain archeron #Spotify #acotar playlist project

[regina-bithyniae]

Rules: Make a new post and spell out your URL with song titles, (then tag as many people as there are letters in your URL)

New rule: Don’t use an artist more than once.

ty for tagging, @zlonamerna

T - The Weight of Love (Black Keys)

H - Heartland (The Sound)

E - Ecstasy (Soviet Soviet)

Q - Compass (Motorama) [free space I don't know a single Q song]

U - Ullswater (Hookworms)

E - Epilogue (The Antlers)

E - Eclipse (Pink Floyd)

N - Numb (The Toxic Airborne Event)

O - Out on the Street (The Vaccines)

F - Flowers of Light (Caspian)

B - Birthday Party (Club Sofa)

I - Into the Surf (Foals)

T - Time to Give (White Lies)

H- H.W. Running (Palace Winter)

N - Normal Person (Arcade Fire)

I - I Feel It (Avid Dancer)

A - Ambulance Chaser (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah)

why must I have so many letters in my url

Tagging: @powermonger @centrally-unplanned @official-kircheis @gentleoverdrive @diocletianscabbagefarm @soup-irl @nonevahed @avianmasquerade

yeah not even close lmao

#having eclipse without brain damage is a crime

[satansfavoritestripper]

Okay, @moonaswitness tagged me to spell my url with songs so you can blame them for this long post

"Sweat" the All-American Rejects

"Above And Below" The Bravery

"Turn" the Wombats

"ABCDEFU" Gayle ft NEFFEX

"No Children" The Mountain Goats

"Selene" Imagine Dragons

"Freaks" Surf Curse

"About A Girl" The Academy Is...

"VAGABOND" MISSIO ft Czarface

"Ophelia" The Lumineers

"R U OK" Tate McRae

"I'm Only Joking" The Kongos

"Teeth" Real Friends

"Eyes on Fire" Blue Foundation

"Serotonin" Call Me Karizma

"This Will Be My Year" Two Friends ft Point North

"Rumors" NEFFEX

"I Feel Bad" Blackbear

"Peach Fuzz" Caamp

"Paralyzed" Sueco

"Exits" Foals

"Roses" Saint John Imanbek remix

@requiem-of-a-wraith @nervedeep @devilsinthedetails24 @lostintheunicornland y'all have the longest blog titles I can think of, have fun lmao

#send me songs! #music #tag game #sfs

[boonesfarmsangria]

Returning to form with Foals' escapist project

When we get on the line to the ever enigmatic, always stage-diving and crowd surfing Foals frontman Yannis Philippakis, he warns that he won’t be able to speak much because he has a sore throat.

However, the singer’s handicap hasn’t come about because of any sting in the tail end of a miserable British winter, or a bout of the spicy cough.

Yannis is knackered because his band has just performed to over 40 thousand people in their hometown of London – five nights back to back, a stark reminder that two years of lockdowns hasn’t made a dent in the feverish cult of Foals that continues to expand, despite the death knell of twenty teen’s indie rock.

“We did four nights at The Olympia and one at Brixton Academy – all sold-out,” he says with a hint of trump buried beneath the phlegm and coughing fits.

“Brixton, in particular, was quite peculiar, that’s such a massive gig for a lot of bands, and it certainly wasn’t an afterthought but it did feel like one of the ‘smaller’ hometown shows now, which is a pretty mental thing to say.”

The fact that the London three-piece are still raking in the ticket sales is no surprise.

Their career bull-run has been remarkable, with their bonafide 2013 classic Holy Fire followed up by the feral What Went Down, assuring them main stage billing for any festival until the end of time.

The double album sprawl Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost further grew the lore of the band, which had shown both a determination to progress and a prolific streak to keep even the most impatient fan sated.

But now, as the band get ready to launch another touring cycle for the forthcoming seventh LP Life Is Yours, the time has truly arrived for the band to tear up the rule book, throw the scraps into the fire and dance in the flames. Emphasis on dance.

“What we do will always be distinctly Foals and stylistically us – the guitar is what helps that along, and my voice being somewhat distorted wailing over the top of everything,” Yannis says.

“However, dance music has always been part of the DNA of the band, it’s just come more to the foreground on this record is all, but that’s always been a significant factor that makes up our sound.

“We’ve always liked to jam a bit and fuse our songs together. It makes the show a bit more of a party that way – it’s similar to the way DJs string stuff together in clubs – the momentum never drops in clubs, there’s always been amazing energy in the air, so that’s been something we’ve wanted to be mindful of more, both live and with this new record.

“There was a desire to take it back to more of the initial idea of the band where the rhythm, the grooves and the guitars are interlocking architecturally. We wanted to tap into the physicality of music. And we wanted it to feel good.”

For the guitar lovers, no need to fear. Life Is Yours retains all the trademark earworms plucked out of Yannis’ and co-guitarist Jimmy Smith’s fretboards that made hits like ‘My Number’ and ‘Two Steps, Twice’ the ultimate guitar-led dance floor anthems.

However, there’s no denying the infectious shimmer of the synths, the moveability of the drums, and the celebratory nature of the hooks that spatter across Life Is Yours, bursting forth with an optimism rarely heard in a post-pandemic, post-Trumpian world.

“We were listening to heaps of ‘70s disco records while making this one – the view was for this album to be a bit more summery – it’s a going out record, an album that’s full of life and soundtracks the re-emergence of people into the world,” Yannis says.

“It’s really exciting that the genres are cross-pollinating more now – there’s a feeling that nothing is off-limits.”

“The more electronically-based artists that we love mostly inspired us here, and we’ve developed that side of our sound over the past few albums anyway, so we wanted to really go deeper on that side of things.”

Yannis notes that – besides 40 thousand people coming to shows off the back of a few promo singles – the “battlelines” of music has changed, especially in rock.

“It’s been less tribal for a while,” he says. “When we started the band we wanted to follow the tradition of artists like LCD Soundsystem, we played house parties and club nights as much as we played classic rock venues. We have 15 years of history doing that kind of thing.

Like most albums currently emerging, Life Is Yours emerged from the existential despair of lockdowns brought about by the pandemic.

Yannis is quick to point out though that this isn’t a reflection on a darker time of history, but an oasis for people looking for a reason to dance.

“Our touring was cancelled because of COVID-19, and during lockdown, we initially found it really nice to be in a restful headspace,” he said.

“But after a while though, like many artists really, I started to feel really restless and that was when I started writing some demos – ‘2am’ and ‘Wake Me Up’ were the two songs that really laid the template for this new record.

“We rehearsed in this really cold, miserable rehearsal room in an industrial facility – no sunlight, no one around – it was really bleak, so that really propelled us to try and counter this sense of the grim pandemic winter.

“It became a really escapist project, for those four or five hours a day that we were working on the music we were liberated from thinking about COVID – that’s the spirit of this album really.”

“With ‘Wake Me Up’, I just wanted to write a song about transporting yourself to a better, idyllic situation.

“I think we all had that feeling of the last eighteen months being like a weird fever dream that felt surreal but very affecting. I think we all wished we could have woken up somewhere else at various points.”

The band also invited a swathe of other voices in to have their say on the record, with Yannis revealing some songs would be shared around with as many as four producers.

“Once we started recording the record we tried different producers, we ended up working with four and we would record 80 per cent of a track with one, and then change and go with someone else for the finishing touches.

“We’d never worked like that before but it meant there was so much creativity going on.

“After we had most of the record done, we relocated to a studio called ‘Real World’ which is famously owned by Peter Gabriel from Genesis.

“It was idyllic, on this beautiful lake – we worked there for eight weeks, and it all just came together beautifully, so we had it finished by the end of the summer – it was really great. I love Gabriel, I love ‘Slegehammer’. That era of stuff slaps.”

Life Is Yours might take some digesting for fans of the guitar-driven Foals staples ‘Mountain At My Gates’ and ‘Spanish Sahara’.

However, there’s no denying the brilliance in the composition spread across the 11 songs that make up the band’s new work.

Nothing is recycled, tired, or retreaded. Foals are fundamentally a rock band, but one that will continuously evolve, despite the trends surrounding them.

As Yannis explains to close our interview, the album finale ‘Wild Green’ is both a signpost of where they’ve arrived, but also a hint of the things to potentially come.

“That was an exercise in just going overboard with synths – we had this amazing arpeggiator that the whole thing was based on – we jammed on this loop for half an hour non-stop,” he says.

“The idea was that the first half is a very lush tapestry of interlocking walls of sound, and then the second half breaks open and disintegrates at the same time with the way the guitars fall apart.

“It was a song of two halves, we like the idea of re-emergence, and by the end, you reach the end of a life cycle. That song really is symbolic of the album as a whole.”

Who knows where this band will go next? One thing is for sure – there are hundreds of thousands of followers who are going on that journey too.

Life Is Yours will be released June 17 via Warner Music.

mixdownmag.com.au || interview || words by Al Belling

#yannis philippakis #foals #interview #actual reading #life is yours

[punk-in-docs]

📻 - a mini playlist just for a character of your choice

Draegan

Ohohohoooo my friend you are certainly speaking my language. For this ethereal absolutely delicious demon I have a very particular set of songs that just SCREAM Draegan.

No Light, Queen of Peace and Jenny of the Oldstones by Florence + The Machine

Into the Surf by Foals

Take me to Church and Nina Cried Power by Hozier

Starlight by Sophie Ellis Bextor

Threatened by Michael Jackson

Under the Shadows by Rae Morris

Dark Paradise - Parov Stelar Remix by Lana Del Rey

Hallucinations by PVRIS

The Dance by Martin Phipps featured in War & Peace

Holiest by Glass Animals

Beggin’ (Violin) by Joel Sunny

Houses of Healing by Howard Shore (c’mon gotta have a LOTR nod somewhere)