Foals- Holy fire

       

British indie-rock outfit Foals released their third studio album last Monday, almost three years after NME named their second album Total Life Forever the sixth best album of 2010.  The LP, titled Holy Fire, features 11 tracks of a decidedly tamer version of the band known for its eclectic sound.

Foals has the gift of making a slow, easy-listening song into something really exciting and showcases it early in the album with ‘Prelude’, following it up with the upbeat lead single ‘Inhaler’.  ‘Inhaler’ stays true to the Foals sound, intricate instrumentals tied with lead singer Yannis Philippakis’ unique vocals and it all comes together to make this the perfect lead single (and well…song, if we’re being honest).

The rest of the album is equally as flawless, obscuring the line between indie rock and pop with sometimes haunting vocals coupled with upbeat instrumentals. Some stand out tracks include ‘Late Night’ and ‘Milk and Black Spiders’, although as with most albums, the experience is really in listening to the album as a whole.

Overall, ‘Holy Fire’ is another solid release from Foals, however, listeners who liked the busy, dissonant tracks from ‘Antidotes’ and ‘Total Life Forever’ feel the album may leave a bit to be desired. Foals will be playing the 9:30 Club on May 15th.

-Corinne Jones

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