In The Hall of Frozen Heads

Back with a banger! Happy Wednesday, Finetuners. This week is all about Foxing, an indie rock/emo band from St. Louis. An incredible band that has had a profound impact on me throughout the years! They have a number of releases over the last decade of their existence - some that really tug at the heart strings, some that scream for something new. Let’s strap in, chat a little about their previous sounds and how those have impacted this newest release, and discuss the rec more intently! 🪩 

Who The Heck and Why The Heck ?!

Foxing is a group that has had a few different sounds throughout the years. With that said, they definitely have callbacks in production choices that make this newest release very abundantly clear and identifiable! Their debut album dropped back in 2014, The Albatross, and it features some of my favorite songs of theirs, to date. It is SO incredibly nostalgic of a sound to me. I think I feel this because this time of my life was riddled with the emotions of heartache, fighting through and finding trauma, and it was a sound I sought after for community. I’m talking songs like “The Medic”, “Rory”, and “Den Mother”. Another reason their music has profoundly impacted me is simply its great musical composition, which you all know I love.

From The Albatross, we move into the Dealer LP released just a year later. This album is incredibly vulnerable, which isn’t out of character. A key example of this is the song Night Channels. This track really paints a clear picture of religious trauma and guilt caked in anxiety. This song lyrically is clear as day, but also its not - and the sonic journey it takes us on brings so much more depth and meaning to the lyrics. This is a theme for this album I think, and it’s really a moving listen. It can definitely be “a lot”!

🧪 Progressing The Sound - Experimenting A Bit 🧪 

On their record from 2018 (Nearer My God), we get a sort of more synth-y & fuzzy approach sonically that makes it feel a little shoegaze adjacent. We get similar themes in this record as we do the previous in that there is loads of religious trauma, existentialism, loneliness, and isolation. There are anthemic moments, and pain-filled call outs. A fascinating self discovering record that sort of slaps an air of coping with the past.

Draw Down The Moon feels like a step in a new direction. This record feels totally different, but is still a lovely record in its own right! I feel this was one where they were really trying to make something new and reach new areas they haven’t touched as much. This has a plethora of pop-like moments, as more specifically seen in the track Go Down Together. I definitely find it to be an interesting journey to take and hearing their sound progression, if you have the time!

Where Are We Now? (& Rec) ⤵️ 

Now after the high-speed sprint we just took, we have arrived! This is where I want to talk about this most recent release of theirs - their self-titled record. I feel like a lot of the times the self-titled record for bands is one full of the absolute bops that people recount for years on end OR they just move past it and don’t prefer it to future/other releases.

With that said, this record (Foxing) is TRULY a culmination of their prior sounds. The synth experimentation of Draw Down The Moon and Nearer My God with the emo undertones of the previous two releases has this feeling so incredibly complete. There are screaming elements vocally that RIP at the heart and bring energy. I really cannot speak more highly!

Thanks for tuning in, my friends! I do hope you all have enjoyed this week’s Finetuned. I’d appreciate any insights, opinions, thoughts, admiration, or otherwise. You can reply here, direct that towards my email, or DM me on Twitter. ([email protected])

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See you all in the next one! 🙌