June 15, 2008

Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes (2008)

After the Sun Giant EP, I was decidedly piqued to give Fleet Foxes' self-titled debut proper consideration and... I’ve never been prouder to be an American. I've discovered the musical equivalent to warm apple pie and vanilla ice cream. With all this talk of a revival in folk rock circles, FF make me believe they will do nothing but revive the revival even more.

This Seattle quintet creates music so warm, cathartic, lush, and fairly epic that I honestly hoped the end of this album had an additional 11 tracks of brilliance waiting, just so it didn't have to end. The record boasts a cornucopia of sounds created by a variety of musical instruments I can't/won't even begin trying to properly identify. And the songs! Simple but complex, unabashedly hopeful, and chock full of unique intros, gentle yet purposeful strumming, interesting breakdowns, lingering vocals and memorable codas.

I wish I could get My Morning Jacket, Sufjan Stevens, Ryan Adams, and Simon & Garfunkel over for a game of horseshoes set to the instrumental gem "Heard Them Stirring." We'd talk about which tracks kick ass or just simply blow our collective minds instead. Oh, and Bill n' Ted would lend me their time machine so Billy The Kid could stop by with some moonshine to regale us with stories from the wild wild West, as "Blue Ridge Mountains" permeates the background. Then Band of Horses and The Shins would crash the party just to argue over who wishes they wrote "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song" more...

The final verdict:
I've barely pinned the tail on Fleet Foxes, so please listen for yourself. Be warned: this frontier-friendly music may make you wanna hop on your trusty horse and ride off into the sunset [to Seattle, perhaps]. If your collection lacks true-blue American folk rock, it’s time to tuck away your Vampire Weekend and let FF folk up your life.

8 Comments:

awmercy said...

Nice comparisons. I love these guys too. I wonder why they decided to switch their debut title from Ragged Wood to self-titled.

Mona said...

What do you think of this album? I just wonder what it is about Seattle that makes the best bands. I tend to like most of the Sub Pop lineup.

PS- You gonna catch Wolf Parade in DC???

awmercy said...

Unfortunately, I will be out of town when they finally make their way out to DC. Seems like I am out of sync with their schedule. However, I hope to catch the Fleet Foxes in July at the Black Cat.

Mona said...

Man, that sucks. I saw WP last summer during the "Apologies..." tour and it was beyond insane. I can't wait to see them again. Have you ever seen them? You are seriously missing out, if no.

It'd be cool if everyone posted their own show review from their respective cities... yeah, I'm borderline obsessed with WP :)

awmercy said...

What do you think of Swan Lake, Sunset Rubdown, and to some extent Frog Eyes? Are you as big a fan?

Mona said...

Honestly, I barely gave Frog Eyes or Swan Lake a try just cuz I figured all the spin-offs suck. Sunset Rubdown was overindulgent noise that wasn't melodious enough for me, I dunno, couldn't force it down. Handsome Furs, actually, is not that bad... but all of these side projects don't have the magic of Wolf Parade, I think. What's the best offshoot in your opinion?

Also, I still, for the life of me, can't distinguish which songs are Spencer Krug from Dan Boeckner's vocals. I *think* I prefer Boeckner's vocals, but I know one is more chaotic than the other... help?

awmercy said...

What do you like better: the EP or LP?

Mona said...

The LP, hands down. You? BTW- I'm still waiting on the "Krug from Boeckner" tutorial... I'll need to pay special attn. when I see them live in a month (YAYAYYAY!).