Foals’ creative ambition for ‘Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost – Part 1’ resulted in a striking state-of-the-world-address of an album in which apocalyptic lyrical themes were equalled by the sheer impact of the music. It emerged as an immediate album of the year contender, with many hailing it as the finest moment in a consistently critically- acclaimed career. That status was cemented when it was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize last week.
Now Foals complete that artistic statement with the October 18th release of ‘Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost – Part 2’. The album has been launched with the lead track ‘Black Bull’, which is Annie Mac’s Hottest Record in the World.
Whereas ‘Part 1’ melded Foals’ disparate influences into a thrilling melting pot of sounds, much of ‘Part 2’ simmers with pure visceral intensity. ‘The Runner’ and ‘Black Bull’ are streamlined attacks, with vehement rhythmic onslaughts the foundation for even bigger riffs. It’s an approach that also informs ‘10,000 Feet’, as it lurches ominously from dreamy soundscapes into a heavyweight collision of post-punk and psychedelia.
Yet ‘Part 2’ also echoes the opening chapter’s eclectic nature. The cinematic instrumentals ‘Red Desert’ and ‘Ikaria’ underline that ‘Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost’ is a journey rather than a mere collection of songs, while ‘Wash Off’ marries manic world music-tinged grooves with a punk-like intensity.
And while ‘Part 2’ extends its predecessor’s exploration of contemporary concerns – ‘Black Bull’ is a bruising expression of conflicted masculinity and delusions of grandeur, humanity’s dependency on tech in ‘Wash Off’ – the overall tone is set by ‘The Runner’, which hones in on the importance of fighting back against the odds. That defiance detours into tenderly romantic territory with ‘Into The Surf’ before the 10-minute ‘Neptune’ – somehow feeling like both a requiem and an elegy – brings proceedings to a close in exploratory yet emotive style.
‘Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost – Part 2’ will be released on CD, digital and vinyl formats. Special editions include a orange vinyl that will be available exclusively through indie stores and a picture disc which is designed to be added to the ‘Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost’ Collector’s Edition boxset. The album is now available to pre-order from https://foals.me/enswbl2, with ‘Black Bull’ provided as an instant download.
Collectively, ‘Every Not Saved Will Be Lost’ is symbolic of Foals’ trajectory so far. From playing chaotic house parties in their home city of Oxford to becoming major festival headliners across Europe, they’ve earned critical acclaim (NME and Q Award wins, plus Mercury Prize, Ivor Novello andBRIT Award nominations) and fan devotion (1.7 million album sales, plus over half a billion streams at Spotify since 2015) in equal measure.
Foals will continue to tour extensively in the lead-up to the release of ‘Part 2’ by headlining Boardmasters and playing international shows as far afield as Japan, Thailand and Russia. Please see http://www.foals.co.uk/tour for a full list of dates and ticket information.
