Anticipation for Foals’ forthcoming album ‘Life Is Yours’ continues to mount, with huge fan reactions and tastemaker acclaim for their recent singles ‘2am’ and ‘Wake Me Up’. Delivering equal amounts of optimism and escapism, the album is set to be a life-affirming successor to their all-conquering, two-part ‘Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost’ set. Foals’ latest chapter has been documented with major cover features courtesy of NME, Dork and Hunger. They now provide a fresh taste of what to expect when ‘Life Is Yours’ is released on June 17th by sharing the album track ‘Looking High’.
‘Looking High’ finds Foals bounding into an exultant rush of Balearic beats, sun-kissed synths, a full-voiced falsetto from Yannis Philippakis, and guitars which dart with a dazzling disco decadence. It’s also a song which evolved very organically, having originated as a demo by guitarist Jimmy Smith that had more of a mid-paced Prince vibe. When Yannis, Jimmy and drummer Jack Bevan reunited post-lockdown, its energy was amplified by the trio’s effervescent enthusiasm for once again being able to perform together live in the same room.
Like the majority of the ‘Life Is Yours’ album, themes of nostalgia and rebirth are all infused in ‘Looking High’. As Yannis explains, “This is looking back to a more hedonistic time in my life, and a more innocent time in society in general, pre-pandemic and before the existential threat of climate change. It takes place in an alley in Oxford with two clubs – The Cellar and The Wheatsheaf – that all the city’s nightlife gravitated towards. It was before clubs started to close down and our cities started to change into more corporate, arid places. There’s an element of being haunted by nightlife that’s no longer there.”
‘Looking High’ is also a prime example of Foals’ experiments with using different configurations of producers on various tracks. John Hill (Portugal The Man, Florence + The Machine) is the lead producer, with co-production from Miles James and additional production courtesy of A.K. Paul (co-founder of the Paul Institute with his brother Jai Paul). It was mixed by the ten-time Grammy Award winner Manny Marroquin (Post Malone, Kanye West, Rihanna).
Foals also today announce that their debut album ‘Antidotes’ will receive a long-awaited vinyl repress to commemorate the 14th anniversary of its original release. This new, single-run pressing will be manufactured using recycled vinyl records – a process which means that all copies will share a mottled, marbled effect, but that also means that each individual record is unique. ‘Antidotes’ has only previously been available on vinyl following its initial release in 2008, making it an elusive item for collectors.
‘Antidotes’ will also be released on June 17th. Both ‘Life Is Yours’ and ‘Antidotes’ are available to pre-order HERE. The two albums are also available as specially priced bundles: the deluxe ‘Life Is Yours’ LP with the ‘Antidotes’ LP at a price of £48, or the regular ‘Life Is Yours’ vinyl with ‘Antidotes’ for £36.
Later this month, Foals will embark upon a UK headline tour that includes a sold-out four-night run at London’s Olympia. Their summer schedule includes a Saturday headline set at Latitude, plus prime billing at Glastonbury and Radio 1’s Big Weekend. Please see their website for ticket details and a full list of their forthcoming international shows.
