Foals - Antidotes

With the tag of ‘the next big thing’ having been heaped onto Oxford five piece Foals since last year, it seems surprising that they have only just released their debut album. The band have built a huge fan base through their energetic live shows and a string of successful singles last year – Mathletics, Hummer and Balloons, only one of which is included on Antidotes.

Listening to the album, it’s easy to see why. Next to psychedelic, jazz-tinged numbers such as Heavy Water and Tron, last year's singles sound a little immature.. obvious foil for 15 year old nu-rave scenesters. That’s not to say that they are bad songs, but Antidotes shows that Foals are clearly capable of so much more.

If there is such a thing as 'your average punk/dance indie album', Antidotes is not it. While comparisons can be made with bands such as The Rapture, Klaxons and even Bloc Party, Foals are almost the intelligentsia of the scene. Cassius for example, is not your standard rock fodder, unashamedly drawing on clasical references and winning the prize for The Best Song Ever Written About The Fall of Rome. Tracks like this, rich in their rhythmic complexity and with a lack of lyrical emphasis are the reason Foals have been firmly placed as flag wavers for the math rock genre.

Antidotes is an album full of interlocking musical textures – jangling guitars mix with grunting horns, manic yelps from lead singer Yannis Philippakis and strange moments of beeps and feedback. Every new listen to the album reveals a new element previously unnoticed, all built over incredibly infectious tribal beats and reminiscent of ‘pop’ music in its very essence.

While the lyrics can at times be vague, repetitive and on occassion downright indecipherable, they are still a breath of fresh air. You are about as likely to find Philippakis singing about getting pissed and pulling on a Friday night as you are to find One Night Only discussing quantum physics.

Recent single Cassius is the most overtly radio friendly track here, boasting the most sing along chorus (something that is distinctly lacking in the other 10 tracks). Other stand-outs include the rousing The French Open which proves to be the perfect album openener with its atmospheric punk-funk groove. Red Sock Pugie, the most joyous, euphoric moment on an album that otherwise bursts with tension is a track that, with a little editing, could be the bands biggest single to date. Personal favourite, however, has to be Electric Bloom which sounds like the Klaxon's Isle of Her if the latter had been written during an MDMA comedown.

While Foals have managed to produce an album that is interesting and challenging without ever really straying too far from its pop prerogative, as its 45 minutes run on it seems to lose focus. As a result you're left feeling like most of the album’s best numbers occur at the beginning. Latter tracks are still filled with chirruping guitars, minimal vocals and strong grooves, but by this point they're merely reconfiguring the formula in slightly different ways. Therefore Two Steps, Twice is very similar to Cassius, but not nearly as good, and Like Swimming is just 2 minutes of wasted time.

Antidotes, however, is a good album, a very good album, but not a great one. If their second album includes more moments of release and euphoria, and maybe a few more choruses, then it could be brilliant. While Antidotes is not a cure, it will certainly make you feel a little better. 

7/10

Laura Rodwell (MuHead)

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