Review of "Antidotes" by the The Foals

Band: Foals
Album: Antidotes (2008)
Label: Subpop
Rating: 6 out of 8, Haymaker

Take a look at ten different music websites and you'll see The Foals lumped together with ten different musical styles. They've been called minimalist, math rock, and perhaps least helpfully, indie rock. Frankly Scarlet, I could give a damn about that. Sure, they have a strange mix-up of influences, but music isn't a logic problem; you don't need to know the premises to enjoy the conclusion.

And it's easy to enjoy the Foals. Their music is fast, fun, and undeniably danceable. Many of the songs highlight repeated multisyllabic vocals backlit by quick sequences of guitar harmony. This makes for lovely interplay, as the vocals essentially act as another guitar, alternatively leading and following the rest of the group. This is especially true in songs like "Cassius," "Balloons," and "Olympic Airways."

The lyrics are therefore repetitious, and one has to dig deep to find coherent meaning in the lyrics alone. But the meaning is there, in "Cassius" for instance, there seems to be a veiled reference to The Talking Heads song "Listening Wind" (the wind is in my heart), and one of the oft-repeated lines, "Cassius, Away!" looks to be straight out of Bill Shakespeare. (Julius Caesar, act IV, scene III.)

Nevertheless, focusing on the lyrics too much is beside the point. The Foals are a collaboration; the end result is therefore what matters. Ultimately, that collaboration is effective on many levels. Above all the band is accessible, and better yet, plain damn fun.

Review of "Keep Color" By the Republic Tigers

Band: The Republic Tigers
Album: Keep Color
Label: Chop Shop
Rating: 6 out of 8 Haymaker

At times redolent of Radiohead, the Republic Tigers’ initial LP, “Keep Color” is full of harmony, strange samples, and keyboard tricks which give the effort a dreamy, weightless feel. All in all, the songs seem to slide together, and several of the songs “Buildings and Mountains,” “The Nerve,” “Cast on, Cast Off” are as impressive as they are hypnotic. In fact, this is an album that’s easy to listen to again and again, as most of the songs are still fresh ten listens later. In this regard, the album is unique, as it’s difficult to find fault with many of the songs.

The biggest weakness present on the album is the writing; this is the only aspect of the song which gets grating. Several songs, “Air Guitar,” “Contortionists,” and “Made Concrete” have lines that are a tad embarrassing. For instance, “Made Concrete” includes the line, “Don’t believe the scientists that tell you what to/ think /and and / don’t believe the media that tells you what to breathe.”

I can buy the first line, maybe. But the media telling me what to breathe? Hmm.
In any case, this type of writing is perhaps a little too earnest, but then again, erring on the side of earnestness isn’t a huge problem, really. I’d rather have a band be earnest than wishy-washy.
And in the end, The Republic Tigers’ first full-length effort is anything but so-so; in fact, it’s quite good and definitely worth picking up.