CD of The Week

Foals - Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost – Part 2 (Warner)

A sense of darkness has permeated much of Foals' music in the past, including their release earlier this year, Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost - Part 1. Now in late 2019, Part 2 has arrived with a bit more light at the end of the tunnel. At least there is a drive to reach that light. After the brief, sparse instrumental opener "Red Desert," we get a one-two punch of hope in "The Runner" and "Wash Off." The latter is more upbeat in tempo and tone and pushes a sense of urgency to avoid the crushing weight of doom, to wash it off and keep moving. It's a partner to the former track, a guitar-heavy crusher in which the author states "...when I fall down... Then I know to keep on running."

This desperate energy to pull oneself out of the darkness drives the first half of the record. Lead single "Black Bull" is loud and heavy, dotted with images of grabbing the titular bull by the horns, facing off with the toxic masculinity that lead singer Yannis Philippakis has been sparring with. We seem to get some closure on "Like Lightning," a feisty, bluesy rocker; "I know my way home, I'll mend those broken bones, I've seen that lightning crack."

The ferocity is still present but more subdued during the second half as nostalgia takes hold during "Dreaming Of" and another instrumental entitled "Ikaria." A slow burn kicks in on the powerful redemption song "10,000 Feet;" "Dancing at 10,000 feet, come and catch me, When I fall through the fire, into the void again, Ooh, I'll burn all the liars." "Into the Surf" is the most delicate track, a poetic ode to a lost loved one, as well as the full realization of "Surf Part 1" from the first chapter of this entire epic. Speaking of epic, Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost - Part 2 concludes with a 10-minute jam entitled "Neptune," perhaps a culmination of their entire musical output. Philippakis likens it to an out-of-body experience, leaving behind this mess for whatever happens next.

One thing is for sure, whatever happens next with Foals is sure to be another incredible journey.

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Review by Dave Lindquist