I've been gone quite a while, blame going back to uni and a bunch of hassle around it for that. So it seems quite a good restart to posting on here to talk about the sequel to the first post I wrote, about the part 1 of Foals' Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost released earlier this year.
It was safe to say that I was pretty exited for this record, as part 1 has been one of my most enjoyed releases this year and also my personal favourite Foals album. However, as the singles rolled out I found myself a little apprehensive, and ultimately the full album has disappointed me somewhat overall. It's far from a bad album and not even Foals' worst in my opinion, but it is quite a step down from part 1.
Starting with the singles, Black Bull was the first to drop and I was initially underwhelmed. The track felt like a neutered, 3 minute version of What Went Down (the bands most ferocious, hard rock, riffs 'n' screaming track). The track has grown to be one of my favourites on the album, with Phillipakis' paranoid vocals set to these massive riffs. It doesn't hold a candle to What Went Down, and wouldn't make my list of best Foals tracks, but is an enjoyable track on its own. The second single, The Runner, hasn't grown on me in such a way. The track opens with a chunky riff, much like Holy Fire's Inhaler, but then shifts to sounding more like Mountain At My Gates as the chorus hits. The lyrical mantra of "If I fall down, I'll keep on running" feels pretty cliche and played out. It doesn't hit the anthemic optimism of Mountain At My Gates or the explosivity of Inhaler.
This is one of my problems with the record as a whole; it doesn't feel like a sequel to part 1, lyrically or sonically. Part 1 detailed a confusing and paranoid world, backed by equally panicky and frantic dance rock grooves more reminiscent of the bands early work than their big hits. This album just feels like more Foals rather than any continuation to really deem this a part 2 of a united whole. The lyrics don't provide anything to counter or compliment part 1, it's just generic "I won't give up" feel-good-ism that the band have done for years. The music is also more straight-forward indie and alternative rock than the propulsive rhythms of part 1.
The production is also a bit wobbly. Foals have always had an issue with an over-reliance on reverb, but on top of it here the tracks just seem completely blown out and impact-less. The band promised part 2 to be heavier, and I don't really think that's the case; it's just louder. To be honest, I actually think part 1 is the more explosive and impactful. The most low-key song on the record, Into The Surf, is built around the creepy keys and effects of part 1's Surf pt 1 interlude, but the track is washed out with reverb to an absurd degree. It completely takes the personality out of a track I would otherwise really like.
Not that there aren't highlights on the album, Wash Off would fit snugly on part 1 with its dance-able groove and chanted backing vocals.The chorus does kind of fall victim to the albums production, but the verses of Dreaming Of are propulsive and driven with Phillipakis' vocals mimicking the chunky and choppy groove. 10,000 Feet has this almost Coldplay-esque keyboard line matched against a loud and heavy bass line that does give the track a real sense of drama as it shifts between the quieter verses and the massive chorus. The ten minute closer, Neptune, recalls a post-rock sound the band haven't really explored since Total Life Forever and has a real weight and swell to it that much of album lacks.
I think there enough tracks on here I enjoy (and enough that I would enjoy a whole lot more if the production wasn't as blown out) for it to be more than just mediocre, but it is a real step down compared to part 1 and leaves me feeling as if it might've been better for the band to condense down he best tracks from both albums and release a longer single 'Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost' album.
Top Tracks: Wash Off, Black Bull, Neptune
6/10
