Foals season has officially begun and this time around they are not playing around. They've just dropped their first single in almost four years Exits and have announced the album Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost. With details scattered, we decided to dig deep and see what we could pull out about the new album/s.
There's Two Of Them
We're getting two Foals records this year, Part 1 and Part 2 of Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost. The first part is due to drop on 8th March while they're eyeing a release date for the second part just after the end of the European summer. Each album will feature 10 tracks.
Exits Is The First Single
The band dropped Exits this week and it's the first single of the first part of the album. “It sets the tone for that first record in certain ways,” Yannis told NME about the song.
“It feels like the centre-piece of that album. We thought it was a fresh take, and we always like to come back with a song that slightly curveballs."
Exits is their first new single since 2015.
They Are Touring It This Year
Foals are hitting the road again this year once the first part of the album drops. They are set to play a handful of dates around the UK plus a few cheeky festivals. It's worth noting that their current tour dates don't rule out an appearance at this year's Splendour In The Grass.
As for what the new shows will look like, the band are taking it to the next level. "Pretty 3D, textual. We're trying to make the stage into more of a world," Yannis told Beats 1.
They Feel Like They're At The Top Of Their Game
It's an ambitious task to unload two albums in one year but Yannis is confident in the band's abilities saying it was the perfect time to do it because of the way people consume music now and also where the band is at right now.
"We definitely feel like we're at our creative peak right now," he said.
It's Diverse
Foals records have always been cohesive worlds and while Yannis is confident that these projects are cohesive, he says it blends together all their different styles.
"There's heavy bangers, rock tracks, dance tracks, the more intimate moments," he told Beats 1.
"We've got to basically indulge every side of Foals."
Part 1 & Part 2 Are Different
Speaking of diversity, it seems we're going to get two distinct albums over the course of the year. Yannis describes the Exits-featuring Part 1 as, more keyboard-led and new wave-y," while album 2 is where you'll find, "the proper, going for the jugular, live bangers." He added that the latter part has, "more ferocity."
They Started Working On It In 2017
The band started working on the record around August 2017 after finishing up a heavy touring schedule with their last album. At the time, Yannis said that the band had to go through "violent change" in order to make the record what they wanted it to be. They did too. Walter Gervis left the band after 12 years and they relocated from Oxford to London to craft this album.
It's Political
Yannis admits that Foals albums in the past have been, "fixated lyrically on more internal struggles," but this time around they're looking outward. Their last album came just before the Brexit vote and this one comes in the midst of Brexit turmoil on top of other political and environmental concerns. It's influenced the tone of the record with Yannis saying, It's impossible to evade the information that's out there. The time isn't right to seal yourself off as a songwriter."
"For me what was galvanising this time round was allowing the outside world into the songs."
They Produced It Themselves
This is the first Foals album that has been produced by the band entirely. Simian Mobile Disco's James Ford produced What Went Down, Alan Moulder was on board for Holy Fire, Luke Smith was at the desk for Total Life Forever while TV On The Radio's Dave Sitek took on their debut Antidotes.
Yannis says the decision to go it alone gave the band an “undiluted image of what we wanted.”
Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost Part 1 is out 8th March with Part 2 to follow later in the year - pre-order Part 1 now.
