Few bands could get away with breaking their sprawling album vision into a two-part release, but Foals are one of them. Now established as one of the UK’s most potent indie-rock bands, the Oxford four-piece have free reign to trample their own path.
The follow-up to this year’s Mercury Prize-nominated Part 1 is a more considered response to its “fire and destructive imagery”, although it’s certainly not lacking in either. The bass-heavy space-rock of The Runner sounds more like a Muse song, while the ferocious buzz of Black Bull, with Yannis Philippakis’s punky yelp leading the charge, is undeniably galvanising. Elsewhere, Foals sound oddly indebted to classic rock of the 1970s, as heard on the playful groove of Like Lightning, while the ballsy thrust of 10,000 Feet growls into life like a Faith No More song.
Astride the big riffs and brisk beats, Into the Surf softens the barrage of sound with a pensive soundtrack and lyrical references to lighthouses, jasmine and tides.
It's closing track Neptune that best sums up both this album and its predecessor, though; if you're not amenable to 10 minutes of guitar solos, echoed vocals and mystical lyrics, this won't change your mind. Foals.co.uk
Download: Like Lightning, 10,000 Feet
