Friday 1 November 2019

'querida hija' by: FOXTAILS

Year: 2019
Label: Emocat Records (listen/buy here)

For fans ofDad Thighs, Kaddish, Lautrec, Eucalypt, Fall Of Troy, Nayru and Off Minor.

Review by David Norman:

I'd heard good things about FOXTAILS but had never taken the chance to check them out. That was quickly changed at New Friends Fest 2019 where I saw them play to a very full room. Their obtuse, jazzy, screamy, punk rock/hardcore is one that immediately draws zero direct band comparisons because FOXTAILS fucking sound like FOXTAILS. After five releases, this is pretty much the place most bands want to be, but usually break up earlier or jump genre ships a few times without holding a style unique to the band. FOXTAILS are from Connecticut and have achieved this in their early 20s, which makes their sixth release 'querida hija' all that much more impressive. Emocat Records will be releasing it on cassette and 12" vinyl by the end of the year.

'querida hija' is seven tracks spread over 25 minutes of music, boasting so many influences that it's nearly impossible to pick out anything obvious. Opener "zzz" is two minutes of dreamy vocals and a creepy, folky ambiance while the following track "the chickening" is a shrieky, jazzy post-hardcore tune with some nice crooning and nods to Slint as well as Scottish screamo elite Kaddish. The sting in "prime crier" from 57 seconds to 1:30 is straight-up Dave street thanks primarily to a flurry of screams that make another appearance near the end of the track. "it was the first time i remembered a saturday night i forgot about" takes a jump outside of punk, hardcore and screamo during the intro, opting for a cool lounge section with a sax before tearing shit up prior to the first minute elapsing. The song dips in and out of the two extremes by riding the very intoxicating waves of Jon's guitar, and I'd be amiss not to mention the drumming of Mike who blends the clusterfuck of genres into a very smooth paste that can be put on just about anything. Two of the best songs come near the end of the album as "lucky cat sticker pack" and "i experienced ego death on a skramcave thread" are both excellent, driving, screamy, mathy tracks with those patented FOXTAILS subdued sections, although the latter is easily the heaviest/best song in this reviewer's opinion. The other track on here is "querida" which feels like the sibling song to "zzz" but includes all of the band members sticking to their instruments, creating an ethereal, peaceful jam that lasts over five minutes.

The band goes on tour in November so be sure to catch them and pick up a copy of the new album.

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(2019) FOXTAILS "i experienced ego death on a skramcave thread" (from 'querida hija')

(2019) FOXTAILS "lucky cat sticker pack" (from 'querida hija')

(2019) FOXTAILS "the chickening" (from 'querida hija')

(2019) FOXTAILS Full Set live @New Friends Fest

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