With October at an end, Foreignfox have launched their latest single “Fractions” today, laying out a melancholy yet immersive sound, just in time for Halloween.
The track is instantly recognisable with a steady synth and drum heavy introduction that really carves out the Foreignfox sound that makes them both anthemically upbeat and atmospheric.
A great fit for the month of October where gloomy Halloween aesthetics reign supreme, but this track is more than a dark rock anthem. The vocals of Jonny Watt make great success of switching between aggressive low vocals to floaty and melodic with high energy.
The start of the song paces itself, punctuating each line of lyric with powerful drumming to tee itself up for the build-up to come.
The brilliance in the track though is how it entwines itself with the lyrical content and the musical structure to reflect itself. The track being called “Fractions” reflects this firstly through the lyrics.
“I destroy the things I make and make a new one every day,
Watch it burn away, like the bridge I’m standing on.”
Expressing the inner pessimism of a person who feels broken, the lyrics fantastically capture the feeling of being fractured. Destroying the things that we make to daily try and replace it is a feeling that will hit home for those who empathise self-sabotaging themselves whilst trying to improve.
The lyrics use vibrant imagery to capture this by describing watching it burn away like a bridge they stand on. Literally conjuring images of fractured structures crumbling before you as the path you walk on becomes less clear. Lyrically this song reaches a high bar artistically and is very poetic.
What makes this extra interesting and impressive is how the music doesn’t work around this but instead mirrors the lyrical content. Going beyond layering, Foreignfox have a lot going on, musically.
From the get-go, the drumming and the synth set the pace as the guitars and bass steadily come in with their own layers to build what is an immensely immersive sound built up by distinct, dare I say it, fractions.
This is an impressive release from the Fife alternative rockers and showcases their energy, their tenacity and most strikingly their ability as songwriters to make something both touching and inspiring.
“Fractions” is available to stream and download now! Check it out on Spotify, Amazon, iTunes and Deezer!
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