User blog:Jaxswim/Best of 2014: Album No. 5

 #5: Glorious - Foxes  



 Release Date: May 12  

''' Peak Position (UK Albums): #5

General Review Foxes' debut album came this year and packed a serious punch. Her earlier release, the Warrior EP, showed individuality and indie production, but her first full-length traded the minimal productions for soaring pop landscapes and melodies befitting the biggest music superstars. However, there is something that sets Foxes apart from her peers. Pop is no obscure genre and it can be hard to stand out from the crowd, but with seemingly nothing different musically, Foxes manages in her LP to do just that. It's hard to put a finger on what it is -- perhaps her emotive vocals making you feel exactly how she's feeling, perhaps the drama in her flowing lyrics, perhaps her adorable image completing the whole thing. Whatever it is, Foxes' charm makes Glorious an unforgettable 2014 album.

Track-by-track Talking to Ghosts is a grower of an album opener, though it impresses on first listen with the booming synths between emotional verses from Foxes. Sampling Dr. Mabuse by Propaganda, the track sets the tone for the album with its complete instrumentation and drama. Youth, the lead single, garnered a lot of deserved attention on her for good reason. The song is a desperate plea to hold on to youth and is absolutely uplifting and heartbreaking at the same time with lines like "Now I'm just chasing time/With a thousand dreams/I'm holding heavy". Holding onto Heaven is a midtempo ballad that appears to be a lover asking another to become who they once were -- only once you realize that Foxes is talking to herself does the song get truly interesting. The video helps build upon this concept, showing two realities of the same scene with skillful camera tricks. White Coats is one of the tracks off the Warrior EP and is one of the best examples of why Foxes is not a run-of-the-mill pop singer with the catchy clapping beat and a chorus that can only be compared to the ocean's tide in the way it sucks you in. Let Go for Tonight, the most successful single from the album, is an uptempo, desperate track appealing to someone important to leave their worries behind, "turn off the lights", and simply let go. Night Glo shows off a softer side of Foxes in a glittering ballad that tugs at heartstrings as she tells a beautiful story with implied details: "Breathe you in/Hold you down/You don't have to tread the line". Night Owls Early Birds is probably the least conventional pop song on the album, with a slower but pounding bass drum beat and a piano riff playing through the whole song. Glorious, the title track and 4th single, is my personal favorite on the album. The flawless production might remind one of glass shattering, an event that will leave you with sharp shards on your floor but in the most pristine, clean way possible. The chorus makes you not want to give up from the problems you quite possibly don't have with her begging: "Don't give it up/It's glorious". Echo is perhaps the most forgettable on the album but by no means is is bad as you listen to it. Shaking Heads is maybe the most touching, personal song on the album as another anthem to youth, though in a significantly different way than track 2. It is a celebration of every stupid thing kids do just because they're kids: "We're young and foolish/Into the night/We just gotta get through this/Loneliest heights". Finally, the album closer Count the Saints strips everything back to its bare bones with a simple piano ballad that doesn't quite hit on first listen but became a personal favorite after months of sitting with the album.

Best Track: Glorious Worst Track: Echo Why You Should Buy This Album: Despite Foxes' lack of US success, this album is a hidden gem of 2014. Every song is memorable in its own right and the highlights of the album will leave you feeling like you're walking on air.