Fleet Foxes

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This article is about the band. For the band's eponymous debut album, see Fleet Foxes (album).
Fleet Foxes
Fleet Foxes performing in Copenhagen, 2008.
Fleet Foxes performing in Copenhagen, 2008.
Background information
Origin Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Genre(s) Indie folk
Baroque pop
Label(s) Sub Pop (U.S.)
Bella Union (UK)
Associated acts Crystal Skulls
Pedro the Lion
Seldom
White Antelope
Website www.myspace.com/fleetfoxes
Members
Robin Pecknold
Skyler Skjelset
J. Tillman
Casey Wescott
Christian Wargo
Former members
Nick Peterson
Craig Curran
Trevor Alderfer
Bryn Lumsden

Fleet Foxes are a five-piece Seattle-based band signed to Sub Pop and Bella Union.[1] The band came to prominence in 2008 with the release of their second EP, Sun Giant, and their debut full length album Fleet Foxes. Both Sun Giant and their eponymous debut album received much critical praise and reviewers often noted their use of refined lyrics and vocal harmonies. The quintet describe their music as "baroque harmonic pop jams".[2]

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Formation and early years

Robin Pecknold and Skyler Skjelset both attended Lake Washington High School in Kirkland, a suburb of Seattle, and soon became close friends.[3][4] The confident character of Pecknold stood in contrast with Skjelset's shy demeanor but the two bonded over a mutual appreciation of Bob Dylan and Neil Young and began making music together.[5] Their parents influenced their musical tastes early on — Skjelset's mother was a keen listener of both Bob Dylan and Hank Williams while Pecknold's father was a member of The Fathoms, a local 1960s soul group.[3] The two young Seattleites were ambitious and Pecknold, reflecting on the achievements of Dylan and Brian Wilson, realized the importance of practicing music from a young age.[5]

Originally going by the name "Pineapple", a name clash with another local band prompted a change and Pecknold decided upon "Fleet Foxes", suggesting that it was "evocative of some weird English activity like fox hunting".[3] Pecknold took up the role of principal songwriter, both singing and playing guitar, while Skjelset played lead guitar.[4] Pecknold's late-sixties pop style caught the attention of Seattle producer Phil Ek and he helped them record their first demo in 2006, the self-released Fleet Foxes EP.[6] Ek was impressed with the band's songwriting and, upon hearing Pecknold for the first time, was interested in his Zombies-esque music, noting that "it was obvious that he had talent coming out of his ass".[5] By late 2006 the Seattle press began to take notice of the band; Tom Scanlon of the Seattle Times stated that he was impressed with the band's lyrics and musical maturity.[6]

With growing popularity on the local circuit and a wealth of song material, the band set about making their first album in early 2007, spending time in the studio with producer Ek in addition to recording material at home. However, funds for recording were tight, limiting the time they had in the studio, and the majority of the tracks were recorded in various band members' apartments or the basement of Pecknold's parents' house.[5]

[edit] Rise to prominence

Robin Pecknold playing live at SXSW on March 13, 2008

Fleet Foxes were becoming increasingly popular and by late 2007 they had attracted over a quarter of a million song plays over two months on their Myspace site.[7] Although the band had not released any of their recordings, they benefited from word of mouth exposure and their success soon translated into a record deal, signing with Warner Music subsidiary record label Sub Pop on January 18, 2008.[7] The band completed the recording of their second EP, Sun Giant, around the same time in preparation for upcoming tours.[8] Fleet Foxes began their spring tour with fellow Northwest band Blitzen Trapper on February 28, 2008.[9] The band's performance at the SXSW festival in March 2008 moved the band into the public consciousness, notably attracting attention from the European press for the first time.[3]

Sun Giant was released internationally on April 8, 2008 and the group's brand of folk, rock and pop, marked by their use of vocal harmonies, was well received by the press.[10] Despite the warm critical reception, the group stated that the EP did not represent their full ambitions, serving merely as a CD to sell while on tour.[11] In May 2008 the band chose to extend their North American and European tour until September in support of their forthcoming album. Additionally, the band grew in number as songwriter J. Tillman joined Fleet Foxes on drums and back-up vocals.[12] Their debut full length album Fleet Foxes was released shortly afterwards on June 3, 2008.[13] The album achieved similar critical success as the previous EP had. Fleet Foxes received four stars from Rolling Stone, who compared it to the likes of the Beach Boys, Animal Collective, and Crosby, Stills & Nash,[14] and a 9.0 out of 10 in a review by Pitchfork.[15] The Guardian was particularly complimentary, awarding the album five stars and declaring it "a landmark in American music, an instant classic." [16] On June 24, 2008, Fleet Foxes went to #1 on the CMJ Radio 200 Chart.[17] The album achieved an average rating of 87% from 30 reviews on aggregator website Metacritic, placing it in the category of "universal acclaim".[18]

While the group enjoyed moderate success in the United States, Fleet Foxes was better received in Europe, selling over 200,000 copies in the first five months following its release.[19] The sales were matched with critical plaudits and their debut album won Uncut's first ever Music Award 2008 prize.[20] Uncut editor Allan Jones said that the album "showed impeccable musicianship, and though you could trace its antecedents, it sounded totally unique. Fleet Foxes was just a glorious debut." The band sold out music venues for their tours of Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, reaffirming their growing popularity.[19][21]

At the end of 2008, Fleet Foxes was rated album of the year by Billboard's Critic's Choice and in Metacritic's end of year best album round-up it appeared in 17 lists, topping six of them.[22][23] Furthermore, it had sold around 141,000 copies in North America and over 100,000 copies in the United Kingdom, making it the first gold certificate record for UK label Bella Union.[24] Their growing profile enabled the band to make televised appearances, playing on Vincent Moon's "La Blogotheque" in December 2008 and on Saturday Night Live the following January.[25] In February 2009, the band were reported to have turned down a contract offer from Virgin Records, claiming that major record labels were "anti-music".[26]

[edit] Members

  • Robin Pecknold - lead vocals, guitar
  • Skyler Skjelset - lead guitar
  • Christian Wargo - bass, guitar, vocals
  • Casey Wescott - keyboards, vocals
  • Josh Tillman - drums, vocals

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

Year Album Peak Chart Positions
UK US GER ITA SWE NOR BEL
2008 Fleet Foxes
  • Released: 3 June 2008 in the US
  • Released: 9 June 2008 in the UK
  • Labels: Bella Union, Sub Pop
  • Format: CD, Vinyl
 3 36 51 51 16 14 12

[edit] Extended Plays

Year EP details[27] Peak chart positions
US
 FIN
 GER
 JPN
 NLD
 SWE
 UK
[28]
2006 Fleet Foxes — — — — — — —
2008 Sun Giant 176 — — — — — —
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

[edit] Singles

Year Single Chart positions Album
UK BEL
2008 "White Winter Hymnal" 77 - Fleet Foxes
2008 "He Doesn't Know Why" - -
2009 "Mykonos" 53 37 Sun Giant [EP]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Maher, Dave (2008-02-14). "Fleet Foxes Sign to Sub Pop, Prep EP and Album, Tour". Pitchfork Media. http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/48234-fleet-foxes-sign-to-sub-pop-prep-ep-and-album-tour. Retrieved on 2008-11-27. 
  2. ^ Price, Simon (2008-11-02). "Fleet Foxes, Waterfront, Norwich". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/neon-neon-digital-brighton-br-fleet-foxes-waterfront-norwich-983576.html. Retrieved on 2008-11-27. 
  3. ^ a b c d James, McNair (2008-06-13). "On the hunt for meaning with Seattle band Fleet Foxes". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/on-the-hunt-for-meaning-with-seattle-band-fleet-foxes-846150.html. Retrieved on 2008-12-01. 
  4. ^ a b O'Leary, Shannon. "Seattle's Most Influential People". Seattle Magazine. http://www.seattlemag.com/pages/index.cfm?PAGE_ID=120&ARTICLE_ID=44&currentPage=2. Retrieved on 2008-12-02. 
  5. ^ a b c d Scaggs, Austin (2008-11-13). "Fleet Foxes' Perfect Harmony". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/24012632/fleet_foxes_perfect_harmony. Retrieved on 2008-12-01. 
  6. ^ a b Scanlon, Tom (2006-09-22). "Fleet Foxes sing it their way". Seattle Times. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/musicnightlife/2003269559_nite22.html. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  7. ^ a b Lester, Paul (2008-02-11). "No 272: Fleet Foxes". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/feb/11/popandrock1. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  8. ^ Pecknold, Aja (2008-01-18). "It's Official: Fleet Foxes Sign with Sub Pop". Seattle Weekly. http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2008/01/its_official_fleet_foxes_sign.php. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  9. ^ Seling, Megan. "Billboard.com on Fleet Foxes". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003699204. Retrieved on 2008-03-02. 
  10. ^ Phares, Heather. "Sun Giant EP Review". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:hxftxz9jldae. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  11. ^ Gill, Andy (2008-04-25). "Album: Fleet Foxes, Sun Giant (Bella Union)". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-fleet-foxes-sun-giant-bella-union-815026.html. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  12. ^ Mason-Campbell, Nilina (2008-05-02). "Fleet Foxes Add New Member, More Tour Dates". Pitchfork Media. http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/50373-fleet-foxes-add-new-member-more-tour-dates. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  13. ^ Phares, Heather. "Fleet Foxes Review". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:dnfqxzejld0e. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  14. ^ Hermes, Will (2008-06-12). "Fleet Foxes". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/20949207/review/20961620/fleet_foxes. Retrieved on 2008-11-27. 
  15. ^ Deusner, Stephen M.. "Fleet Foxes LP Review". Pitchfork Media. http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/51076-fleet-foxes. Retrieved on 2008-06-06. 
  16. ^ Simpson, Dave (2008-05-30). "Fleet Foxes, Fleet Foxes". The Guardian. http://music.guardian.co.uk/folk/reviews/story/0,,2282853,00.html. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  17. ^ Shaer, Matthew (2008-07-11). "Let the light in: With their self-titled debut, Fleet Foxes are putting a new shine on folk music". The Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/ae/music/articles/2008/07/11/let_the_light_in/. Retrieved on 2008-11-27. 
  18. ^ "Fleet Foxes by Fleet Foxes". Metacritic. 2008-12-03. http://www.metacritic.com/music/artists/fleetfoxes/fleetfoxes?q=fleet%20foxes. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  19. ^ a b Swash, Rosie (2008-11-17). "Fleet Foxes' coup signals folk revival". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/nov/17/folk-revival-fleet-foxes. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  20. ^ "Uncut Music Award winner revealed". Uncut. http://www.uncut.co.uk/news/uncut/news/12440/. Retrieved on 2008-12-03. 
  21. ^ Sauma, Luiza (2008-12-07). Fleet Foxes: Are a hairy bunch of young folk-rockers inventing a new sound of Seattle?. The Independent. Retrieved on 2009-01-29.
  22. ^ The 10 Best Albums of the Year (Critics' Choice). [[Billboard (magazine)|]] (2008). Retrieved on 2009-01-29.
  23. ^ "Metacritic: Best Albums of 2008". Metacritic. 2008-12-31. http://www.metacritic.com/music/bests/2008.shtml. Retrieved on 2008-12-31. 
  24. ^ Paine, Andre (2008-12-23). Fleet Foxes Go Gold In United Kingdom. [[Billboard (magazine)|]]. Retrieved on 2009-01-29.
  25. ^ "La Blogotheque Show Ep.1". Current TV. 2008-12-10. http://current.com/items/89607413/la_blogotheque_show_ep_1.htm. Retrieved on 2008-12-23. 
  26. ^ "Fleet Foxes say no to Virgin". idiomag. 2009-02-02. http://www.idiomag.com/peek/62526/fleet_foxes. Retrieved on 2009-02-13. 
  27. ^ "Fleet Foxes > Discography > Singles & EPs". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&searchlink=FLEET. Retrieved on 2009-02-21. 
  28. ^ "UK Top 40 Chart Archive, British Singles & Album Charts". everyhit.com. http://www.everyhit.com/.  Last accessed July 8, 2007.

[edit] Further reading

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Fleet Foxes
Robin Pecknold · Skye Skjelset · J. Tillman · Casey Wescott · Christian Wargo
Nick Peterson · Craig Curran · Trevor Alderfer · Bryn Lumsden
Studio albums
EPs
Singles
"White Winter Hymnal" · "He Doesn't Know Why" · "Mykonos"
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fleet_Foxes"
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