Foals at SP20

Seeing Foals rock on stage was kind of like watching five drunken sixteen year-olds wrestling in a very, very small dirt parking lot surrounded by fences made completely of barbed wire. I kept getting the strange feeling someone was going to get hurt.

They were tight as hell, and the sound was great; which was pretty amazing considering the frenetic energy and almost spastic way they attacked their instruments. Front man Yannis Philippakis was especially nerve wracking, yet amazingly also very funny in his limited banter with the crowd. They rolled through their hits, reluctantly pounding out an amazing version of “Cassius” when the crowd demanded it.

They really shined when they deviated from the album, which they did on all but a few songs. I think my favorite was their mesmerizing version of “Two Steps, Twice” which kept building and building and building… Their talent as musicians was clear and their energy so high you couldn’t help but feel it. The crowd, while probably not their regulars, was suitably impressed and kept dancing through the whole set, which I felt was way to short.

The Bottom Line

They rocked. Hard. And I’d love to see them again. I’m not sure they’re like that all the time, but I’ve heard good things about other shows. In any case, they’re highly recommended and if they’re even half as entertaining as this show, they’ll have you smiling…nervously.