—Tom Lewis talks to band of the moment Foals about being popular and being labelled
Having broken down on their way to Hull, I had the pleasure of doing an interview over the phone with Foals’ keyboard player Edwin Congreave. Right from the start it was obvious that the fame that comes with having a number three album in the charts hadn’t changed their way of life too much – Edwin himself
said that he felt that the only thing that had really changed was the fact that they now play bigger venues, and considering these guys have gone from playing house parties to Reading and Glastonbury this year alone is evidence.
Foals’ music has been classed by people, including Zane Lowe, as indie, so when asked of his opinion on this Edwin started off by saying that half of their label is indie music, but went on to joke that the label was also owned by Warner Brothers so can’t really be classed as indie. Musing on this, he then went on to make an interesting comment that indie is pretty much a “flat term” these days, having lost its original meaning and rounded off by suggesting that the band are different from most UK
indie bands.
With their new single Olympic Airways just released, the origin of the song became the next topic of conversation. The original lyrics and meaning of the song were completely different to the final version. The lyrics were about waiting in an airport and that the airport itself, Olympic Airways (hence the title), was one that lead vocalist Yannis went to and thought it was the worst airline in the world.
Having moved on from talking about the single the name of the band was brought up, and the origins of the band name. It was revealed that Yannis’ surname, Philippakis, contributed to the name, as translated Philippakis actually means ‘little lover of horses’ in Greek, and that the word itself is idealistic and had a “sense of charm to it”.
As the interview came to an end the band’s future became one final topic – with their rising fame the question of what was next; touring or recording, to which the reply was both. Foals are going to be
finishing off the UK tour, then are heading off to Mexico and Europe before getting six months off and then heading back into the studio to make the next record.
With the interview over and pleasantries exchanged, Edwin already seemed ready to get up and go on stage, even though he was on some remote motorway. And with six hours until show time, that’s dedication for you.
Tom Lewis
For a live review of Foals in Asylum, click here
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