Album of the Week: The Albatross by Foxing

Album: The Albatross

Artist: Foxing 

Release Date: 11/12/2013

Length: 32:01

Genre: Emo

Rating: 10/10

Favorite Song: Inuit, Pent up in a Blind, The Medic, Rory, Bit by a Dead Bee, Pt. II (honestly the whole album. It's very hard to pick a favorite. It's THAT good)

The Albatross has a lot of general reverence toward it in the emo community but honestly, I don't know much about it. All I truly know about Foxing is that I saw them as an opener for the Manchester Orchestra/Tigers Jaw coheadliner in 2017. I remember enjoying their set a lot and that they had a trumpet player that the crowd went absolutely feral for whenever he played. I was interested to see why everyone loves this album so much, but from the first note I get it. The Albatross is ambient emo at its finest and the vocals have that slight screamy quality that just hits the spot for every emo kid. It's truly a beautiful album.

At it's core The Albatross is about love and heartbreak. It's about wondering why who you are is never enough to make someone love you. In listening to this album, I came across a note on Genius Lyrics that said the title of this album is a reference to a 1944 film called To Have and Have Not. This movie is also based on a Hemingway novel of the same name. The movie/novel follows a character named Harry Morgan. Morgan is a fishing-boat captain who rents out his boat to tourists shortly after the Fall of France. Morgan refuses to lend his equipment to the smuggling of French Resistance members in an out of the island of Martinique. Eventually he agrees to transport two members, one of which is a woman named Slim. Romance follows and it leads to Morgan promising to assist the Resistance's cause. I have not seen the movie nor read the book, but some of the album's lyrics invoke imagery of the sea and sailing and I have a strong suspicion that several songs are about Morgan and Slim's journey. Guess I have a new book to read.

Google states this album falls into the general emo genre, but I argue it could be in a more specific genre called ambient emo. Now, what do I mean by "ambient emo"? I mean that the music doesn't rely on heavy overdrive or traditional "emo" sound. It almost sounds twinkly and light. Like if there wasn't lyrics it would be more similar to an Explosions In The Sky album (For those who aren't familiar Explosions In The Sky is the GOAT of instrumental emo music. Go check them out!). The music builds its own soundscape that stands on its own without the vocals. It's raw and powerful on its own. That's something I don't often get to say about the instrumentation of emo music. Don't get me wrong though, the vocals are fantastic. It's emo at its finest. Foxing knows exactly when to unleash that primal emo screaming. I'm obsessed.

After listening to the album versus seeing them live in 2017, I feel like I can confidently say that ambient emo is meant to be listened to very loud and live. The sound just fills the room an envelops you in it. In the case of The Albatross it envelops you into the story being told in the album. It holds you and doesn't let you go until the story is finished. It feels rare these days to find a cohesive album that grips you in the way The Albatross does. There's something larger happening here than just playing songs. Each song builds on top of the last to create an almost structured story about the trauma of feeling like no matter what you do, you'll never be enough for someone. And even if someone chooses you, they still might walk away. It's sad, but hey this is emo we're talking about

If you can't listen live, very loud with headphones in is definitely the way to do it. I don't know how to say it other than this is an album you have to be "close to" either in a room with it live or playing right in your ears. Listening on car or stereo speakers just doesn't do it justice. It makes it feels like something is missing. Just something special about having someone scream their heart out right into your ears.

I'm glad I finally got around to listening to this album. In the years to come, the reverence for this album will only continue to grow as it solidifies its reputation as one of the best emo albums ever written.