I Just Read About That…

[ATTENDED: July 13, 2022] Foxing

I saw Foxing three years ago without knowing much about them.  Their live show blew me away.  So when it was announced that they were playing Philly again, I had a choice. Go tothe Bikini Kill show that I’ve had tickets to for years or go to the Kevin Devine show which I had gotten tickets for just in case it sold out, or blow off them both and go to Foxing.

Well, Bikini Kill was postponed (again) and Kevin Devine was a solo show (which is good, but I’ve seen him solo twice already), so I decided to go to Foxing without having a ticket.  Traffic was light, I got free parking (well, technically it cost 68 cents) and bought a ticket in cash with no handling fees!

The two opening acts were really good and I settled in for Foxing.  They had just announced a new live album that you could get online or you could get (autographed) at the shows.  I bought the LP before the show (only 20 were sold each night) and was stuck holding it the whole time (next time bring a bag).

The lights went down and a recorded song played while fireworks were projected on the screen behind the stage.  Then the band came out.  For some reason I thought there were more of them, but there were only five.  And they were loud enough that they could have been ten.

Foxing released a new album last year and this was the tour for it, so there were lots of “new” songs.  But the fans knew them all (I mean the record has been out almost a year).

Singer Conor Murphy is a dynamic frontman.  He moves around, he jumps, he screams, he engages with the audience.  It’s like every note he sings is personally connected to him.  He has a delicate falsetto (not unlike TV on the Radio) but he can scream, like really roar, with the best of them.

And the way the band jumps from quiet to HUGE is really impressive.

Last time I was in front of guitarist Eric Hudson who is also a bundle of energy.  I was on the other side this time, which was a bit of a shame as he does high kicks, he stomps around and at one point he let his guitar crowd surf (I assume unplugged?–I also assume it made its way back).  He also provides some great backing vocals–high pitched and raw screams.

I was near a guy who was really into it but kind of irritating–one of those big deep voiced “YEAH” kinda guys.  But he was nothing compared to the two girls who were next to me.  They talked through the whole show.  Even over songs they liked–“This song is slay!” After about 45 minutes I had to move, they were just too annoying.

But World Cafe is not very deep. so I wound up being more or less just behind them, but I couldn’t hear them anymore, so win-win.

Jon Hellwig was a beast on drums–especially in the final song “Speak with the Dead” which had some thunderous fills.  I don’t know who the new bassist and guitarist were but they were excellent.

For “Bloodhound” the band provided a pee break–for the rest of the band and for anyone else who doesn’t like slow acoustic songs.  Murphy played acoustic guitar and Hudson made cool sounds in the shadows.

Each song had a cool video behind it.  The lighting often made it hard to see the band, but that seemed to be the point.

Murphy continued to talk about how much he loved Philly and the energy that has always been there for the band.  So even though I found the crowd annoying, apparently the band loved it.

Hudson said that there hasn’t been a show where they did not play “Nearer My God.”  It sounded fantastic–soaring and uplifting as much as it is not.

They ended the night with the epic new song “Speak with the Dead” which has multiple parts and some real barn-burning sections.

Their set was fairly short (about 80 minutes–although last time their headlining set was only about 60), but it was perfect after two other bands.

Ω = Draw Down the Moon (2021)
† = Nearer My God (2018)
♠ = Dealer (2015)
@ = The Albatross (2013)