ARTIST:
FOSTER THE PEOPLE


ALBUM:
TORCHES


KEY TRACKS:
HELENA BEAT
PUMPED UP KICKS
CALL IT WHAT YOU WANT
LIFE ON THE NICKEL


"sometimes life it takes you by the hair, pulls you down before you know it it's gone and you're dead again"


Aggressive lyrics with energetic, bubbly beats:  this is the album that America needs.  It's been a rough few years over here and we've  been needing a happy "pick me up" for a about 3 years now.  Now unless you've been living under a rock for the past year you've undoubtedly heard of this catchy LA band that's been cranking out pop hits like a factory mill.  This album is laden full of hooks that really --I mean really--  work their way into your head and stay there for awhile.

I think the picture to the right best sums it up:  much like eating candy you're pretty psyched about it while you're eating it....until you eat that much and your sugar rush is gone.  Then you're left in a polarized state that makes you think:  "Jesus, why did I eat all that?"  This is exactly what happened to me with this album. When I first listened to this album I kept it on heavy rotation and couldn't get enough.  But after a few plays you get a little worn out of all the sounds.  However, much like candy, I really like these guys!  And this is an album I keep going back to.  


Mark Foster and his band have a true gift for writing hooks.  Every song on this album could be a single and be successful. Undoubtedly my hands down favorite is the album's opener:  Helena Beat.  At first listen I thought Foster the People had a woman in their lineup...when really it was Mark Foster's lovely falsetto crooning over the bombastic sounds.  The energy in this track is infectious and is an excellent starting point for the album to lead into the album's massive hit:  Pumped Up Kicks.  


Pumped Up Kicks  is kind of like Helena Beat's older (maybe even cooler) older sister.  I love the opening of this song.  It sounds like a wind storm of pulsing beats, synths, and one kick-ass bass line.  Interestingly enough is how popular this track became, especially with younger generations, considering the subject matter.    "Robert's got a quick hand...he found a six shooter gun...but he's coming for you."  And the chorus of:  "you better run, better run, out run my gun".  Who would have thought a song about gun violence would be so popular to both conservatives and liberals alike!?


Call it What You Want has one of the most satisfying chorus lines on the album along with piston like beats.  Foster belts it out and if you're not singing along by the third "Eh" then this album isn't for you.   I also really like the sleeper track:  Life on the Nickel.  This track has so much going on in the background that it makes you really listen to the subtleties and details that FTP have put in this album.  Hands down the cicada-like noise at 1:55 on the album version still gives met chills.  Ironically I was listening to this album during one of Tennessee's infamous cicada summers so this track does bring back some memories....


I also had the pleasure of seeing FTP live last summer.  It was the absolute perfect time and place to see this band:  outside in the heat with an ice cold beer in my hand.  This band's music, really does convey that feeling of summer where even if you've got things to do in the morning you're still going to have a good time that night.  And even more like summer --and a sugar rush-- you love it so much because it won't last forever.  Summer is almost here in Nashville, and I'm looking forward to playing a lot more Foster the People then.  

LISTEN:  HELENA BEAT  |  PUMPED UP KICKS  |  CALL IT WHAT YOU WANT  |  LIFE ON THE NICKEL 

NEXT WEEK: BEAR IN HEAVEN  |  BEAST REST FOURTH MOUTH