13/Foxygen/We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic
At numerous points throughout Foxygen’s third LP, it almost seems as though the boys in the band don’t want you to take much or any of what they are presenting too seriously. Fantastical lyricisms here, a put on vocal turn there, the entire four minutes and twenty-eight seconds of the title track and, of course, the album title itself (“We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic") are all a testament to this belief. It’s all enough to make you wonder just who Foxygen (think they) are, and if your spending time trying to digest or understand it all is even worth the effort. Fortunately, repeat listens are quite rewarding, and ultimately have you saying yes to that last quandary, as they reveal a retro leaning album that, underneath it all, is simply a rollicking batch of silly little love songs. It’s as if Jonathan Rado and Sam France purposefully throw distractions in the mix and let songs go off the beaten path in order to disguise this fact/act of going thru love’s/girl’s/companionship’s motions. Some of the last words sung on the album are “if you believe in love, everything you see is love”, and this is completely fitting. Those few words loom large on We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic, extending themselves to the music as well, where Foxygen show love for and believe in the love of a good bluesy, rock & roll, honky-tonk stomp/rip & tear. About this, they are so serious, and you/me/them/all the music attached is all the better thanks to this. Yes, the creeds have been provided and heard and repeated. I think I got it now. No tear downs, and no destruction. Just a few spoonfuls of that old fashioned lovin'. I can dig it.
KEY TRACKS: No Destruction/San Francisco/Oh Yeah
14/Daft Punk/Random Access Memories
15/Wavves/Afraid of Heights
16/John Legend/Love in the Future
17/Devendra Banhart/Mala
18/David Bowie/The Next Day
19/Disclosure/Settle
20/Nine Inch Nails/Hesitation Marks
21/Tegan & Sara/Heartthrob
22/Thee Oh Sees/Floating Coffin
23/Rhye/Woman
24/Lorde/Pure Heroine
25/Savages/Silence Yourself
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