A short talk with Jon and Megan from Foxtails on the New England emo scene, Alexandre Kojève, and their most recent album, Fawn.
Diogo: First of all, I have the impression that there exists a strong Emo scene happening right now in New England (Foxtails, TWIABP, The Hotelier), and that it has been gaining some notoriety within Alternative media sources, although its routes come from way back (Jerome's Dream). Can you confirm this?
Jon: In Connecticut, there are a lot of emo acts at the moment and it has been this way since when The World Is started getting popular last decade. In some cases, this can lead to a variety of inventive and interesting bands, but like any musical movement, there are also acts that are just doing it to trend-hop. I would say the more interesting bands that can fall under the umbrella term of emo are often inspired by the state itself. Connecticut is depressing in any way you look at it, but with that, there come artists with drive.
Diogo: What is this visceral element in Post-Hardcore/Emo music capable of crossing generations and sociocultural contexts? The causes of anger and dissatisfaction obviously change, but there exists a comfort zone in these genres of music that lies between chaos and control. I don't mean to clearly label Post-Hardcore/Emo: what I'm saying is that we're able to find some patterns in the sonority/lyrics, especially if we grew up to this kind of music.
Jon: I very much believe that foxtails is a product of our times. This was the plan with Fawn, and I believe it has come through. We have been referred to as apocalyptic in nature by a few, and that was the goal. So it’s nice to be viewed in the way we tried to be in terms of conception.
Megan: I think the most powerful thing that arises from these genres of music is a lack of genre and thematic constraint– after all, you are looking at subject matter that tends to be minimized and/or taboo in some way or another. It creates a form of solidarity in fans of this kind of sound, as there are really no holds barred in terms of sonic extremities or lyrical anguish. In this sort of outside-the-box philosophy held towards post-hardcore/emo/screamo music, there is much more room for experimentation, and authenticity sometimes not found in more popular or mainstream music. It definitely requires intentional and careful listening that certain groups of people will gravitate towards, explaining the unconventional nature of the sound, and its ability to reach a wider and more diverse, albeit smaller audience.
Diogo: Megan, the way you use your voice - its wide range and all the deep emotion it carries - was one of the elements that surprised me most positively on Fawn. It sounds really refreshing and, in my opinion, this comes from the authenticity conveyed.
Megan: Thank you! I’m very grateful to have received that sentiment from many people, and it is something I pride myself on. Over the years I’ve grown into not only my voice, but into my personhood, which allowed me to express an even wider range of vocal styles and sounds.
Diogo: After reading the description of Fawn in Bandcamp, I kept thinking of the similarities to Alexandre Kojève's take on the Master-Slave dialectics of Hegel: We have historically surrendered ourselves to a mentality of slavery that allows us to imagine a form of freedom, albeit artificial, and guarantees us safety.
Megan: This is a super interesting concept that required some further reading on my part, but it absolutely resonates within me. There is an innate and omnipresent desire in human beings to be recognized, but also to have a sense of security and safety in the unsure world we live in. For most people, the latter tends to supersede the former. Speaking personally, I have never really lived with a sense of security or safety, as those rightful comforts that belong to any human being were stripped away from me from an early age. As painful and daunting as this has been for me as I move from youth to adulthood, I believe there is also this sense of not having anything to lose.
When I was younger, I believed that ignorance was bliss, and that those who were able to live their lives in this blind spot were happier people– I recognize now that this is far from the reality of the human condition. In giving ourselves the power of vision and insight, we are faced with our own demons and personal constraints that keep us in the positions we’ve been placed in. While this is almost a herculean task requiring the utmost patience, and possibly having it be a lifelong journey, overall it is a path to true freedom. A freedom that is not only psychological, but spiritual, and in being able to unlock that, I believe it will also create an unmoving and impermeable sense of self, security, and safety, in its truest form, as well as the recognition that we so often desire to come from others, but coming from within the self instead, making it close to indestructible and inalienable.
Diogo: What can you tell us about the narrative in Fawn? Sonority-wise, how does it stand against previous material?
Megan: Fawn is the most sonically cohesive release we’ve put out to date, as we’ve come to a deeper understanding of ourselves as human beings as well as ourselves as artists. The narrative present in Fawn definitely stems from a strong realization of our current places in the world. For me, the lyrical content came from a period of soul-searching that came about during the quarantine of 2020. I was/am really starting to face the demons that lie dormant within me, influencing my subconscious and unconscious thoughts and behaviors. This record sort of explores those depths of loneliness, confusion, conflict, and triggers– while still processing them to the fullest extent possible for the stage of life I was in at the time.
Our previous releases had this intent still present, although it was much more scattered, providing more scarce moments of lucidity as I was still drowning in the despair of my life experience at the time. I give much credit to those previous releases however, as they allowed us to sort of “level-up” with each record, each recording being an extremely important marker of time for each of us artistically. From this point forward, I believe fawn has given us a great anchor as to where we feel most true to ourselves, and from here can experiment even further as we now know where our baselines lie.
Diogo: Curiously, the Chamber music arrangement, strengthened by the punch of the progression, reminds of certain forms of Atmospheric Metal.
Megan: I love hearing the differing takes and opinions on our current sound, because I can see how each person hears what they hear. It’s a wonderful thing to have been able to successfully implement a wide variety of sound and have such sonic versatility to relate to such different walks of life and music tastes.
Diogo: Foxtails, what can you tell us about what you have planned for the near future?
Megan: We plan to continue! Our work is our passion– it is our way of communicating with the world at large as well as processing our own personal struggles and triumphs. We never run out of ideas, and knowing that we have such strong support behind us only inspires us further.
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