Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes EP

Fleet Foxes self-titled 2006 EP

When Fleet Foxes decided to abandon their old sound and concentrate on making the style of music heard on Sun Giant and the critically acclaimed Fleet Foxes LP, they left behind a gem, and buried it deeply in the hard-to-find music section. I'm referring to the band's self-titled, self-released debut EP. Sold almost exclusively in the Seattle area at shows in 2006, this six-song release showcased the band's great potential, and also hinted at the direction the band would soon take. Posted on their MySpace page soon after signing to Sub Pop, the band revealed to its fans a map of where they were headed:

With the new music, we decided to put an emphasis on harmony, simple three- and four-part block harmony. The songs would be simple as well, songs about our friends and family, history, nature, and the things around us in the Pacific Northwest. Instead of complicated vocal melodies, we would try and use guitars and mandolins and banjos and other little guys to fill the melodic spaces in the music. We'd try and avoid conventional song structures, sometimes putting two songs together as one, or avoiding choruses and verses in favor of long vocal rounds and alternating instrumental sections.

This reinvented sound is most exemplified in "Blue Ridge Mountains", in which singer Robin Pecknold sings of his older brother Sean (who's responsible for their music video for "White Winter Hymnal") and alludes to escaping to the chilling back country where shivering dogs rest under the glowing moonlight. While I can't complain with the band's new bearing, I hope that fans, who haven't heard their older sound, are not under the belief that the Fleet Foxes EP is sub-par. On the contrary, this early glimpse at the band's emerging sound is excellent. Below are the key tracks, in my opinion. I always enjoy a little historical context while exploring bands' back catalogs...

Fleet Foxes: Fleet Foxes EP (2006)

1. "She Got Dressed"
   
2. "In the Hot, Hot Rays"
3. "Anyone Who's Anyone"
4. "Textbook Love"
5. "So Long to the Headstrong"
6. "Icicle Tusk"