Artist:
FLEET FOXES
Label:
SUB POP RECORDS
Video:
“HE DOESN’T KNOW WHY”
Director:
Sean Pecknold
Add Date:
November, 2008

Howdy indie rock lovers! It’s Andy Gesner and the staff from HIP Video Promo, here with the latest clip from one of the true revelations of 2008. Robin Pecknold of Fleet Foxes has a sensational melodic gift: his songs feel timeless, inevitable, gorgeous, irresistible. He draws upon contemporary alt-country, Sixties pop, and traditional Anglo folk music; his compositions are enlivened by unexpected twists; his tunes are acrobatic, dazzling, and unforgettable. While some of the songs are nearly symphonic in their sophistication, others sound as though they could be holiday carols, campfire favorites, or children’s rounds. Pecknold’s band plays with rare sensitivity – all the members sing, and they harmonize like angels. Fleet Foxes make brand-new music that seems to come from deep within the American songbook, and their strange and beautiful debut album has become a genuine international indie hit.

This summer, Fleet Foxes reached the top of the CMJ chart, and they haven’t been far from the upper reaches since. The album review has been one of the most-read pages on the Pitchfork site since the spring – testament to the continuous curiosity about the band’s music and the strength of their word-of-mouth marketing. But their success hasn’t been confined to the underground: Fleet Foxes hit the mainstream pop album charts in five different countries, narrowly missing the UK Top Ten. Entertainment Weekly gave the album an A rating; The Guardian called the set an instant classic. The ‘net alternative press has been ecstatic too; in a 9.0-rated review, Pitchfork’s Stephen Deusner praised Pecknold’s “personal synthesis of the music of their peers, their parents, and even their grandparents.”

Richly produced by Seattle pop veteran Phil Ek (Modest Mouse, The Shins, Built To Spill), Fleet Foxes bathes Robin Pecknold’s compositions in piano, organ, strings, delicate percussion, and acoustic six-strings. But as imaginative as the arrangements are, each one proves to be a perfect setting for the song. “He Doesn’t Know Why”, the second single, is a standout cut on an album of standouts – a Beach Boys-by-way-of Appalachia piece with a melody so pure and haunting that it’s instantly indelible. Ek and the Fleet Foxes surround Pecknold’s performance with towering vocal harmonies – and just as the song seems to be soaring to an end, it closes with a radiant coda.

The video for the song is lovely, too. Directed once again by Pecknold’s brother Sean (the same animator who brought the “White Winter Hymnal” clip to glorious clay-mated life), “He Doesn’t Know Why” finds Fleet Foxes in a dimly-lit and sepia-toned room filled by a herd of goats. But this is no indiepop barnyard: the animals impart a strange and undeniable dignity to the clip. They appear to listen as attentively as any audience would; in fact, they seem hypnotized by the beauty of the song. Sean Pecknold superimposes the singing faces of the musicians over the rest of the footage – the band is near-transparent, raising their voices as one. Robin Pecknold sits in the center of the stage, never looking directly at the camera, but holding our attention (and the attention of his animal friends) throughout.

As always, we’re excited to be working with the good folks at Sub Pop to bring you this new clip from Fleet Foxes. We’ve still got some copies of Fleet Foxes for on-air giveaways, so drop us a line to get your hands on these hot commodities! If you need more info, call Andy Gesner at 732-613-1779 or e-mail us at info@HIPVideoPromo.com. You can also visit www.SubPop.comor www.FleetFoxes.com to find out more about Fleet Foxes. .

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For info about Fleet Foxes’ “White Winter Hymnal” video, click HERE