February 3, 2014
Written by Cady Colosimo on BandBombshell.com

“Shoegazing”—a new single from Des Moines band Foxholes—echoes through your mind like every good song at the end of a John Hughes movie. It has that same sadness and hopefulness those songs encompass. Lead singer Trevor Holt describes the song as an “introspective” and says it’s about “trying to reconcile with mistakes you’ve made and regrets you have in order to move forward with your life.” Which, ironically, is the basic gist of every Hughes movie.

Video by Katie Andrew // Vaudeville Mews 8.30.2013

The fuzzy guitar intro screams 1960’s punk and the rest of the music is totally 1980’s alternative. The two come together to make one beautiful, dark (albeit not so twisted) fantasy.

 

 

The merging of the genres is no accident; Holt cites The Velvet Underground and The Pixies as some of his several influences. Fun fact: Foxholes bass player is a girl named Jessica Villegas and the Pixies bass players are also always girls. Coincidence? I think not. Which makes Holt the better-looking Black Francis genius of it all with his insightful lyrics.

The song opens with the powerful line “we’re the king of second chances” and it makes me smile. It’s honest and vulnerable. Holt later explains “where you are you don’t know/where you been you want to go.” It’s this kind of simple observation that makes Holt a great songwriter. His ability to easily and effortlessly capture what he means, without all the hidden meanings and obscure cover-ups are extremely refreshing. The straightforward, sincere way he puts himself out there is my favorite thing about the band. It’s just icing on the cake.

The band’s current line-up of Holt, Villegas, guitar player Kyle Folvag and drummer Ben Barndollar have been together for over a year and have taken that time to create a very specific sound. Which is pretty amazing considering Holt had no prior experience in a band and most of the members were recruited through Craigslist. While they have very clear influences and great direction, their sound is currently in that amazing, almost awkward, phase where they know who they are, but are still taking risks, like an angst-y teenager, but in the best way. It will be fun to see what this band does next.

Catch Foxholes at the Gas Lamp on March 1st for the debut of their new album, "Can't Help Myself."

http://bandbombshell.com/music-reviews/2014/1/31/song-review-shoegazing-by-foxholes