Review | foot foot – still waters, empty house

By George Ward

On their debut album, Bristol experimental act foot foot provide an ambitious and refreshing blend of folk, noise and post-rock.

Having made a name for themselves in the Bristol experimental scene, foot foot recorded ‘still waters, empty house’ over 7 days in the basement of The Louisiana, with production from Jack Ogbourne (Bingo Fury).

On opening track ‘Haberdashery,’ we’re invited into foot foot’s strange little house, and are immediately met with an unpredictable beast. Stabs of noise break up the ever-building and uncomfortable tension while angry guitar thrashes and haunting violin meld into an unsettling combination.

On ‘Army Wives,’ we see a folkier direction, and understand just how varied foot foot really are, as comfortable with a gentle touch as they are with their aggressive experimentation. As the fragile vocals meander through the track, the tension is built and released, before a wall of noise engulfs us, accompanied by soaring violin. The complete chaos in the finale is incredibly satisfying.

Equally unpredictable is ‘Rivers Phoenix/Macaulay Culkin,’ where we see the band dive from balanced sections into carnage, complete with unrelenting, menacing riffs. The drums keep you on your toes as noise stabs you uncomfortably, while the brass is completely uncontrollable, and jarring in the best way possible.

On the patient ‘Everyman,’ the instrumental is gorgeous, with the vocals layered and softly blanketed on top. “Maybe it’s too soon to tell, but I’ll love any man who’ll love me as well,” Esther Pollock sings with heartbreaking honesty.

Closer ‘Slow Song’ sits at a hefty 9 minutes, opening with a wailing theremin-type sound, as guitars nervously begin to join the fold, strumming and scraping hesitantly. The build up is slow, yes, but incredibly satisfying; as instruments begin to layer upon each other, we can feel ourselves get swallowed slowly by foot foot’s world, as the sound gradually moves from folk to post-rock.

When we reach the peak, the guitars scream at us, noise filling every single space of the track as the drums keep steadily plowing through. It’s the perfect climax to the album, combining everything that makes foot foot so unique.