It has become a trend in the modern musical world, to release a single song and video before the release of the full-length album. Fox & Coyote have not violated this trend. This March, Fox, & Coyote have released their musical album ”Scattered Shadows on a Double Bed”, showcasing the folk-based band’s excellence and the most ambitious work. But before the complete album, Fox & Coyote launched a single and video titled as ”Blue Marble”. This song has provided pretty much introduction to what level of passion and potential runs through this five-person folk band. In fact, the theme and emotion, Fox & Coyote pour in ”Scattered Shadows on a Double Bed”, dazzles through ”Blue Marble”.
The songs of Fox & Coyote are known for their relationship-based lyrics. But, in this third album of this band, depression, and anxiety co-exist with the relation-based lyrical expression. It feels like as if they have learned how to deal with passion, depression, and anxiety, at once. There are some lines directly focusing on the relationship thing, depression and the urge for the search of the identity. But, all of them are arranged in a single string. And the single string is the rich musical presentation.
”Blue Marble” along with the other songs of this album shows a compelling musical and instrumental presentation, accompanied by the guitar solo, banjo, cello, drums, bass, etc. The amalgamation of all these instruments comes in the right proportion, making the sound vibrations lucid and vivid. The cellist Katherine Canon, the bassist Grant Gordon, and the drummer Kenny Befus has skillfully added an orchestral charm and dexterity to Fox & Coyote’s plucky sound and scourged vocals. The theme, lyrical expression, the musical portrayal of the songs suite ”Scattered Shadows on a Double Bed”.
The ”Blue Marble” and the opening soundtrack,” There’s Nothing In My Head” are, in fact, the longest songs on the album. But they are heavenly sounding songs and deeply touching because of the sudden changes from the gentle to electrifying notes followed by heart-melting sentimental lyrics. Each of these two songs run for six minutes, while the other soundtracks last for 2-5 minutes maximum. But even the six minutes seems shorter in front of the slow-driven music with the perfect portrayal of instrumentation, the meaningful lyric about self-obsession, played through the ”Blue Marble”.
”Scattered Shadows on a Double Bed” includes other notable soundtracks like, ”White Spider”, ”Deal”, ”Everything’s Just Fine”, ”Love Is”, ‘any Light”. All of them seems to be individually mature work of Fox & Coyote. They have no resemblance with one another; each of the soundtracks comes with vivid lyrical expression, relaxing and alluring musical liveliness. With the guitar solo, the thick sounding of the cello, along with the self-critical yet romantic, sincere lyrics, no doubt, the songs go hand in hand with the title of the album, ”Scattered Shadows on a Double Bed”.
As a whole, Fox & Coyote’s ”Scattered Shadows on a Double Bed” is a unique and ear-soothing work on Folk-rock music. It wouldn’t be wrong if the audience calls it lullabies for the adults.
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– Grace Williams
