Foxhole

Formed in 2000 at Western Kentucky University by college students drawn to the sounds of Fugazi, Shellac, and Kentucky natives Rodan and Slint, the post-rock outfit Foxhole built its foundation on a blend of conventional rock instrumentation and woodwinds, brass, and strings. Their compositions grew increasingly centered on hypnotic repetition and sweeping cinematic developments by the time their debut full-length, We the Wintering Tree, arrived in 2004. Geographic separation among members postponed the even broader follow-up, Well Kept Thing, until 2018; Shellac’s Bob Weston handled mastering duties on the release.

Adam Moore and Nathan McBroom launched Foxhole in the early 2000s, initially recording and performing with an ever-changing roster. Early performances emphasized improvisation and incorporated an array of sound sources, from glockenspiels and bottles to signal generators and homemade devices such as the juggophone, shatterophone, and pyrophone. The group issued two EPs—EP1 and EP2:X—between 2002 and 2003 and completed a two-week East Coast tour. McBroom’s subsequent departure prompted the remaining musicians to adopt a more straightforward songwriting method, anchoring their arrangements around a core rock lineup while still augmenting the palette with orchestral instruments. Seleh Records took an interest in 2004 and financed the band’s first album, We the Wintering Tree, recorded by Moore on guitar and piano, Justin R. Shepherd on guitar, Greg Leppert on brass, Derek Holt on bass, and Matthew Wilson on drums. After Wilson exited, the group cycled through several substitute drummers for live dates before settling on Jason Torrence, previously of Nashville’s God’s Lonely Man. Regular performances resumed, and after roughly eighteen months of studio work Foxhole completed the third EP, Push/Pull, in mid-2006. The dense arrangements necessitated the addition of Brian Toppenberg for live reinforcement. The band then signed with Philadelphia’s Burnt Toast Vinyl, which reissued Push/Pull in January 2007 and followed with a 2008 reissue of the debut LP.

Following a touring break, Foxhole reconvened in early 2010 for Nashville sessions that featured Chris Vicari on drums in place of Torrence. Life circumstances soon scattered the members nationwide, placing the project on indefinite hiatus. They regrouped in Bowling Green in late 2016 to revisit earlier recordings and complete additional tracking. The resulting Well Kept Thing, credited to Moore, Shepherd, Leppert, Holt, and Vicari, received a multi-format release on Burnt Toast Vinyl in 2018.