The Foxies

The full-length debut from The Foxies, Who Are You Now, Who Were You Then? is the sound of a band boldly embracing their wildest and most unpredictable impulses. In a thrilling new chapter for vocalist Julia Lauren Bullock, guitarist Jake Ohlbaum, and drummer Rob Bodley, the Nashville-based power trio expand on the dizzy abandon of their acclaimed 2020 EP Growing Up Is Dead, harnessing the explosive freedom of punk while endlessly turning out pop-perfect hooks. An up-close look at self-discovery in a chaotic world, Who Are You Now, Who Were You Then? ultimately matches its visceral impact with bluntly poetic yet heartfelt lyrics—the type of irreverent truth-telling sure to inspire countless tattoos and recklessly scrawled bedroom graffiti.

A decidedly DIY-minded band, The Foxies co-produced Who Are You Now, Who Were You Then? alongside a revolving lineup of collaborators in Los Angeles and Nashville, often laying down tracks in their own home studios. In bringing the album to life, the trio took a cue from pop iconoclasts like Prince and David Bowie and dreamed up a singular sound by alchemizing their eclectic mix of inspirations: new wave and glam-rock, post-punk and grunge, left-field hip-hop and the weirder edges of the pop world. But despite its rule-breaking originality, Who Are You Now, Who Were You Then? remains rooted in The Foxies’ timeless sense of songcraft—a crucial factor in their rare capacity to transform pain and frustration into songs that radiate an irrepressible joy.

Lifted from one of its more heavy-hearted tracks (the gritty and introspective “Good Try”), the title to Who Are You Now, Who Were You Then? holds a number of meanings for The Foxies. “When we first started writing these songs at the beginning of the pandemic, there was a sense of trying to figure out myself and my love life and everything that was happening in a world that felt like it was crashing down,” says Bullock, the band’s main lyricist. “But then when you fast-forward to the newer songs there’s a complete shift in emotion, and a feeling of finding myself through learning about what love is not.” By the same token, the album’s title also reflects The Foxies’ newfound confidence in their identity as a band. “More than anything we’ve done in the past, this record taught us who we are,” says Ohlbaum, noting that the trio adopted a punk-inspired mindset in every step of the creative process. “To us punk is a way of life and a way of thinking and a way of making stuff,” he adds. “It’s about doing what feels right to you and makes you happy in the moment, and that’s something we definitely learned how to do with this album.”