Foxes

With a name inspired by a haunting and lucid dream related to her by her mother, Foxes is the solo electro-pop project of U.K. singer/songwriter Louisa Rose Allen. While her early singles -- from 2012's "Echo" to 2013's "Clarity," her Billboard-charting collaboration with German producer Zedd -- faithfully trod a dance-pop path, there was a quirky and cultured approach to her material that betrayed a nod to similarly minded predecessors such as Kate Bush and Florence + the Machine. She made her full-length debut with Glorious in 2014, hitting the U.K. Top 20 again with 2016's All I Need. After a lengthy time away from the spotlight, Foxes returned in the early 2020s with the Friends in the Corner EP and full-length The Kick.

Southampton-born Allen moved to London at the age of 18, enrolling in and subsequently leaving a music theory-focused course. Ironically, this in turn allowed her to spend more time crafting the songs that she would ultimately issue as singles on the transatlantic indie label Neon Gold and the Sony imprint Sign of the Times. A careful and slow-burning promotional campaign saw her music featured in the U.S. teen drama Gossip Girl, while Allen gradually came to be touted in an increasing number of blogs during 2012. Despite having performed relatively few gigs up until that point, in October 2012 she toured in support of labelmate Marina & the Diamonds. Early the following year, the Andy C remix of "Right Here" -- her collaboration with U.K. drum'n'bass act Rudimental -- crept into the U.K. Top 75 singles chart.

Graduating from single tracks to EP releases, Foxes issued the Warrior EP in late 2012, which spawned the well-circulated hit "Youth." The track was remixed enough to warrant a remix collection, and that song, too, was licensed for television and various other promotions. Allen worked off of the success she'd been building toward the completion of her debut full-length, Glorious. Released in May 2014, following the Top Ten placement of its second single, "Let Go for Tonight," the album peaked at number five on the U.K. chart. Within a year, Foxes issued "Body Talk," the Top 25 first single from her second long-player, All I Need, which arrived in February 2016. The album peaked at number 12 in the U.K. and the exposure helped land her an opening slot on Coldplay's A Head Full of Dreams stadium tour.

She began teasing new material as early 2018, but it would be another two years before Foxes returned with the single "Love Not Loving You" after striking a deal with PIAS. That track appeared on her EP Friends in the Corner, which was released in 2021. Following a quick turnaround, she issued her long-awaited third full-length months later in February 2022. A shimmering blend of escapist dance-pop, The Kick included the singles "Sister Ray" and "Sky Love." ~ James Wilkinson