Foxing is one of those bands I had listened to; loved the song craft and texture of the music but had never witnessed live before. And if you know the band, you know the live show is an integral part of what makes this band. Made up of singer / trumpet player, Conor Murphy; guitarist, Eric Hudson; and drummer, Jon Hellwig.

After a mesmerizing set by producer, composer, and visual artist Shinra Knives, Conor and Eric from Foxing took the stage. It was a somber reflection on the recent death of Conor’s dog and it was clearly something weighing heavily on all of them, but this night turned out to be a healing balm as the crowd – some of whom had traveled out of State to be there – reflected the love and emotion Foxing brought to the stage.

As the band joined the duo, they kicked into “Go Down Together” from their most recent release, Draw Down the Moon, shaking off the outside cold and, temporarily, the weight of the world. “If you should fall, I’ll follow,” Conor sang to the bouncing groove of the rest of the band.

Here is the official video for “At Least We Found The Floor” by Foxing on YouTube:

Foxing tends to straddle that line between quiet introspection and explosions of emotional catharsis, and none better than in the song “Night Channels,” which starts off quietly without a hint of what’s to come. And they put on one tight performance even as Eric danced across the stage, thrashing back and forth with his guitar and Conor pouring his heart out into the microphone.

The set was a great mix of older tunes such as fan favorite, “The Medic,” and new songs like the brilliant “At Least We Found the Floor.” A brilliant set that left this crowd wanting more. Even though, as both Conor and Eric mentioned, it was a strange and sorrowful day that led up to the show, they poured their hearts into it, coming back out to do an encore of “Rory,” from The Albatross.

On social media the band recently mentioned taking some time off, with a follow up that “we are going to play shows again. We are not quitting. It just may be a little bit.”

The setlist included:

737
Go Down Together
Beacons
Grand Paradise
Night Channels
Weave
The Magdelene
Draw Down The Moon
Lich Prince
Gameshark
At Least We Found the Floor
Bloodhound
Inuit
The Medic

Bit by a Dead Bee pt 1
If I Believe In Love
Nearer My God

Encore:

Rory

Here are more photos of Foxing performing at the Ottobar Tuesday, December 6, 2022. Photos by David LaMason.