Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Culture

The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

Fleet Foxes First Song From the Forthcoming ‘Crack-Up’ Finds the Band in Fine Form

By

Cover art of Crack-Up by Fleet FoxesOn March 7th, Fleet Foxes announced its long-awaited and highly anticipated third album, Crack-Up, which releases in mid-June. The band also unveiled its first piece of new music since 2011’s Helplessness Blues. Titled “Third of May / Ōdaigahara,” the track finds Fleet Foxes picking up from where the band left off six years ago.

Running nearly nine minutes long, “Third of May” is a track of epic proportions powered by piano, electric twelve-string guitar, string quartet, and the group’s trademark sparkling harmonies. It consists of multiple movements and finds the group more confident than ever. The song opens on a vigorous note with with frontman and songwriter Robin Pecknold’s voice projecting loudly and clearly backed by the twelve-string. “Third of May” builds to its climax in the fifth minute before mellowing into an extended coda.

Recommended Videos

When asked about the song’s title in an interview with Pitchfork’s Matthew Strauss, Pecknold offered two sources: “My friend and bandmate Skyler Skjelset’s birthday is May 3, and our album Helplessness Blues was released on May 3, 2011. The song ‘Third of May / Ōdaigahara’ is about my relationship with Skye. It addresses our distance in the years after touring that album, the feeling of having an unresolved, unrequited relationship that is lingering psychologically. Even if some time apart was necessary and progressive for both of us as individuals, I missed our connection, especially the one we had when we were teenagers, and the lyrics for the song grew out of that feeling.”

Upon its release, Fleet Foxes’ self-titled debut made a profound impact on the international musical landscape, earning them Uncut‘s first ever Music Award Prize, and topping numerous “Best of ” lists, including Rolling Stone‘s 100 Best Albums of the 2000’s and Pitchfork‘s 50 Best Albums of 2008. Helplessness Blues received similarly high praise upon its release in 2011, and if “Third of May / Ōdaigahara” is any indication, Crack-Up will as well when it is released on June 16, 2017.

Fleet Foxes - Third of May / Ōdaigahara (Lyric Video)

Fleet Foxes’ “Third of May / Ōdaigahara” is available now on

Amazon

, iTunes, and Spotify, and Crack-Up comes out on June 16 through Nonesuch Records.

Terence Praet
Terence Praet
Terence Praet contributes to The Manual’s New Music Monday column. He studied Philosophy and History at Skidmore College…
Discover the best Disney+ movies to watch this March
If you're a Disney+ member, stream these movies this month
Princess Bride

Disney is arguably the most iconic entertainment brand in the world. The company's properties, both original and acquired, combine to produce content that transcends age demographics. Disney has built a brand that's beloved by children, and those children eventually age into adults who introduce their kids to the films they loved when they were young. Disney's animation alone has made it iconic, but in recent years, the company has also acquired some of the biggest pieces of intellectual property there are. And with Disney Plus available on any device, you can watch all these movies whenever you want.

Between its acquisitions of both Marvel and Star Wars, there's a good chance that Disney is shepherding whatever you love to screens, both large and small. When it launched Disney+, the company was sure to fill it with both those nostalgic animated classics and plenty of new stuff as well. If, like me, you've ever felt a twinge of nostalgia for the Disney movies you loved as a kid, they're all there. Just as importantly, though, you can find movies that will resonate with you today in ways they didn't as a kid. Whatever you're looking for, you can probably find it on Disney+.

Read more
Your March viewing guide: Best shows on Paramount+ this month
Stream these incredible shows on Paramount+
Penny Dreadful scene

Having a vast library of good television shows and films is the most important factor in the success of a streaming service. That's part of what transformed Netflix into a global phenomenon, and it's why services like Paramount Plus have worked hard to build a healthy library of series that subscribers can browse through. As is the case with all streaming services, Paramount+ has a mix of original series that live only on the platform and older shows that were originally on broadcast and have now found a home on streaming.
Although these shows have varied histories, each one of them is a great staple in Paramount Plus's overall streaming library. Paramount+ might not seem like it has the kind of depth or variety that someplace like Netflix does, but trust me, once you dive in, you'll find that there are plenty of shows to watch and love.

Penny Dreadful (2014)

Read more
March gems: The best Disney+ shows to stream this month
Disney nostalgia and awesome new shows to stream
The Mandalorian looks out over the sun

Disney Plus has finally created a competitive library of original series that can compete with other services like Netflix and Max. It's also a treasure trove of Disney nostalgia for anyone who grew up in the '90s and early 2000s. On top of all that, the streamer has released a few of the most popular TV series to come out in recent years, and those series, on top of the deep catalog, make a Disney+ subscription worthwhile.

The streaming service is, at the end of the day, still a streaming service. As a Disney fan myself, though, it can be hard not to get swept up in the magic that the service contains. Disney is an old-fashioned dream factory, and Disney+ is home to many of those dreams.

Read more