Foals frontman Yannis Philippakis talks “shady macho behaviour” at gigs

Last week, mid-way through their ‘intimate’ UK tour, Foals frontman Yannis Philippakis tweeted (below) calling for an end to “shady macho behaviour” at shows.

In the wake of recent activity from the likes of GirlsAgainst - five teenagers who’ve set up a campaign to help give a platform to young girls who may not feel safe at certain shows - and statements from the likes of Harry from Peace, Slaves, Spector and Austin Williams from Swim Deep, it’s a pertinent request from one of British music’s most raucous frontmen.

Speaking to DIY last week, he clarified what prompted the tweet. “I think there was a girl – I’d read something – that was complaining about how she’d been treated in one of the moshpits,” he explained. “I used to love moshing, and there’s an inherent aggression and violence to that type of thing that goes on at a show, particularly if it’s like a circle-pit type thing. I think there’s gotta be some common sense. But I also have seen, not necessarily at our own shows but just over the years, people can get sucked into those things when they don’t really want to be, and I think that just having an element of compassion for people that are in the set and you can see if someone’s not enjoying it or feels threatened or feels like they’re getting hurt, then I think it’s a small thing to say, just to say ‘look out for whoever’s there’.