Remember That Song: Portions For Foxes
An indie rock anthem about the draw of toxic relationships.
Image credit: Spotify/Warner Brothers
With all of Jenny Lewis’ solo success over the last 15 years, it’s sometimes hard to remember that she had a successful career fronting indie rock band Rilo Kiley between 1998 and the quiet breakup after touring in support of 2007’s Under the Black Light.
Arguably, the breakthrough song for the band was track three on the 2004 release More Adventurous.
The album itself was the band’s third full length. With major label backing, they found themselves moving comfortably into a polished indie-pop-rock sound. The album still maintained the signature brooding, many times vulnerable lyrical themes seen on the first two albums, Take-Offs and Landings and The Execution of All Things.
And We’ll All Be Portions for Foxes
The song was Portion for Foxes, the title a Biblical reference to Psalms 63:10:
“They shall fall by the sword; they shall be a portion for foxes.”
The song wraps that theme into the story of a young woman who can’t seem to escape a toxic, sexual relationship. The type of relationship that one knows is bad for them, but constantly finds themselves running back to when they are lonely… and horny.
At this point in history, it wasn’t particularly revolutionary for a young woman to be singing about her sexuality. But the vulnerability of it, backed by a power-pop soundtrack, still stands out today.
It resonated with generation of indie-rock fans, the Coachella set of the early to mid 2000’s. It was catchy, sing-alongable, and both empowering and vulnerable at the same time. Anyone who saw the band live during this time remembers the moment when the band played the song, raising their fists and yelling along to Lewis’ shout of “COME HERE” at the end of the second verse.
Capitalizing on the success, the band licensed the song to Rock Band 3, and found the it prominently featured in the pilot episode of what would become one of the biggest television shows of all time, Grey’s Anatomy.
Portions for Foxes would go on to feature three more times in pivotal scenes in the long-running medical drama. Proving to be just as enduring as the show itself, the song was played in season eight, in the season nine premiere, and at the end of the 300th episode during the 14th season.
Today, Grey’s Anatomy is the longest-running scripted primetime show on ABC, and constantly ranks among the top ten most streamed on-demand programs. It spans multiple generations, and each time a new one binges the show, they are introduced to Portions of Foxes four times.
Portions for Foxes Turns 20 This Year
As the song makes its graceful transition into what is technically considered classic rock, it still hits like it did 20 years ago. My college-aged step-daughter sings along to it after hearing it on Grey’s Anatomy as if it came out yesterday. It still finds its way into my regular rotation of Spotify playlists.
While it serves as a midway point in Jenny Lewis’ long career, first as an actor, then with Rilo Kiley and now as a long-established solo artist, it will continue to endure. The theme is timeless and the music is as catchy as it ever was.