Wash Off

"Wash Off" is an encouragement to take a break, shake off the cobwebs, and seize the day. Stop the clocks, pull up your socks Go find a fountain to wash it off Much of the lyrical content of the first half of Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost - Part 2 is about escaping both from imagined and real threats. This song follows on from "The Runner," which is about persevering despite the troubles we are facing. Singer Yannis Philippakis explained to DIY magazine that "Wash Off" alludes to "trying to find selfish reasons to keep on going and enjoy your life."

The song's lyric video, released during the ongoing effects of coronavirus panic, plays off the title by turning the clip into a hand-washing PSA. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that to wash your hands effectively, you must scrub often with soap and water for 20 seconds. The clip shows viewers on a loop the 20 second process necessary to wash your hands properly and rid them of COVID-19.

Foals collaborated with the London Contemporary Orchestra to re-record their song in the summer of 2022. They also recorded "Life Is Yours" and "2001" as part of their Apple Music Home Session. This reunion was a special one for Foals, as they had previously worked with the LCO on their 2013 album Holy Fire. The band sent their tracks to the co-artistic director and co-principal director of the LCO, Hugh Brunt, who transcribed and interpreted their ideas into various instruments. "'Wash Off' has lots of instrumentation on it, so it felt good and it's lyrically apt, Yannis Philippakis said. "We did it in a small studio called The Firepit. We got to work with some amazing engineers, and it was a joy to be working with pro orchestral musicians, and to come up with new ideas on the spot in the room."