The paramount victory of this record arrives with the instrumental breakdown of “Pink Noise,” with waves of opulent melodies perfectly enrapturing the marriage of STRFKR’s signature polished synth with undone acoustics. Squirrel Flower unveils elegiac cover of Liz Phair’s “Explain It To Me”, Jeff Rosenstock shares hilarious and passionate video for “Scram!”, announces live stream events, Overlooked 2020: Underappreciated albums from January to June, Kyle Kohner, Andy Johnston, Rob Hakimian, Josh Sand, Ray Finlayson, Lauren Mullineaux, Emma Bauchner, Ana Leorne, Tim Sentz, Chase McMullen, Gareth O'Malley and Grady Penna, Owen deliver gliding emo-folk beauty on “A New Muse”, ahead of new album, Easter Island bring dream-pop to White Sands in gorgeous video for "Always Room for Another" (BPM Premiere), Album Review: Benny the Butcher - Burden of Proof, The Besnard Lakes announce new double album with the shimmering "Raindrops", Album Review: Ela Minus - acts of rebellion, Wombo Deliver Ripping Post-Punk Sounds and Ode to a Kitty on "Situations/Ida Mae"(BPM Premiere), Nathan Oliver works through personal loss and heartache on "Even If You Go" (BPM Premiere), LA-based Electropop artist & animator Jordi Up Late releases new single, "Facts" (BPM Premiere), Oneohtrix Point Never shares five-part Midday Suite, featuring The Weeknd, Live Skull share the rumbling and urgent “Adema” from their unreleased 89 Peel Session, Efterklang frontman Casper Clausen goes solo with “Used To Think” ahead of debut album, Landshapes tackle pointed topics through a maelstrom of sonic ingenuity on “Let Me Be” and “Drama”, Parisian quartet Hoorsees share the cascading “Overdry” ahead of debut album. Album: STRFKR - Future Past Life. All Rights Reserved. Just because the band might feel pushed to produce some new music doesn’t mean they should be pulling stuff from the bottom of the creative barrel. One thinks of MGMT, Phoenix and Of Montreal, without however finding the rich unpredictability that characterizes those bands. The single kicks off with a snare drum before leading into the synth-driven melody intertwined with melancholy vocals.
The postings on this site belong to Atwood Magazine's writers alone and do not reflect the views of any third party. The track “Deep Dream” came in conjunction with a whimsical music video depicting the escapades of a park ranger in a snowy wilderness. By. Previously obscured under layers of thickly-coated reverb, the lyricism of Future Past Life raises the question of whether the group ever lacked that complexity or if this album is simply its first showcasing endeavor. The lyrics first come off as light and flowy, but at second glance reveal darker, of entrapment and a sense of being lost, “Sweet mother, kept me forever, “Sea Foam” contains more of that synth-pop sound STRFKR is known for, but still works towards the more stripped-down, on the album. Despite the acoustic core (which isn’t entirely new territory for the band), the good news for fans old and new is that these still feel like STRFKR songs, for the most part. Founded on irony and expanded through creativity, Joshua Hodges and co. find themselves six albums in since 2008’s explicitly eponymous debut, returning after four years with Future Past Life. years since their last, however STRFKR never failed to be intertwined in the music scene and have stayed consistent with remixes and a three part “From the Vault” series featuring years of unreleased tracks that demonstrated the singer and band’s progression of sound. “Dear Stranger” begins with a synth-heavy opener which quickly transforms to a groovy ‘70s drum and guitar beat, reminiscent of something out of Studio 54. Despite this four-year disruption between records, the group had far from disappeared from the music scene – with a series of releases including remixes of Being No One, Going Nowhere, a live album, a feature on Whethan track “Stay Forever”, and a three-part sequence of unreleased tracks from the depths of Hodges’ old computer premising what would evolve to become STRFKR’s sound. “Palm Reader” is a lethargic cosmic dream. Ambient 1 emerged when, after completing Future Past Life, STRFKR songwriter Josh Hodges immersed himself in ambient music.
“Second Hand”, the most A E S T H E T I C track out of any on the album, grooves like a son of a bitch and embodies the word vibes like few other songs can while “Better Together” scraps the drums and peacefully floats in space, a bastion of blissful lethargy. While the band have made strides (their last album, 2016’s Being No One, Going Nowhere, made a good effort of making introspective, stargazing party music for your bedroom), the world has moved at faster pace. Hodges found himself in possession of new age cassettes from an estate sale and soon began spending time experimenting with a Prophet 5 synthesizer. It’s just the right mix of old and new, which may just be able to convince fans of classic rock that indie might be worth checking out. SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: STRFKR – FUTURE PAST LIFE. The title of “Better Together” comes off as ironic as each band member sounds like they are going off in a different direction as Hodge’s broody, breathy singing with his guitar strums fails to offer something worth building on. The album is a demonstration of growth for the group and highlights a promising future. “I wanna know what’s inside us / Even if it’s only silence,” Hodges fittingly sings on “Budapest”, capturing the zeal to … Your email address will not be published. Student spotlight: Nonessential Personnel, City Struggles to Find Space for Sanctioned Homeless Camps. Prepare yourself to be propelled into an indie-psychedelic light show, where the stars just within arm’s reach and every color in the spectrum glides and coalesces around you. Category: Pop. STRFKR manages to build their own aesthetic without being too overbearing or unoriginal. The 10-track album is an exciting precedent for what the future will hold and leaves fans anxious for more. Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. STRFKR's 2008 self titled is a pretty good synthpop and indie rock blend, but 5 albums later, in my opinion they have never came close to topping that debut album, and Future Past Life is no exception. OA live STRFKR show is one of reality-altering aestheticism – a succession of electro-indie dance party hits strung seamlessly together with spoken word interludes and overlaid by lasers and brilliant lightshows. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. Today marks the conclusion of a four-year hiatus from original releases with the surprise drop of ten-track LP Future Past Life off of Polyvinyl Record Co. Future Past Life as a whole is a celebration of minimalism in STRFKR’s own unique interpretation. The title wholly encompasses the sound of the song which creates a state of being adrift illustrated in the lyrics, “You lose your balance, you lose control / And even though your heart was breaking / You never say it, don’t let it show.”. – A CONVERSATION WITH ANDEE BLACKSUGAR OF BLACK SUGAR TRANSMISSION, SPILL VIDEO PREMIERE: THE NEW BARDOTS – “GIMME GIMME GOOD LOVIN”, SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: SHARON JONES & THE DAP-KINGS – JUST DROPPED IN (TO SEE WHAT CONDITION MY RENDITION WAS IN), SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: HAWKSLEY WORKMAN – LESS RAGE MORE TEARS, SPILL NEW MUSIC: FINNEAS RELEASES NEW SONG & VIDEO FOR “CAN’T WAIT TO BE DEAD”, SPILL NEW MUSIC: TIM BURGESS SHARES NEW TRACK “THE ASCENT OF THE ASCENDED” | NEW EP DUE OUT NOVEMBER 27 VIA BELLA UNION, SPILL NEWS: KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD ANNOUNCE NEW LIVE ALBUM ‘LIVE IN SAN FRANCISCO ‘16’ VIA ATO RECORDS/CADENCE MUSIC GROUP, SPILL VIDEO PREMIERE: no1uno – “down – the dance”, SPILL FEATURE: IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO TURN AROUND – SAM ROBERTS DISCUSSES ‘ALL OF US’, SPILL NEW MUSIC: THE INDIGO MAKE YOUR HEAD SPIN WITH NEW SINGLE “DIZZY” OUT NOW VIA BEEF RECORDS, SPILL NEW MUSIC: DER PROSECTOR RELEASE EXTENDED DIGITAL SINGLE FOR “CAR BOMB/YOU’RE BEING LIED TO” VIA ARMALYTE INDUSTRIES, SPILL LIVE REVIEW: BLUES ON THE BEACH PUERTO ESCONDIDO @ FRESH RESTAURANT ZICATELA (MEXICO), SPILL LIVE REVIEW: SOULFLY @ THE CABOOZE, MINNEAPOLIS (MN), SPILL LIVE REVIEW: WOLF PARADE @ THE MOD CLUB THEATRE, TORONTO, SPILL LIVE REVIEW: EARTHGANG w/ MICK JENKINS @ THE OPERA HOUSE, TORONTO, SPILL LIVE REVIEW: METRONOMY @ THE DANFORTH MUSIC HALL, TORONTO. Matt Derraugh. To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here, Stefan Barbuceanu talks about his craft, sense of style and more, Muzique Magazine selected Top 25 Music Magazines, Interview with Up and Coming artist “MAX”, CYNi shares his musical journey in interview with us. I don't know why the super flat, demo-quality, tinny production has made it onto a lot of the most recent STRFKR records, but it pops up once again here, making everything sound so cheaply programmed. “Never The Same” is one of the few acoustic songs on the album, with simple chord progressions and raw melodies. The album opens with “Dear Stranger”, where synth pads and a bubbling bass dance along with mesmerizing vocals. All Rights Reserved. It distorts itself back and forth, delves into your subconscious and lulls you into a calming musical trance.