Sounds Beyond.

Future Islands | ‘On The Water’

If there’s one thing that’s always deeply satisfying to stumble across, it’s the fabled sleeper album; the one that slips past listener radar and across the reviews without perking up ears attuned to seeking that which deserves second and third listens, landing in your lap like it was gold wrapped in tinfoil. Open the wrapper, and you’ll see that what you’ve got is precious, but often that process itself can be time consuming, at best.

This is where we find the latest release from Future Islands, titled On The Water (Thrill Jockey). It’s one of the few truly solid indie rock albums to come out this year (Destroyer’s Kaputt and PJ Harvey’s Let England Shake being the two best examples of this year’s output thus far), and yet somehow, despite decent reviews across the board, failed to make any substantial waves. Perhaps this is due to the fact that their sound seems to fall into the greater realm of music derivative of 80’s post-punk and no wave that lately has been growing exponentially in quantity—though this album is far better in its approach, it’s easy to imagine how easily it might get lost in the din of similar imitators. The thing is, Future Islands appear to have nailed a deeply satisfying-to-hear subtlety to their composition structure that doesn’t beat you over the head, but sounds refreshing in its authenticity and unpretentiousness. Style-wise—since this is most definitely derivative in style—these guys sound like The The meets Roxy Music meets New Order (those basslines are especially reminiscent of Peter Hook’s unmistakeable style), and they toe the line between past and present like champs. In other words, if you spent a great deal of your youth listening to Morrissey, or you like Destroyer, the Radio Dept., or Metronomy, this is definitely an album worth grabbing.

You can purchase (and hear) the album over at Thrill Jockey, or check out the samples below of the stunning The The throwback “Before the Bridge” (think “This Is The Day”) and the happy-go-lucky “Balance” (which sounds too similar to Rod Stewart’s lone synth pop hit “Young Turks” not to be mentioned).

Future Islands - Before the Bridge by thrilljockey

Future Islands - Balance by thrilljockey