Future Islands
It’s an almost sold out LCR for the final night of Future Islands 11 week tour, and support comes from Zack Mexico fresh outta North Carolina. Sadly I missed their set, but reports of prog/indie/psyche sounds from a more than competent band with two drummers sound very positive to me.
Future Islands storm the stage. Well, Sam Herring storms it. The rest of the band (synths, drums and guitar/bass) sort of loiter at the back for the set, unmoving but steadily keeping the songs moving. Sam is a marvel, a wildman, a bit like the poisoned snake, writhing in agony in a toxic salt lake in David Attenborough last week. You know the bit. It’s haunted me ever since. ANYWAY. Sam Herring is the sort of man, a bit like John Grant, that you can’t help but fall in love with. His dancing. His voice. His appreciation of the crowd. His accent. It all comes together in a guy that I’m mesmorised by for the hour and three quarters of their set. The good thing about Future Islands’ songs is that they are all quite short, so you can pack a lot of ‘em in. And pack them they do..I counted nearly 20 songs in the set list. The bad thing is that at times, it all feels a little like one big song – the tone and pace don’t change, apart from a couple of slow numbers. So it’s all really good, but all kind of samey…which is…good I guess?
In any case, Sam introduces each song, gets as close as he can to the front row and seems to really want to share this night with us. The live sound is crisp, clear and at exactly the right volume. 11 weeks on tour doesn’t seem to have daunted the band’s spirit – Sam give 1000% energy and his voice still easily moves between lyrical and a death-metal-roar. At all times, he feels it – mostly pain through loss, and loss of love, but occasional fragments of hop and joy. The crowd are crazy for it – it’s rare to see unprompted clapping along at a gig in Norwich, and there’s that magical mutual appreciation flowing between the auditorium and the stage – I wouldn’t be surprised to see a young Courtney Cox appear on stage for a bit of impromptu dancing, what with the 80’s synth vibes and all. They take the light and sparkle of that decade and cement it firmly in reality.
It sure it hard to stay still throughout the gig – despite the heartbreaking lyrics and the pain that comes through Sam to us, it’s catchy as hell, with driving, snappy drums and depth from the keys. Combine that with a sweaty, gyrating, sideburned American man with piercing blue eyes, a cross between a young Bob Carolgees and Burt Reynolds with a little paunch and jeans that are a little too high waisted doing high kicks, thumping himself on the heart and punching the floor, and this gig couldn’t be anything other than great. I truly feel a connection – he is expressing his pain, and any pain that we may be feeling is relieved by that, like a simple holding of the hand. Finishing with Fall From Grace, a painful, slow, tortured, broken hearted piece, we somehow leave the venue invigorated, comforted and more alive. Come back soon Future Islands. The fact that you played over 1,000 gigs in the first ten years of your existence showed tonight for sure. Cathartic and catchy.
