Future Islands is a Baltimore-based band known for synth-driven pop and dark lyrics. Back in 2014, Pitchfork named their song, “Seasons (Waiting On You),” the best of the year. They’re on tour now supporting a new album called “The Far Field.”
Band members Samuel Herring, William Cashion, and Gerrit Welmers stopped by to share the ultimate chill-and-grill playlist… But first, hear them chat about a pretty genius idea for your next dinner party in the bonus audio below. La Croix, ball’s in your court.
Daniel Lanois – “Frozen”
William Cashion: It’s like a reggae song, but it’s kinda country because he’s playing the pedal steel over [the] top of it. I never thought of juxtaposing a reggae vibe with pedal steel. Actually, I really wanted to put pedal steel on a song on our new record. But the guys weren’t really into the idea, so we didn’t…
Samuel Herring: I think I need to use the restroom, this conversation’s making me uncomfortable…
William Cashion: Maybe we can get Daniel Lanois to play on it! That’d be sick.
Brian Eno – “An Ending (Ascent)”
Gerrit Welmers: It’s sort of just a soundscape to what I imagine being in a spaceship orbiting the moon from, like, some sort of Apollo mission. It’s very beautiful. Very, just, relaxing. You don’t have to think much. You can just stop talking to people and listen.
Samuel Herring: The idea and the poetry of that title is something that comes back to us, too. Because I think that’s part of being a musician…. Just always leaving, always arriving, always coming home. Maybe home is somewhere that isn’t where your stuff is.
Montell Jordan – “This Is How We Do It” (Bonus pick)
Rachel’s – “Family Portrait”
Samuel Herring: The cello — which is probably my favorite sound, or my favorite sounding instrument — we’ve been able to have it on all of our records since our second record. The cello can sound like a chainsaw or it can sound like a violin. It can sound like the human voice. It’s given me ideas of how I can push my own voice or push a melody or cadence, a lyrical cadence, in certain ways.
Future Islands – “Where I Found You”
William Cashion: It’s one of my favorite songs we’ve ever written. We don’t really play it live very much at all. I don’t know. There’s an energy in that song that’s unlike other songs that we’ve recorded. I think it comes with the room, the house that we were at, the space we were all in.
Samuel Herring: That song still make me cry when I hear it in passing. When my friends put it on at a dinner party, that song finds me crumpled up in a corner, reminiscing.
