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Concert Wed Oct 26 2011
Preview: Future Islands, Javelin @ Lincoln Hall, Sunday 10/29
This Sunday, Lincoln Hall promises to be the place to be to catch some of the indisputable rising stars of electropop as Baltimore's Future Islands takes the stage with openers Javelin and Ed Schrader's Music Beat.
Formed in North Carolina a scant six years ago, the now Baltimore-based Future Islands have become critical darlings on the strength of several solid releases on local label Thrill Jockey. On their latest LP, On the Water, the band continues the development of their signature "post-wave" sound, channeling bits and pieces of the best of '80s synthpop without succumbing to the overindulgence that plagued many of the genre's first-wave acts. Richly textured soundscapes develop slowly over loping Peter Hook-esque basslines, while frontman Samuel T. Herring's vocals swing from plaintive to almost menacingly growly. There are plenty of identifiable influences, but the songs are shimmering and immediate. Lyrically, On The Water deals with love and loss, somehow managing to sound deeply personal to Herring while remaining universal enough to be applicable to anyone's tale of heartache. Herring is a riveting stage presence, and their act keeps getting better, no doubt due to their tireless touring over the past few years.
Also on the bill are up-and-comers Javelin. Now on the Luaka Bop label, Javelin's tunes are a glitchy electronic carnival. Seemingly never ones to take themselves too seriously, the compositions veer from polished, almost hip-hip sounding samplefests to a sort of recast neuveau 8-bit wierdness, finding just about every practicable point in between.
Future Islands, with Javelin and Ed Schrader's Music Beat play Sunday, October 29 at Lincoln Hall, 2424 N. Lincoln Ave. at 8pm. Tickets are $15 in advance and available at LincolnHall.com.
