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Future Past Life

by STRFKR

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desprio
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desprio The aesthetic from this album is so fascinating, and the pillow was an amazing addition to the already incredible lineup of merch!
Favorite track: Deep Dream.
the_doctor4
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the_doctor4 I found out about STRFKR from the Polyvinyl Summer Fall 2020 Sampler and fell in love with the track "Dear Stranger". Enjoyed what I heard from Future Past Life so I just had to purchase. Favorite track: Dear Stranger.
rosysyntax
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rosysyntax STRFKR are masters when it comes to crafting terrific pop music with weight and feeling. Every track has become lodged in my brain, at one point or another. Each album is a treat, including this one! Favorite track: Second Hand.
jonathan
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jonathan psychedelic beats! love this album
hufftyzzle
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hufftyzzle now this is some excellent quarantine music! Favorite track: Deep Dream.
Mike Delejewski
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Mike Delejewski STRFKR continue to forge ahead and refined their sound. A highly enjoyable album with hints of Phoenix and Empire of the Sun influences. Well done and greatly appreciated
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1.
Sweet mother kept me forever Alone and safe in a room Why would I ask for anything other? Your world is all that I ever knew Her hands pulling me closer Her eyes all heavy and cold Ooh ooh she said I keep you from danger Ooh ooh I’m your careful protector All of these voices are making me nervous Follow them outside Leaving with nothing Under the surface I am a stranger What else to become? No one else to become The last time you tell me it’s simple I keep it in the back of my mind Ooh ooh She said now don’t be a stranger Ooh ooh Just keep your head on your shoulders
2.
You look just like your mother Oh those pretty brown eyes How you fight for each other I could hide in your smile You told me that you keep no secrets Hiding's never worth it in the end And my feelings still haven't changed They said I'm crazy for it What I don't know about love? And we were never the same Would you go on living forever I'll know when I'm ready to die And when we bury each other Shake a million meanings out your side You told me that you keep no secrets Hiding's never worth it in the end And my feelings still haven't changed They said I'm crazy for it What I don't know about love? and we were never the same
3.
I saw your face in a dream I heard you whispering my name I thought it couldn’t be real though When everything before all looked the same (Who)’s watching me As I walk away To the other side Lie down slow Let it overflow Open my eyes And I paint it gold I let it go Leaving all my love Walk through the door And I paint it gold What isn’t there that you need Don’t wanna do it on your own My thought’s unfold like a movie While they(’re) always playing the same song (Who)’s watching me As I walk away To the other side Lie down slow Let it overflow Open my eyes And I paint it gold I let it go Leaving all my love Walk through the door And I paint it gold
4.
Second Hand 03:29
Fed up with the games we’re playing Seems we’re always starting over again With all our memories fading And I can’t remember how we began You’re all second chances Just thinking out loud What else can I say I’m feeling sick again Been reading Web MD It must cancer then Don’t know what’s wrong with me I’m feeling sick again Don’t know what else I need It must be over then Don’t know what’s wrong with me Fed up with the games we’re playing Why we always starting over again? While all our memories fade And fall apart and turn to dust in the end Now you’re broken hearted Cause you couldn’t finish What you had started I’m feeling sick again Been reading Web MD It must cancer then Don’t know what’s wrong with me I’m feeling sick again Don’t know what else I need It must be over then Don’t know what’s wrong with me
5.
Better together Harmony Care for each other Harmony I will always let you down down down I will always be around We relate
6.
Don’t wanna fake it Couldn’t remember your name Losing our minds together. we are I wanna know what’s inside us Even if it’s only silence Stealing a moment’s all that we have Oh Can you read between the lines See with your own eyes Leave it alone where you are Oh Can you read between the lines Keep it in your mind No one remembers at all Don’t wanna make it up Don’t wanna know where you are Wasting our lives together. we are Now that you know Now that you know Safe and warm Stealing a moment’s all that we have Oh Can you read between the lines See with your own eyes Leave it alone where you are Oh Can you read between the lines Keep it in your mind No one remembers at all
7.
Palm Reader 01:55
8.
Sea Foam 03:38
You lose your balance You lose control And even though your heart was breaking You never say it Don’t let it show That’s just the way that you are Everybody knows it Everybody knows but they don’t care Everybody knows it Everybody knows it’s not enough Are we safe enough again Are we sailing under the water You never doubt it Not on your own You’re just sick of all the faking A true believer You have it all That’s just the way that you are And everybody knows it Everybody knows but they don’t care Everybody knows it Everybody knows Are we safe enough again Are we sailing under the water Are we safe enough again Under the water Are we safe enough again I’m hanging on I’m losing air What isn’t there I’m hanging on under the water Slowly inhale
9.
Pink Noise 04:53
Is it all in your mind All in your mind All that you know Keeping an eye on another world Another reality Is it all in your mind All in your mind Over the light Sneaking around every other world Every reality Or nothing at all No mind Nothing at all Is it all in your mind All in your mind How would I know Keeping an eye on another world Another reality Is it all in your mind All in your mind All that I know While all of our memories fade away And land in another world Or nowhere at all
10.
Cold Comfort 05:47
All my life It’ll be alright Keep this all to yourself All my life Try and make it right Nowhere else you can go All my life I’ll try It’ll be alright

about

STRFKR has always been a constantly evolving entity, growing over the years from rambunctious beginnings into the manicured electro-pop perfection they exhibited on their last studio album, 2016’s pristine Being No One, Going Nowhere. New album Future Past Life breaks new ground, dialing back some of the high-gloss production they’re known for to craft songs that are stripped down, spaced out and somehow as visceral as they are dream-like. STRFKR goes deeper into these songs by breaking them down to their essential elements, finding a new immediacy when working with raw materials.

Much like the music on Future Past Life, the way the album came together is strange and winding. In 2014, STRFKR’s principal songwriter/lead vocalist Josh Hodges was staying in Amsterdam for a few months, working on the music that became Being No One, Going Nowhere. By complete chance, a European traveller who was crashing at Hodges’ house in L.A. while he was abroad connected him with some like-minded musicians in Amsterdam, Mathias Janmat and David Hoogerheide. Even though they were more or less strangers, the three musicians clicked almost instantly, coming up with new songs within the first few hours of meeting. They got together to work on new ideas several times while Hodges was in Amsterdam, and the new Dutch collaborators even ended up contributing to the STRFKR song “Tape Machine”. Hodges made his way back to the States, but as time passed he found himself returning to the songs from those Amsterdam sessions. Ultimately the band decided that material was so inspired and magical, it was something that needed to be heard. Honing in on the vibe of those songs, they were able to reinterpret those demos into something new, retaining the core elements of their sound as they routed it into new territory.

Having returned to Portland after living for a time in L.A., Hodges finished the album in his new home studio, getting input abroad from Janmat and Hoogerheide and at home from bandmates Shawn Glassford and Keil Corcoran to help flesh out the final renderings. For the first time on a STRFKR album, every song is driven by acoustic guitar as synth melodies take on a more supportive role. Rough-edged mixes push the drums into the red and trade cleaner production for an atmospheric lo-fi approach. Lead single "Never The Same" is warm and direct, with a straightforward delivery that highlights how vulnerable the band's lyrics can be. This kind of careful, hushed energy is new territory for STRFKR. Going out on this ledge results in one of the band's most rewarding songs, one that's mysterious and lush but as intense as a secret being whispered in your ear. The multiple viral melodies of “Deep Dream” twist ecstatically as reverb-coated percussion and distant ambient textures add to the otherworldly vibe. “Budapest” locks into an airy groove, washed over by waves of angelic vocal harmonies from Polyvinyl labelmates Shy Boys. The entire album feels stuck on a cloud somewhere between earthbound rhythms and alien song structures doused in echo.

The immaculate but danceable pop that has long been STRFKR’s calling card is pushed into exciting new places on Future Past Life. On past records, heavy lyrical themes and darker undercurrents could get obscured by infectious hooks, but here minimal arrangements cut to the emotional center of the songs. It’s a strange and beautiful sonic environment, one that finds STRFKR growing as they embrace the chance and spontaneity that brought these songs about in the first place.

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released April 10, 2020

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