As an eighties kid, synth pop has been pumping in my blood ever since that first day I turned on my MTV. There’s some debate as to who’s considered a synth pop band and who isn’t. For this September Music Twitter challenge – #SynthPopSeptember – I’m focusing more on what’s considered synth pop, not who. The songs I’m featuring on Mental Jukebox this month aren’t solely composed of synthesizers. There may be drums, bass, and dare I say, electric guitars. But each of these songs were picked because the synthesizer is core to its being.
How many bands sing and play with all their soul? How many bands put everything they have into the music because it’s all they got and it’s all they live for? Probably not many. Future Islands is one of them. They’re proof that synthesizers still have soul. Proof that you don’t have to act like or look like a rock band to make some noise in this industry. And if you absolutely love what you do, you can make people love it, too. “Seasons” is strangely contagious and utterly ambitious. Hands down, one of the best songs from the last 10 years – and it all starts with the lyrics.
Future Islands’ performance of “Seasons” on the David Letterman show was probably one of the best musical performances on a late night talk show in history. You could feel the passion for the music. And if there’s no passion then really what’s the point? The synth notes glide in and out like they’re pressing buttons on our soul. Meanwhile, I can’t say enough about Samuel Herring’s vocals on this one. There’s just nothing else like it.
“Seasons change, and I tried hard just to soften you. The seasons change, but I've grown tired of tryin' to change for you.”