Future Past Life
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| Future Past Life | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | April 10, 2020 | |||
| Genre | Indie rock, electronic, synthpop | |||
| Length | 36:06 | |||
| Label | Polyvinyl Records | |||
| STRFKR chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Future Past Life | ||||
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Future Past Life is the sixth studio album by the Portland-based indie rock band STRFKR, released on April 10, 2020, through Polyvinyl Records.
The material that would eventually lay the groundwork for Future Past Life was brought about when principle songwriter Josh Hodges was visiting Amsterdam while working on the band's previous studio album Being No One, Going Nowhere. At the recommendation of a European traveler who was renting his L.A. home while he was abroad, Hodges connected with Mathias Janmat and David Hoogerheide, two similarly inclined musicians in Amsterdam. Within hours of meeting, the three were collaborating on new music together and would continue to do so on multiple occasions during Hodges' stay in the country, recording demos as they went along.[1]
Recording and composition
Eventually Hodges' trip came to an end, but he continued to revisit the songs from the sessions with Janmat and Hoogerheide. Feeling that the songs were "inspired and magical" and using the Amsterdam demos as a blueprint, Strfkr recorded Future Past Life, adding the new layers of the full band's skill and nuance while retaining the core sound of the demo tracks. After moving from L.A. back to Portland, Hodges continued to collaborate with Janmat and Hoogerheiede remotely as he finalized the album in his home studio. The pair also contributed to Tape Machine, which would become the opening track and second single from Being No One, Going Nowhere.[1]
Future Past Life also includes a feature by labelmates Shy Boys, who contribute vocals to the track Budapest. Visual artist and longtime Strfkr collaborator Sohale Kevin Darouian returned to provide the album's artwork, packaging design, and digital visuals.
While answering questions during an AMA on Reddit, the band said the following about Future Past Life:
"Yeah this album we decided to have a few themes we wanted to stick to. One was every song having acoustic guitar on it, 2 was the drums being run through a tape machine to make them a little lofi and squished, the 3rd was that theres a descending melody that is on almost every song."[2]
Release and promotion
Throughout early 2020, Strfkr released three singles from the album with accompanying visualizer videos: Never the Same on February 28, 2020; Deep Dream on March 12, 2020; and Budapest on March 27, 2020. A 7-week tour was scheduled with 34 dates at venues across the United States, though the tour was soon postponed and ultimately cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3]
On April 10, 2020, Future Past Life was released at midnight, with the band only announcing the release a few hours beforehand.[4]