To classify Futurebirds as a country band would not be right. They are, but they aren’t. Their sound is interwoven with indie, rock, experimental tones, and yet it’s still something else. The band makes the most sense of their music on their third full-length album Hotel Parties, which tries to bridge the gap between life at home in Athens, GA and being out on the road, as heard in the album’s title track: “All these different names for the exact same thing. I lost some friends in the van but at least I can sing. Just give me some gold that I can turn into silence while the towns slow-fade into the haze behind us.”
It’s a slower album than the rest, as though they’ve settled into themselves more. Perhaps it had to do with feeling more secure under Fat Possum Records—a label they had trouble finding for their second album release, Baba Yaga. But the band kept on, touring whenever possible, and keeping alive that collaborative spark that the band prides themselves on, having five writers involved in the songwriting process.
Recently they’ve released an EP called Portico I, with a second to be released sometime in 2017. It’s a romantic EP, full of southern charm and fireside grit that the band felt couldn’t quite fit on any other album. It’s some of the band’s strongest pieces of music, especially the album’s first song, “Only Here For Your Love.”
Rough Trade
12/6
9 p.m.
With: Loamlands
Axs.com
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