Review: Future Islands at The Rechabite

Future Islands at The Rechabite 
Thursday, February 16, 2023

On Thursday night at The Rechabite, Perth welcomed back Baltimore-based four piece Future Islands for their first show here in five and a half years.

It was an enthusiastic reception for the synth-pop/rock band who were playing as a part of this year’s Perth Festival. After welcoming the crowd, frontman Samuel T Herring kicked things off saying “let’s get into it baby, let’s play some music!" He then proceeded to play their song For Sure from their latest album As Long As You Are, released in 2020.

Herring is well known for his dramatic on-stage antics (as seen on the famous YouTube video of their live performance of Seasons (Waiting On You) on David Letterman), and didn’t let down anyone’s hopes of seeing his dance moves in live action with plenty of grooving, high kicks, air punches and chest beating throughout.

Herring sinks deep into the front man role. Whilst Gerrit Welmers brought the 80s style electric-dream synths, Michael Lowry’s quick hands kept the energy high with his drum beats, and William Cashion drove the guitar-less band with bass alone; Herring’s mesmerising and theatrical stage presence almost made the rest of the band fade into the background. The four men were dressed uniformly in black shirts, perhaps an intentionally toned-down fashion decision to bring the attention to where it ought to be – on the music.

Future Islands’ music, and more specifically, Herring himself, evoke a seemingly contradictory tour de force. His crooning voice swiftly turns gravelly a times, throwing in the occasional death-metal roar. He toes the line between mystic and madman, an angel with a dad-bod, baring his soul with both grace and brutality. Whoever believes being sexy is about being toned and conventionally attractive clearly hasn’t seen Samuel T herring in his element! Herring appears to be one of those artists that genuinely longs to connect with others through music. Inviting the audience into his internal world through raw vulnerability, he acts out parts of the lyrics – putting a finger gun to his head, tracing his finger down his face in mock-crying, taking a pill, falling dramatically to his knees. It’s like watching an improvisation performance piece.

Plastic Beach was the third song on their setlist with Herring stating “this is about the people who spend to much time in the mirror," prompting some some embarrassed nods of acknowledgement from some members of the crowd that could relate to lyrics like “spent a lifetime in the mirror, picking apart what I couldn’t change." With any great artist that speaks to you, as a listener, you feel heard and seen, and Herring often found people within the crowd and locked eyes with them, almost uncomfortably. Even on the third storey in The Rechabite’s Main Hall, there were moments where it felt like Herring was looking right at you.

Herring mentioned on behalf of the band, that it was their 17th anniversary show before playing Walking Through that Door from 2009. The stage lighting went up a notch by using smoke machines which lit the band in purple, casting their giant shadows on the white curtain behind them. Lowry’s drum skills shone during Vireo’s Eye, as did the stage – bathed in stark light as if to drive home the rawness and vulnerability of the band before the set ended. Light House added to that dynamic, as Herring divulged the song was about “a painful relationship, but this person saved my life one night." 

Future Islands finished on a sweet note, playing fan favourite Little Dreamer. Having listened previously to studio-recorded versions of the lullaby-like song, it was fun to hear them add an unexpectedly heavier accent and really showcase their finesse when playing live. Much like Future Islands’ impressive catalogue of music, and their entire live performance on Thursday night, it was a triumph of balancing the delicate and the dark.

KYRA SHENNAN

Photos by Cam Campbell