I am worn out from last night’s fantastic show at Tropicalia, but I didn’t want to leave you without a new music video for your Friday. A couple of months ago we posted about a new song “Blackjack” by indie pop band These Future Saints, and now they’ve set the song to a music video about the joys and sorrows of dating in a smartphone-obsessed world. “Blackjack” comes from their recent EP Ellerslie Avenue. These Future Saints kick off a night of excellent DC music on New Years Eve at Iota, followed by Derek Evry & His Band of Misanthropes and The Beanstalk Library. This is just about the only show Iota sells advance tickets to, so stop by Clarendon and get them soon!
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Tag Archives: These Future Saints
Live Picks! with Tony Porreco: These Future Saints @ Velvet Lounge
Live Picks! with Tony Porreco
Who: These Future Saints w/ Alias Punch and The Dead Women
Where: The Velvet Lounge
When: Friday, September 27
Song You Must Hear Today: “Separation”
These Future Saints are a band that connect with my power pop roots, the clean-cut stuff I gobbled up in high school from acts such as Sloan and Ash. Since then, my tastes have generally moved towards the brasher end of the rock spectrum, but that’s not to say I steer clear of groups like these. Rather, I liken this stuff to lemonade: Something sweet and refreshing that makes for an excellent palette cleanser when you might otherwise be all punked out, though folks might have a higher or lower tolerance depending on the level of sweetness involved.
Earlier this month, we featured These Future Saints’ “Black Jack” via our Fresh Tracks column in the lead up to their very fun EP release show at IOTA. Said EP Ellerslie Ave represents a quality debut release that manages to come off as both breezy and streamlined. “Separation” (which you can stream above) is hands down the most exciting of the Ellerslie’s five songs: A saccharine-loaded ICBM of a guitar line roars over propulsive dance rock drums, which are subsequently swapped out for a verse of singer Andrew Gaddy’s clear-throated vocals and a skippy guitar arpeggio. Likewise, the song’s balmy chord changes and taut rhythms bespeak a band with noteworthy control of their craft.
“Come Around” and “Take Care” both feature a little more of an easy-going, classic rock vibe, with the former sporting a verse that’s melodically similar to Thunderclap Newman’s oft-covered flower-power anthem, “Something in the Air”. “Take Care” on the other hand, with its boom-chop rhythm and winding, picked electric guitars sounds like a more modern, well-mannered take on Mungo Jerry’s timelessly playful “In the Summertime”.
For some bonus TFS content, check out this video DC music enthusiast (and artist!) Kate Moran took of the band at IOTA in March, performing “Blackjack”, which, by singer Andrew Gaddy’s own account is about “making out in the back of a cab”. (GASP!) Also, that’s The WeatherVanes’ Jackson Edwards helping out on bass!
In sum, These Future Saints are a newer band with sunshine in the songwriting, even nimbler arrangements, and a vocalist who knows how to kill ’em. The band performs this Friday at The Velvet Lounge with The Dead Women, whose live show is a sure bet, and Alias Punch, who do a spooky brand of surf punk.
Lens Flair – These Future Saints / M.H. & His Orchestra / Classified Frequency at IOTA (Fri 9/6)
Photos by Heaton Johnson
Written by Tony Porreco
Last Tuesday we brought you the Fresh Track “Blackjack”, from These Future Saints‘ new EP, Ellerslie Ave. In the spirit of following up, I made the short trek out to Clarendon’s IOTA to catch the band with Classified Frequency and M.H. & His Orchestra for their EP release show. Now, I’m not especially fond of show recaps; I think it’s far better to be there for the actual experience of the show rather than to learn about it via whatever vapid sludge I’m capable of churning out.
As such, we’re thrilled team up with the very talented photographer Heaton Johnson to bring you Lens Flair, a new photojournalism series documenting the DC show experience. There’s an alluring vibrance to Johnson’s stills that does a remarkable job of taking you “there” in lieu of hollow verbiage (or time travel).
So without further delay, the installment of Lens Flair!
Classified Frequency
These Future Saints
IOTA Club & Cafe
M.H. and His Orchestra
Fresh Tracks! These Future Saints / “Blackjack”
Fresh Tracks! – These Future Saints / “Blackjack”
by Tony Porreco
Welcome back to another installment of Fresh Tracks!, where we at Hometown Sounds present you early access to some of the best in soon-to-be-released D.C. music. Today’s fresh track is a cheery little number called “Blackjack” from charming up and comers These Future Saints.
At first playback, you might be skeptical and regard the opening guitar riff as silly, but when the full band kicks in, it actually reveals itself as part of a fun set of interlocking machinations against the second guitar and drums, with a sound that quickly heads into the territory of some light dance rock. (Who new dance rock could be light?)
Singer Andrew Gaddy is actually one of the better vocalists I’ve heard lately from the DC scene: There’s a sweet, choirboy feel to his singing voice that’s really kind of adorable, which proves in keeping with his band’s somewhat softer approach to indie rock. Concerning the song’s lyrical content, Gaddy chronicles some tender escapades with a certain special someone. (Additional props for the hometown imagery when he suggests, “Let’s take a trip to Logan Circle, we’ll get out of line”). Be sure to stick around through the end of the cut, as the number closes with a super fun coda that approaches the lively guitar pop of Phoenix’s early career, or some MDMA-enhanced Franz Ferdinand.
These Future Saints perform this Friday at IOTA (9/6) with Classified Frequency (who do some seriously layered, everything-but-the-kitchen sink pop punk) and our favorite army of genre-busters M.H. and His Orchestra. The event is also a release show for These Future Saints’ new EP Ellerslie Ave, available for purchase at the show or online starting Friday.
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