• News

• All

Apr 15, 2025 By Caleb Campbell

Seattle-based band Fotoform debuted with their 2017 self-titled album and followed in 2021 with their sophomore album, Horizons, crafting reflective and moody blends of post punk and darkwave. Later this week, they’re set to share their upcoming third full-length album, Grief is a Garden (Forever in Bloom), out on April 18th, which sees the band incorporating lush shoegaze textures into their sound alongside an introspective and existential lyrical bent. They teased the record this year with their lead single, “If You Knew / Don’t You Worry Baby” and “Grief is a Garden,” and today they’re sharing an early listen to one of the record’s highlights, “This City is Over,” premiering with Under the Radar.

“The City is Over” is at moments both glittering and gothic, matching a dour post punk bassline with gossamer beds of guitars and a lacquer of dreamy synths. Meanwhile, lead vocalist Kim House offers a beautifully haunting presence to the track, maintaining a glassy, immaculate sheen as she floats like a ghost through the swirling mix of instrumentation. That alluring dance of contrasts recalls bands like The Cure or Cocteau Twins, evoking the densely textured and deeply melodic side of ‘80s post punk and dream pop. Lyrically, the track meditates on being numbed to reality, calling the listener to look past the dreary confines of the everyday and imagine something more: “You didn’t notice much before. Misery is such a bore.”

House says of the track, “We live so much of our lives numbed and drained by the daily grind, serving up our time and energy – our existence – to sustain ourselves. It’s so easy to get stuck on autopilot, overwhelmed and too depleted to check in and (re)discover who we are and what we really want.

‘This City is Over’ is a call to wake up from our sleepwalking and challenge ourselves to start living our truths, to listen to the voice within: ‘Follow the truth inside your soul.’

This song (and much of the upcoming album) came in the wake of a series of personal (and professional) traumas and turning points. I left the only career I had known (in fashion) to try to find something more meaningful and sustainable (in all senses of the word) and, honestly, less toxic. The “city” in the song can represent capitalism and rampant commerce as well as the city itself: booming urban environments that sacrifice quality of life for profit.

We can’t always just drop everything and carve out an entirely new life, but we can start to peel back the layers, reflect and get in touch with ourselves. We can pull away from things that don’t serve us (if only through emotional distance – that counts, too) and shift our focus and energy to people, causes, actions, environments, creative outputs that resonate and align with our values and priorities.

We don’t have to wait for catastrophe to strike to start building anew and living more fully. We have so many answers inside us waiting to be discovered if we have the courage to look inside and step out of our often not-so-comfortable comfort zones (and challenge ourselves.) A life well lived is worth it though, don’t you think?”

Check out the song below and stream it here. Grief is a Garden (Forever in Bloom) is out everywhere on April 18th.