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Jan 25, 2021 Future Islands By Christopher Roberts

Future Islands released a new album, As Long As You Are, last fall via 4AD (it was one of our Top 100 Albums of 2020). Now they have done a Tiny Desk (Home) Concert for NPR Music, performing four songs remotely at Carroll Baldwin Memorial Hall, which is outside of their home base of Baltimore. They did “Hit the Coast,” “The Painter,” “Thrill,” and “Balance.” Marisa Gesualdi directed the video, which doesn’t feature a tiny desk. Watch the performance below.

As Long As You Are includes “For Sure,” a new song the band shared in July via a video. “For Sure” features backing vocals from Jenn Wasner of Wye Oak and Flock of Dimes and was one of our Songs of the Week. Then when the album was announced they shared another new song from it, “Thrill,” via a video for the song (which was also one of our Songs of the Week). Then they shared the album’s third single, “Moonlight,” via a video for it (which also made our Songs of the Week list). Then they shared the album’s fourth single, “Born in a War,” via an animated video for it. Then they performed “For Sure” on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Then they were the musical guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers, in which they performed the album’s “Plastic Beach.” They also shared a nine-minute remix of “For Sure” by Dan Deacon (who is also based in Baltimore).

As Long As You Are is the follow-up to 2017’s The Far Field. The band’s core lineup of Samuel T. Herring (vocals), John Gerrit Welmers (keyboards), and William Cashion (bass), has now been officially joined by longtime touring drummer Michael Lowry (who also contributes to the songwriter). The four-piece co-produced the album with engineer Steve Wright, recording it at his Wrightway Studios in Baltimore.

Back in June 2020 Cashion self-released an ambient solo album under his own name entitled Postcard Music. Listen to our Why Not Both podcast interview with Cashion about balancing Future Islands with his ambient music.

Read our 2014 cover story article on Future Islands.

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