Album Review: Future Islands - On The Water

Harnessing a little of the synth muscle that fellow Baltimore residents Beach House have tapped into, Future Islands' third record eschews that band's soaring power for something more restrained. Now a three-piece, there's little in the way of intricacies or anything that suggests an eye for detail; rather, these songs for the most part grow gently and ride on long, drawn-out synth lines and Samuel T. Herring's idiosyncratic vocals. Fluctuating between spoken word and a guttural croak, it's a feature that may polarise listeners but its strength is impossible to ignore.

A blueprint for the remainder of On The Water, the self-titled opener rises slowly with a pulsing bass and a drum machine kicking out the most basic of beats. Then Herring weighs in, spitting out syllables on life and loving nothing, to life and loving something, and it's intensely compelling. First single Before The Bridge is a throwback of sorts to the dancefloor of the '80s, while follower The Great Fire sees a splendid contribution from Wye Oak's Jenn Wasner. The serve and return that the two engage in, like a call across a canyon, perfectly encapsulates the album's pervading theme of love and the myriad questions it throws up. After several plaintive, emotionally-charged tracks, the energy of Before The Bridge returns with Close To None and second single Balance, but the thread of Herring's arresting vocals holds it all together. On The Water requires complete submission from listeners; if you don't buy into the theatre of Herring's vocals and the emotiveness of the music, you'll miss the point entirely. But for those who give it their all, a truly great record awaits.