FUTUREPROOF PICKS 23-10-25

Hello world,

Here’s your latest FP Picks update with banging new tunes as always fm Floodlights, Rhumba Club, Big Thief & many more. If you like what you hear please follow and share this playlist, it helps us keep doing our thing by getting the algorithms on our side. Also please support the artists featured in any way you can!

Until next week

Helen (Futureproof) x

Floodlights – Tricky

Australian rock outfit Floodlights have dropped uplifting new single Tricky ahead of their upcoming shows in the UK supporting Australian punk quartet Amyl and the Sniffers. The track marks a fresh turn for the band while staying true to the distinctive sound that defined their latest album Underneath. Capturing a new synth-heavy sound, the band look into the more abstract, euphoric moments that come from letting go of the past and embracing the future, explaining “Love can be tricky and humans can be tricky too .. We leant heavily on rhythm and synth for this love song which felt invigorating, trying to bridge the gap between rock and dance, sadness and euphoria.” Utterly loving this banger at Futureproof Towers!!

Big Thief – Words

Big Thief recently shared the mind-altering, absurd, giddy, beautiful video for one of their album’s standout tracks, the “searching, propulsive” (The Independent) Words. The video was directed by Adrianne Lenker’s brother, Noah Lenker, who comments: “The finite meanings of our words encompass the boundaries of how we perceive reality.  Yet… there are times when cosmic bubbles breach through our spirit’s wellspring and issue forth other sensations—glimmers of possibilities, ineffable vastness, and mystagogic connectedness beyond the horizon where language dissolves.  Do we wield words, or do our words wield us?  And how may we reshape and shape anew words that will better aid us?  Sometimes we must play with the letters of our alphabet soup, sometimes we must combust our pencils to then scribe novel glyphs of empowerment into the sands of time.”

Lando Manning – Blue Silk Ribbons

London folk artist Lando Manning self-describes the music on his new EP Fragments as a “love letter to English Folk, but if it was written by Mary Shelley.” He says heartfelt new single Blue Silk Ribbons is: “a track about paying respects to the generations that came before. We’re all here because of the sacrifices that have been made by generations before us in our families. This song is an ode to that and is about keeping on, inspired by the perseverance of our forebears. I was really interested in psychogeography when I was writing this song, so the lyrics’ imagery is inspired by northern coastlines where my Dad’s side of the family are from, as I believe the landscapes that we grow up around have a big impact on who we become emotionally.” Gorgeous vocals on this captivating track.

Cubzoa – Buckle Up

Cubzoa (aka Jack Wolter) has dropped new single Buckle Up from his debut album Unfold The Sky, out tomorrow. His soft, reflective and genre-pushing sound is eccentric and subtly mysterious, driven by thumping electronic musical elements and soaring, almost angelic, vocals guiding us through a spellbinding story. The synthetic, in the form of loops and whorls, is a powerful presence in Buckle Up and underpinned by a frenetic paranoia and urgency, it was written, “as a response to the challenging times artists were facing worldwide during the pandemic.”  When he received the first mix of the song from Graham Walsh, he knew that Walsh would be the right person to mix the entire album, “he coloured it in beautifully”.

Fcukers – I like It Like That

Dance-pop duo Fcukers extend their impressive streak with their newest release I Like It Like That, available now via Ninja Tune. The track marks the band’s second collaboration with producer Kenneth Blume (FKA Kenny Beats) following their recent track Play Me. Blending Fcukers’ vibrant energy with Blume’s polished production, the track bursts with confident hooks and infectious rhythms that cement the duo’s place at the forefront of the global dance-pop scene. With I Like It Like That, Fcukers showcase their ability to combine high-octane production with irresistible pop appeal. Fcukers are set to support Tame Impala on their upcoming US tour and will then embark on a headline tour across the UK, Europe, and the US, with sold-out shows in London, Berlin, and Amsterdam.

Natalie Shay – Do u relate?

Natalie Shay has a knack for capturing the turbulence of your twenties and turning them into sharp, infectious indie-pop, turning growing pains into gold on new single Do u relate? The track captures that restless, transitional stage, when you’re still under your family’s roof but itching to take the next step. Shay shares, “It couldn’t be more of a diary entry of my thoughts and emotions around that time. I always write about things I feel, or from observing people close to me. I love to perform songs that tell the story of me… I just hope to be relatable and for people to be like, ‘oh yeah, I feel like that sometimes too.’” Infectious and uplifting, the track radiates the energy of a full band, with an epic sax solo.

Rhumba Club – Talk Me Into It

Following on from last month’s team-up with Patrick Wolf on Animal/Lover, Tom Falle’s Rhumba Club are back with another banger from the HONCHO album. Falle imbues the music of Rhumba Club with a straightforwardly queer aesthetic, much of it tying into the playful demimonde of early Italo, 1980s synthpop, and porn soundtracks. Falle cites Patrick Cowley’s music as an influence on the album, and you can hear that in the retro tones and throbbing bass line, leaving you in no doubt as to what this celebration of queer identity is about.“I wanted a song that feels both intimate and relentless,” says Falle about the song, “that moment when you lean in, and everything’s on the table.”

Midlake – The Calling

Midlake have shared their new single The Calling, taken from the upcoming album A Bridge To Far. Frontman Eric Pulido says: “I really liked where we landed with The Calling. A driving vibe that opens up nicely with the horn section Jesse and Sam devised so perfectly. Lyrically the song has to do with my own struggle with applying myself towards a given effort; denying or embracing that which we were made to do.” Of the album, he states: “The album title and track, not a typo, explores the hope, belief and ultimate path to something or somewhere greater, despite the circumstances. Escapism can be a double edged sword but the desire is to encourage it for good. Making this record with the band and producer Sam Evian at Echo Lab was a great experience and the perfect match for these songs.”

Anna Calvi – I See A Darkness (ft. Perfume Genius)

Anna Calvi and Perfume Genius have covered Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s I See a Darkness and the haunting cover sees the two join forces and explore themes of intimacy beyond romance – celebrating the deep connection that can be found in friendship. Calvi said of the duet: “So many songs are about romantic love. But I wanted to highlight the romance of the chosen family, the depth of connection that isn’t tethered to heteronormative ideals. It’s such a powerful song about the yearning for intimacy. I love inhabiting other people’s songs. When I sing someone else’s words, I feel like I’m getting closer to myself somehow, because the songs I choose express something I can’t articulate.”