I've been on a hiatus of sorts, but nothing compared to
Le Futur Pompiste, who are putting out their second album after a six year interim. The sheer fullness of their self-titled sophomore release on
Shelflife Records is proof enough that they haven't been sitting on their laurels, and with all the layers and swells and keys and guitars, Le Futur Pompiste have started to sound a lot like a Scandinavian Rocketship. And in case the banner isn't a tip-off, I'd say that's quite the accolade. Having Ms. Jessika Rapo of Burning Hearts fame on vocals is just icing on the cake. Now, I like to categorize music into soundtracks for life, you know, "this album I can dance to, this album I can sleep to, this album I can cook to" and so forth, and
Le Futur Pompiste was no exception, except, well, it was sort of difficult to pigeon-hole. It's not so introspective that you wouldn't listen to it around other people, so maybe you'd play it at something intimate. It has a certain openness to it, so maybe you could listen to it outside, but it has an almost ethereal quality that you'd probably want to just sit and enjoy. After a couple listens I figured out that it would be a perfect soundtrack for a picnic, but not just any picnic, it would be perfect for a picnic through infinity where when you look up you see this:
and the only disturbance is that little skip when the album starts over.
But don't take my word for it, order it
here, and download the complimentary .mp3 copy. Once you've done that, pack a snack, and head outside and just lie on your back and listen.
For the abridged experience, download Five Hundred Heartbeats and look out a window.
Five Hundred Heartbeats .mp3
