STRFKR Vinyl & CDs

Review: Portland, Oregon electro-indie beauties Strfkr return with their first album in almost half a decade, following on from their couplet of projects unveiled in 2020. While their home-recorded shoegazing Future Past Life exuded some of their most ethereal and experimental material to date, Ambient 1 would arrive later in the year and provide a fully instrumental nod to the likes of Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk with its slow building synth lines and retro New Age prog meanderings. Having got all of that artistic experimentation out of the way, and returned to the studio to craft a work full certain to enjoy a touring cycle, Parallel Realms reverts, pivots and dances its way toward a newfound place of Balearic-tinged, disco-laden synth-pop; offering on their eighth full-length LP, a more succinct, direct and instantaneous formula than ever previously proverbed.

Review: If you're familiar with Strfkr, the Portland, Oregon indie outfit's knack for crafting earthy indie stuff that sounds as like it was born in the late-1960s but made entirely for the 2020s will be no secret. On 'Future Past Life' they take that blueprint to the next level, drawing on greater levels of psyche-pop and rock to deliver a record that's incredibly nice to listen to, and also pretty timeless. At its loudest, opener 'Dear Stranger' is a cacophonous, surreal mass of whirring melodies, muffled drums and jangling guitars, dropping out into the comparatively pared back 'Never The Same', an uptempo acoustic love song. These early tasters tell us everything there is to know about the record overall, which also boasts 'Second Hand' and its air of latter-day MGMT, 'Sea Foam' which uses synths to great effect, and closing number 'Cold Comfort', ending things on an electronic high.