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Future Clouds and Radar

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Future Clouds and Radar
OriginAustin, Texas, United States
GenresPower pop
Years active2006–present
LabelsStar Apple Kingdom
MembersRobert Harrison
Josh Gravelin
Hollie Thomas
Kullen Fuchs
Darin Murphy

Future Clouds and Radar is an American rock group from Austin, Texas. It was founded by Robert Harrison after the dissolution of his previous group, Cotton Mather, and features several of the same musicians.

History

Following the commercial failure of The Big Picture, Cotton Mather quietly ended in 2003. Harrison stepped away from the music world for some time to focus on raising his family. When he returned to making music in 2006, he assembled a collective of musicians and set about "creating music that couldn't be boxed in".[1] Although the music was recorded by a vast array of musicians with Harrison as the only constant member, he still chose to present it as a band to emphasize the contributions of the other musicians.[2]

The first release from the group, and the first release on Harrison's Star Apple Kingdom label, was an eponymous double album, released in 2007. Though largely rooted in the power pop vein of Cotton Mather, Future Clouds And Radar was much more experimental and varied, incorporating genres as wide-ranging as reggae, psychedelia, avant-garde, and ambient music. The following year, the group released a second album, Peoria, which continued in the same musical vein but clocked in at 35 minutes. Also in 2008, a single-disc distillation of the debut album was released in the UK, removing eleven tracks and adding three otherwise unavailable acoustic performances.

The group never officially disbanded, and occasionally still plays around Austin, but have not released anything since 2009. Although Harrison's now-defunct blog stated that the "Songs from the I Ching" project would feature music from both of his projects[3], everything that has been released as of 2019 has been credited to Cotton Mather.

Musical style

Like Cotton Mather, Future Clouds and Radar has been described as being of the power pop genre.[4][5][6] Austinist called Future Clouds and Radar "Beatles-esque psychedelia"[7] while the New Yorker described it as "sprawling orchestral art rock."[8]

Upon release of the debut album, NPR wrote:

It's up for debate whether Austin-based Robert Harrison's double-disc debut is pure genius with blind ambition, or the product of an excess of ideas. In any case, his band Future Clouds and Radar certainly knows how to entertain. The self-titled album crosses a dozen different styles and gets handed numerous genre-definers, all of which include the word "art" as a prefix. Future Clouds and Radar would seem to be inspired by The Flaming Lips or Guided By Voices, whose prolificacy Harrison emulates.[9]

Videos

Nickelodeon animator Keith Graves was chosen to create a video of the song "Dr. No." [10] Other videos include:[11]

  • Holy Janet Comes on Waves
  • Back Seat Silver Jet Sighter
  • This Is Really A Book
  • Build Havana
  • Hurricane Judy
  • The Epcot View

Reception

The first album received high praise from critics, drawing comparisons to The Flaming Lips, 13th Floor Elevators, Electric Light Orchestra, Robert Pollard, Robyn Hitchcock, John Lennon, World Party, and the Kinks. David Greenberger says "... file this next to the White Album."[12][13] NPR wrote ""Audacious? Sure. But undeniably impressive."[14] Texas public radio station KUT listed it among the best albums of the year 2007 [15] while Pop Narcotic listed it in its top 10 of the year.[16]

The second album, Peoria (a "kaleidoscopic vision into a single cinematic narrative about mortality"[17]) also received rave reviews:

  • "A triumph of schizophrenic musical vision ... a beautiful and brilliant mess ... magnificent double disc collection of pop gems – 4 stars." (Paste Magazine).[18]
  • "Whether FC&R is essaying dreamy, electronicaized psychedelia, blue-eyed soul anthemry, Latin-flecked jangle-pop, or full-guns a-blazing, fuzzed-out garage, the material is executed with a jazzlike precision and suffused with a deeply emotional, spontaneous vibe. Winner 2007's Debut Artist of the Year" (Harp Magazine).[18] Harp placed Future Clouds and Radar as number 4 on its list of top 50 CDs of 2007[19]

Discography

Future Clouds and Radar

  • Released: 2007
  • Label: Star Apple Kingdom

Disc 1

  1. Birds Of Prey
  2. Let Me Get Your Coat
  3. Hurricane Judy
  4. Drugstore Bust
  5. This Is Really A Book
  6. You Will Be Loved
  7. Quicksilver
  8. Where's My Drink?
  9. Holy Janet Comes On Waves
  10. Wake Up And Live
  11. Our Time
  12. Green Mountain Clover
  13. Devil No More

Disc 2

  1. Quicksilver 2
  2. Get Your Boots On
  3. Build Havana
  4. Dr. No
  5. Back Seat Silver Jet Sighter
  6. Malice of Stars
  7. The Great Escape
  8. Letters To Junius
  9. Altitude
  10. Cowboy Weather
  11. Armitage Shanks
  12. Christmas Day 1923
  13. Wake
  14. Safety Zone

UK single-CD edition

  1. Birds Of Prey
  2. Let Me Get Your Coat
  3. Hurricane Judy
  4. Drugstore Bust
  5. This Is Really A Book
  6. You Will Be Loved
  7. Quicksilver
  8. Get Your Boots On
  9. Build Havana
  10. Dr. No
  11. Back Seat Silver Jet Sighter
  12. Malice Of Stars
  13. Altitude
  14. Cowboy Weather
  15. Safety Zone
  16. Green Mountain Clover
  17. Holy Janet Comes On Waves (Acoustic)
  18. Quicksilver (Acoustic)
  19. Let Me Get Your Coat (Acoustic)

Peoria

  • Released: 2008
  • Label: Star Apple Kingdom
  1. The Epcot View
  2. Old Edmund Ruffin
  3. Feet On Grass
  4. Mummified
  5. 18 Months
  6. The Mortal
  7. Mortal 926
  8. Follow The Crane

References

  1. ^ Powell, Austin; Fri.; Nov. 14; 2008. "Strawberry Fields Forever". www.austinchronicle.com. Retrieved 2020-04-11. {{cite web}}: |last4= has numeric name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ Mills, Fred. "IT'S ABOUT THE SHOW Future Clouds & Radar". Blurt Magazine. Retrieved 2020-04-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ "Robert Harrison — Songs from The I Ching". web.archive.org. 2018-09-01. Retrieved 2020-04-11.
  4. ^ "Indie Blog Heaven".
  5. ^ "Pop Matters, "Future Clouds and Radar"".
  6. ^ "Popfair - Classic Power Pop, "New Future Clouds and Radar"". Archived from the original on July 20, 2011.
  7. ^ "Austinist Show Preview & Giveaway: Future Clouds and Radar at The Parish". Archived from the original on July 4, 2008.
  8. ^ "We Heart Music".
  9. ^ "SXSW 2007: Future Clouds and Radar".
  10. ^ "New Future Clouds and Radar video "Dr. No"".
  11. ^ "Future Clouds & Radar at YouTube".
  12. ^ "David Greenberger's Editorial Review at Amazon".
  13. ^ "Winter Academy, the 2007 Review Edition, "Future Clouds and Radar"".
  14. ^ "We Heart Music, Austin's Future Clouds and Radar".
  15. ^ "David Brown, "The Best Albums of the Year, from KUT"".
  16. ^ "Pop Narcotic, Best Albums of 2007".
  17. ^ "CD Central".
  18. ^ a b "Vintage Guitar Magazine, "Future Clouds and Radar"".[dead link]
  19. ^ "Stereogum, "Harp Puts Okkervil River Atop Its Top 50 CDs Of 2007"".
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