Future Islands Biography

The American synthpop band known as Future Islands was established in Baltimore, Maryland in 2006, by founding members Gerrit Welmers, William Cashion, and Samuel T. Herring. Herring and Welmers grew up as neighbors and became friends in middle school; after rounding out the initial lineup while they were in high school — under the name Art Lord & the Self Portraits — the band gained a local following and began performing at various venues around the Southwest.

In 2006, the band switched its name to Future Islands and self-released a debut EP, Little Advances. While continuing to perform at dozens of venues throughout the year, the group began preparing material for their debut album, which arrived in 2007. Wave Like Home, as it was called, was released in the UK on the Upset! The Rhythm label, creating some international marketing challenges. After securing a deal with the American label Thrill Jockey, Future Islands went on to release the additional albums In Evening Air (2010) and On the Water (2011.) Future Islands released a dozen singles from the albums, but none of them charted, although the songs “Vireo’s Eye” and “Inch of Dust” were both featured in the television series Shameless, and the song “Swept Inside,” from the album Evening Air, was featured in the hit series Fear the Walking Dead.

It was the album Singles, released in 2014 on the 4AD label, that became Future Island’s big breakthrough. On the strength of the single “Seasons (Waiting on You),” the album rose into the top forty on both the UK charts and the mainstream charts in the United States. Additional singles include “A Dream of You and Me,” “Doves,” “Light house,” and “A Song for Our Grandfathers.” Between 2014 and 2017, Future Islands performed at a number of high-profile festivals, including Glastonbury Festival and Coachella, and on television shows such as The Late Show with David Letterman, Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, and Conan.

Today, Future Islands is a band on the rise and just getting started. The group continues to perform and record with the current lineup of Welmers, Herring, and William Cashion. Future Islands most recently released the album The Far Field (2017), featuring the songs “Cave” and “Ran,” the latter of which rose into the top twenty on the mainstream charts in the United States.