Faux Furrs’ latest single transcends this world (Review and Interview)
By Reegan Saunders
Have you ever wanted to live amongst the clouds?
More than ever, I find myself turning to music to find an escape from the current hologram we are living in. Recently, while doing that, I have found listening to Chicago band Faux Furrs is equivalent to walking through the sky. Their version of psychedelic rock is structured but dreamy—their music expands beyond the basis of genre—and their latest single, “Worlds Made of Words,” is nothing short of genre-bending.
You enjoy listening to music, right? Then find a spot in the sun and go listen to this single. Here, the five-piece steers away from the simplicity of garage rock and, instead, introduces listeners to an electronic component and an infectious bassline. Additionally, the poetic lyrics mixed with guitarist and vocalist Ryan Deffet and Lena Rush’s spacey vocals create a sound you can get lost in.
Recently, I had the chance to talk with Ryan Deffet and guitarist Ryan Nolen about the single, and what it was like writing it.
As the song goes,
“Keep your head
There's nothing gloom will get you
But trouble now
Keep you read if
There's nothing left to save you
From these worlds
Made of words”
“I don’t want to write lyrics that are super cheesy because I can’t bring myself to sing them without annoying myself,” Deffet said. “So, I put time into the lyrics and that was a really good call because, even today, they mean something to me.”
The lyrics ring in a more positive note in the face of a global pandemic and the struggles that have come with the uprising of the Black Lives Matter Movement. Speaking of the BLM movement, too, if this song doesn’t already entice you based on its positive message alone, the Bandcamp sales from “Worlds Made of Words” are being donated to Assata’s Daughters, a Chicago-based Black women and youth-led organization that focuses on Black Liberation.
“We don’t want to take away from the focus of what’s going on right now politically. Everyone says it’s not a moment, it’s a movement, and we truly believe in that, and the song speaks to that. Us, being a white band right now, to release a song feels a little weird. So, if we can give back in some way, that’s the least we could do,” Deffet explained.
Faux Furrs plans to release an album next year once they are able to safely return to the studio, and fans can expect more depth to their sound. For now, here’s how “the Ryans” of Faux Furrs would describe their music as a color:
Ryan Deffet: I always think, like, greens and blues.
Ryan Nolen: I think if you wanted to use any purples or reds, it’s just in the exploration of frustration that eventually manifests itself in something much lighter. I think there’s a lot of merit in what Ryan said, and the way he writes says, ‘Here’s frustration, here’s something that we can’t get over, and maybe, if we hover focus, flip the lens, there’s a way out; there’s a way for all of us.’ I don’t think that anything’s meant to be positive intentionally. But, it kind of has that feeling.
Ryan Deffet: So, what color is that?
Ryan Nolen: (chuckles) ROYGBIV
Ryan Deffet: We came home the other day from Wisconsin. We were taking a trip, and unfortunately our tour van/RV/buddy of two years kind of crapped out on us in Kenosha. We had to take the train back but we were with our friends and the sky that night- there was this crazy storm. The sky was more beautiful than I had ever seen the Chicago sky. And, I think that color, which I don’t really know how to describe- it felt right. If I could have the sky look like this, I would live in this color. It was like purples, magentas, orange, mango…all this crazy stuff going on.
Ryan Nolen: Mango and magenta that’s it.
Ryan Deffet: And then you look over there and still see a hint of the blue and the green trees against all that, looking amazing. And there was a rainbow in the sky.
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PC: Kevin Tiongson