Formed in North Carolina in 2006, Future Islands has been carving out their own space in indie music for close to two decades. Samuel T. Herring, William Cashion, and Gerrit Welmers have built a reputation for mixing synth-pop with raw emotional performances. Their sound blends upbeat melodies with lyrics that touch on love, loss, and everything in between.

Their current tour supports their latest album, People Who Aren’t There Anymore, and on May 13 they brought that energy to the House of Blues Anaheim.

Open Mike Eagle set the tone for the night by blending humor, storytelling, and rhymes into a set that felt laid-back and kept the crowd engaged. He wrapped it up with a freestyle that even I didn’t expect.

When Future Islands hit the stage, everything shifted. Samuel T. Herring’s presence on stage is incredible. He has so much energy and passion as he sings and dances around stage, and shows visceral emotions with his facial expressions without holding back.

The new album hits themes of memory, grief, and moving forward, and those songs carried extra weight live. Even if you weren’t familiar with the lyrics, you could feel the emotion behind them that have captivated fans for so long. Future Islands is one of those bands that gives everything they’ve got.

Setlist:

King of Sweden
The Tower
A Dream of You and Me
Walking Through That Door
Corner of My Eye
Ran
Plastic Beach
Peach
Light House
Give Me the Ghost Back
The Sickness
City’s Face (Samuel solo)
The Thief
For Sure
Glimpse
Seasons (Waiting on You)
Long Flight
Tin Man

Encore:
Back in the Tall Grass
Inch of Dust
Vireo’s Eye
Little Dreamer