Foster the People – Torches
For fans of: Portugal The Man, MGMT, Yeasayer
At this point in the summer, chances are good that you’ve already heard of Foster the People. The pop band’s catchy songs have caught on like wildfire in recent months and are now being constantly circulated over radio, Facebook, and Turntable.fm. The band was even recently nominated for Best New Artist at MTV’s Video Music Awards. Not too shabby for a band that only formed two years ago. Foster the People began in 2009 and started gaining traction after a few notable South by Southwest performances. A year later and the band has a mainstream label deal (Columbia) and is showing up on every conceivable media outlet. The meteoric rise of this group isn’t surprising once you take a listen to the pop-hook-heavy, summery sounds of the band’s catchy singles.
The lead single “Pumped Up Kicks” has given the band most of its notoriety, but there plenty more gems to be found on Foster the People’s debut album Torches, which was released this July on Columbia. The band’s sound has a rock foundation, infectious pop vocals, and hints of psychedelic pop that remind us a bit of Portugal The Man and MGMT. The falsetto-driven choruses are unabashedly catchy on almost every song, which accounts for the band’s rising popularity, but only a single track (or maybe two) feels redundant. Mostly, the songs will put just about anyone in a good mood and make them want to sing along and possibly even dance. That’s good enough for us on most days. If you’re looking for a great pop album that has more backbone and creativity than your top 40 hits but is just as catchy, look no further.
