Part concept record, part novel, part tale of America in this Trump-era Presidency; the song is a great example of the album on a whole - catchy hook, erstwhile lyrics and a yearning for a better world full of hope despite the anxiety with the current climate, as Furman himself vouches:
“What’s essential is the mood - paranoid, authoritarian, the way certain people are stigmatised. It’s a theme in American life right now, and other so-called democracies.”
Full of intensity but paired with a bracing honesty that has been missing from recent rock records that focus on nostalgia and catchiness, Furman along with his backing band The Visions, may well be able to breakthrough to the mainstream - following critical acclaim for 2015's 'Perpetual Motion People' - by making the first true rock and roll artefact of the Trump administration.
There is a swell of anger running throughout the album, an undercurrent of rage at how minorities are being misunderstood or shunned to the sidelines by the 1%-ers in power. This comes across in the lead single 'Suck the Blood from my Wound' but there remains the need to be honest with yourself and your own being, Furman coming to terms with his sexuality 'Compulsive Liar' and the catchy 'No Place' where the yearning for acceptance is paramount.
Following on from minor or smaller albums, this is Furman's break for the mainstream by making his most personal open record to date.
Transangelic Exodus is out from Bella Union records this Friday. Furman is doing a small selection of sold-out shows in the UK this month, followed by a bigger arena tour including the Brixton Academy in May of this year.
