FLOYA are the perfect band to open us all up to the spring and summer sounds. Lush and nostalgic synths, with bouncing rhythms and gorgeous vocals, they’re fast turning heads with their debut album Yume. An album stacked with athematic songs; we caught up with vocalist Phil Bayer about the record, playing live and continuing to explore their sound.
“What’s most important to us when we’re writing a song is, how does it make us feel? We’re trying to not look for anything intentionally, a lot of what we do just happens or it doesn’t, whatever feels right in that particular moment,” Phil explains about the songwriting process. “Speaking from a lyrical perspective, Wonders was the first track that changed my outlook on myself writing songs a lot. It was that massive shift in my mind that happened; I wanted to write about positivity and love while also trying to weave a certain consciousness of passing time in there. What I mean by that is; everyday life makes it hard to recognise that our days are ultimately numbered, so a lot of what we write about is conscious living, taking action now.”
Yume has found an instant audience, with the album feeling coherent and fluid, while each song stands proud in its own right. “We’re trying to control the outcome of what we write as much as possible, but we’re trying not to limit ourselves during these processes, so it’s always a bit of ‘expect the unexpected’,” Phil clarifies about the process of honing the album. “That notion is what keeps things interesting for us. Sometimes you want a song to go into a certain direction only to then see that your monkey brain thought of something entirely different,” he laughs. “Sometimes the results of that can be astounding.”
Avid listeners will note that while this is FLOYA’s debut album, the duo have been working towards the record for a while, dropping singles for several months. While it’s been a long time in the making, it’s allowed the vision of the band to really solidify. “It’s a lot like getting older, with every passing day, you can kind of condense what it is you want a little more. So, I’d say the vision of this project is still very much on par with how it felt to us right at the beginning, we just fleshed it out more as time passes.”
The live shows are another huge draw to FLOYA, with energetic performances that really enhance their music. “We love playing live so much, it’s priceless to feel people’s emotions and our own in these moments. It’s also always interesting to find out how much we change a given song in a live environment, that’s always an adventure,” Phil happily agrees. “We’re very happy about how the album turned out, it’s been a long and, at times, painful process, there’s so much of our personalities in there. We can’t wait to take this to the stage!”
As a band with a lively, bright sound, the synth element is a vital part of bringing in the vibe. However, what makes FLOYA stand apart from a purely synthwave or progressive band is that they can blend and break expectations. “Sometimes it might be nostalgic when we’re talking about analogue synth emulations, but sometimes our synths tend to be fully intentionally digital too,” he laughs. “I think what adds to that nostalgic feeling sometimes is Marv’s playing as its deeply rooted in the 80s and 90s with a modern twist to it.” The pull of old school sounds coupled with a contemporary approach and application has rooted FLOYA as a fresh sound in the music scene. Experimenting with sounds without being constricted means that FLOYA can play around with genre’s without feeling stuck. “What keeps us motivated long term is finding out how far we can take this mixture of rock and electronic music, you know? But I wouldn’t go and limit the possibilities of what FLOYA can sound like, as we want to artistically express ourselves as freely as possible.”
FLOYA’s approach music in the same way they seem to approach life. There’s a huge amount of positivity spun into Yume in the bittersweet moments. By actively choosing optimistic sound to channel life’s issues and conflicts makes for a encouraging soundtrack to life. “Absolutely! We focus a lot on the positive sides of life as it is very easy to find reasons to focus on the things that don’t work in our lives, you know? Focusing on what does work makes every day so much more enjoyable to us as people.”
Yume is out now via Arising Empire.
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