Standout Track: No. 2, “Secret Plans,” a modern space-disco cut from Furniteur’s self-titled debut EP. A hybrid project from visual artist Brittany Sims and members of D.C.-synthpop group Brett, Furniteur’s been kicking around for the past few months, jamming in a Columbia Heights basement studio and digging through old disco record crates. Although the resulting EP is a marriage of vintage dance and wistful synthpop, “Secret Plans,” a track closer to dark minimal wave than Donna Summers, is the clear standout.
Musical Motivation: Inspired by ’70s and ’80s artists like the Flirts and Brigitte Bardot, Sims and her collaborators used parts of their favorite disco tracks to construct contemporary pop songs with a sound indebted to classic dance club cuts. The group built “Secret Plans” around a distorted acid bass line. The track is darker than the others on the EP, but the moody tone allowed the new band to deviate and explore unexpected themes. “When you’re in the middle of writing something, you develop a story,” says Sims. “Once I get more comfortable with it, I can kind of feel it out, and I’ll go back and edit and intellectualize after.”
Layer Up: Simms is involved in every step of the creative process. She made Furniteur’s music video for “Modern Love” and does the majority of the band’s artwork. Sims is a practitioner of “relaxed realism,” her self-styled form of semi-abstract painting and drawing. While she notes that her “messy” visual arts process differs from studio recording, Furniteur’s layered songwriting style is seeping into Sims’ aesthetic. “I think the idea of layering paint processes was influenced by the way our music is created—the layering of tracks and the push and pull between pure sonic experience and structure,” Sims says.
Stream “Secret Plans” after the jump. Furniteur plays Oct. 2 at the Capitol Skyline Hotel.