STRFKR flash back to the 80’s during NYE run at The Indy

Photos by James Nagel // Written by Bridget Stagnitto //

STRFKR with Blackbird Blackbird //
The Independent – San Francisco
December 29th-30th, 2014 //

Portland-based band STRFKR arrived in SF for a three-day takeover of The Independent leading up to New Year’s Eve, and we caught up with them for the first two nights. Both nights were a sensory overload of pop sensibilities and dance fever, creating vehemence for the imminent NYE.

Each night had a similar setlist that both started with the smash song “Boy Toy” from their second album Jupiter. Launching into the dynamic synth-heavy song, they set the stage for a night of dance and frivolity.

After a couple of songs on the first night, Shawn Glassford (bass, keyboards, drums) stepped out of his pop coma to make the sincere announcement that his father is in the audience and how grateful he is to have him there. It brought a sort of nostalgia to the room with the holidays over and a new year galloping toward us. The only thing to do at that moment was to celebrate life and the times gone by.

The night continued on with an air of sentimentality and old standards like “Rawnald Gregory Erickson the Second” and “Isabella of Castile”, as the reassuring spirit of the songs allowed for a complacency with the past and present.

The party picked up again when the band began to play 80’s covers like “Don’t You Want Me” by The Human League before leading into “Blue Monday” by New Order. Following those songs came “Head Over Heals” by Tear for Fears and “Girls Just want to Have Fun” by Cindy Lauper, and the crowd went crazy for the renditions of these classic hits. STRFKR’s own music is so comparable to the 80’s synthpop/rock hits of that time that it makes sense they would do covers of those iconic songs.

What is so great about a band like STRFKR is that they are entirely self-aware. When Joshua Hodges created the band, he picked the name as a joke. The goal was not to get too caught up in the rat race of the music business, but lo and behold, STRFKR has made four albums and has even licensed a song for a Target television commercial. These guys are happy just to play their music for an audience, and it shows in their performance.