Provo, Utah’s Festive People have been establishing themselves this year as a new band that’s reminiscent of the best of 70’s music. This is something they pride themselves on, as their bio on Twitter currently proclaims themselves as a mix of “your mom’s groovy 70’s tunes + your dad’s Pink Floyd records.”
Festive People is gearing up to release their new album, In the Black, on August 3rd. Two songs have been released so far – “Boxcar” and “Behave” – that represent this 70’s sound incredibly well.
Luckily for you, however, today we are excited to be premiering another new song from Festive People called “Hostage” (out everywhere on June 8th). Expanding on the new song, lead vocalist John Lane explains that “Hostage is a song about the trap that relationships can fall into called stonewalling (where one person just stops communicating with the other). That’s something I have a tendency of doing and I’d like to stop it so I wrote a song about it. I often like to write lyrics from the perspective of the other person because it forces me to really dig deep and analyze what my natural reactions to different situations are doing to those I love and care for most. The rhythm and groove of the song itself was inspired by ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World’ by Tears for Fears.”
While the song tackles some serious subject matter, the psychedelic synth groove and daunting vocals provide an easy beat to tap along to. The steady beat throughout the song sets the tone, while the chorus is reminiscent of a mix of Joywave/Saint Motel. Listen to “Hostage” for yourself below.
If you like what you hear today, then be sure to pre-order Festive People’s new album, In the Black due out August 3rd. This is a band that has already been featured on Teen Mom and appeared at events such as Stadium of Fire, Timpanogos Music Festival, Provo’s Rooftop Concert Series, and Colorado’s Mountain Air Music Series, so the future is looking very bright.
They also have a handful of upcoming shows announced, which you can check out directly below.
June 28th – Lighthouse Lounge – Ogden, Utah
July 2nd – Provo Freedom Festival – Provo, Utah