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Francis and the Lights have stepped into the spotlight (pun intended) in recent weeks when the New York-based group released the star-studded video for “Friends,” a track that it turns out was sampled on Chance The Rapper’s “Summer Friends.” The fact that Chance’s song predated the release of the Francis and the Lights track it sampled — plus the inclusion of at the time uncredited Bon Iver harmonies — had fans a bit confused about the whole web of connection.
Turns out the group’s driving force, Francis Farewell Starlite, is good friends with Chance, Justin Vernon, and perhaps by extension Kanye (who is clearly a fan), as the latter two featured in his “Friends” video, and he performed the entirety of his new album Farewell, Starlite! at Vernon’s Eaux Claires Festival this summer. As if that wasn’t enough of an illuminati web, consider that Francis and the Lights also opened for Drake way back in the day for his Away From Home tour.
And even if all of those cosigns don’t pique your interest, then the sheer magic of the band’s sound will. As Consequence of Sound noted earlier today, they shared another new track without a lot of fanfare via Spotify this week — we can only assume it’s from the forthcoming Starlite! album — but don’t let the exclamation point fool you, both “Friends” and this new one, “See Her Out,” register as more mournful than anything. Francis’ particular slithering synth autotune technique/tool, called The Messina, has been much-debated and discussed, and seems to be featured prominently on this anxious, glittering new track. Listen below and look for more from this enigmatic group coming soon.
