LISTEN: The Lives of Famous Men Share “Yuri”

The band’s Alex Newport-produced new album, Greener Pasture Blues, out November 10th

October 25, 2023October 25, 2023 Ron Hart 0 Comments 2023, Alaska, Alex Newport, Daniel Hall, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Los Angeles, The Lives of Famous Men, Yuri

The Lives of Famous Men (Image: Clarion Call Media)

Coming from the cold climes of Alaska but now based primarily in Los Angeles, The Lives of Famous Men pull from an amalgam of influences to craft a sound all their own.

Their brand of danceable art-pop have landed them a spot on MTV’s Campus Invasion Tour and an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, where they performed their song “Everyone I Know Right Now.”

Since coming together in 2007, LoFM have made it a habit of collaborating with prolific producers, including James Paul Wisner (Paramore), Casey Bates (Portugal. The Man), and Paul Q Kolderie (Radiohead). And over the summer, the band entered the studio with producer Alex Newport (Bloc Party, At the Drive-In) to record their new album Greener Pasture Blues, out November 10. And Rock & Roll Globe is honored to premiere the synthy Yuri, a song in which its narrator daydreams of a pre-recession New York captured in a Union Square street artist’s $10 sketch.

The Lives of Famous Men Greener Pasture Blues, self-released 2023

“I was living in New York when the country was just coming out of recession, and felt like it gave me a front row seat to runaway development and the growing wealth gap,” explains Daniel Hall, the group’s frontman and songwriter. “I remember walking through Union Square, and among the vendors hawking photos of Justin Bieber, I met an artist named Yuri who was doing these simple line drawings of what you might call the more romantic textures of the city. What really struck me were the water towers, like he was capturing a version of this place that wouldn’t be around for much longer. Musically, ‘Yuri’ is a bit of an outlier on the album. Where we’d normally reach for a guitar we leaned into vintage synth sounds, and I think it helps underline the unique perspective this song offers – one that sees beauty in decay while so-called progress shines all around.”

Listen to “Yuri” below and pre-order Greener Pasture Blues here. Through their combination of clever lyricism and buoyant melodies, the Lives of Famous Men are a band worth checking out. Fans of Vampire Weekend and Death Cab, keep an ear out!