St. Louis band Starwolf has stood at the intersection of synthwave and yacht rock since 2016, making music that pays homage to the sunny sounds of the later genre.
The group鈥檚 songs feel like racing through a neon lit cityscape. The trio鈥檚 debut EP, 鈥淭i Amo, Stargazer鈥� shows the band standing next to a bright yellow Corvette. On the cover of its 2020 album 鈥淎stro Lobo,鈥� the trio can be seen boarding a jet.
The band set its sights even higher for its latest album, attempting a cover showing them on a yacht heading into space.
鈥淭he yacht was too big, and we couldn't really get a good picture of it,鈥� said Max Sauer, the group鈥檚 vocalist, synth player, guitarist and percussionist.
Instead, the group used a picture of a disco ball from percussionist and synth player, Tim Moore's wedding, superimposing it in space. It may have been the perfect image for its 2024 album, 鈥淭ropical Disco,鈥� something that still shows the group鈥檚 influences.
But the original image still shows the direction the band is taking its sound.
鈥淪tarwolf started off as a synth-heavy 鈥�80s pop band,鈥� Moore said. 鈥淲e've morphed into more 鈥�70s jazz, galactic disco. That鈥檚 what we鈥檙e going with.鈥�
The band will take that new sound to The Duck Room on Sunday, February 2, when opening for Australian musician Donny Benet.
鈥淭ropical Disco鈥� features the synths, thumping bass, electronic sounds of the band鈥檚 old work, but it鈥檚 a little more ambitious.
Even though the trio is trying to take listeners to the stars, the album is still grounded in the music of this planet, including artists such as Australian indie rock outfit Tame Impala and Japanese jazz fusion artist Masayoshi Takanaka.
鈥�I was listening to a ton of different music from all around the world, a lot of 1970s Brazilian funk, a lot of bossa nova, a lot of this genre called exotica,鈥� Sauer said.
Sauer started working on the album in 2020 when the band couldn鈥檛 be in the same space because of the coronavirus pandemic. He鈥檇 sent parts of the instrumental record to the rest of the band.
鈥淚 essentially would start a song, and I would map it out and make this structure for it, and add the different elements to it,鈥� Sauer said. 鈥淚t was kind of like a challenge to me to try to surprise them and impress them 鈥� if I have their approval then that's all I really want.鈥�
The album鈥檚 first track, 鈥淢oon Castle鈥� was the first recording Sauer sent over. The cinematic track features the synths and drums that have become a hallmark of the band as well as sweeping flute arrangements.
鈥淭he goal was to take, you know, take the listeners on a galactic disco journey, adventure, and I think we accomplished that,鈥� vocalist, synth player, guitarist and bassist Chris Rhein said.
The seven song album has a strong world bent. S茫o Paulo-born flutist Paulo Oliveira, Spanish sitarist Marc Planells and Italian keyboardist Marcello Cassanelli all contribute throughout the album. Regular collaborators return, including the group鈥檚 producer Jason Kingsland, who worked with indie acts including Band of Horses, Washed Out and Belle and Sebastian.
It also includes bassist Tim Lefebvre, a collaborator who鈥檚 worked with the group before and played a major role on David Bowie鈥檚 final album, 鈥淏lackstar.鈥�
All of their contributions help make the band what it is, Rhein said.
鈥淲orking with Tim, even the baselines that [Sauer] was coming up with for him to go off of, are just a huge step up just from working with guys like that,鈥� he said.
The music has clicked with fans, especially on Some of the videos have attracted hundreds of thousands of views, even a million for a video of themselves with filters to look old. They joke that they鈥檙e a band from the 鈥�70s that never made it, and now they鈥檙e finally putting out the album they鈥檝e always wanted to.
For Sauer, seeing the vision he cooked up five years ago has been otherworldly.
鈥淚t was like a dream come true,鈥� Sauer said. 鈥淎nd surprisingly, a lot of people are looking for that as well.鈥�
Catch Starwolf at 7 p.m. on Sunday February 2, at the Duck Room. Get more information on the
