Far Far Away will bring you back to the 1980s with the first note. Their debut album Constellations Strange is hard driving and fun. You can catch them live at their release at the Pillar Forum Café on Sept 11, 2026.
Please tell us about the about the band. Bonus points if you use the term Elder-Core, which I love.
The band is simply a group of old friends who still had some gas in the proverbial tank when it came to writing music. What started as an innocent gathering just to play together turned into more and more with each rehearsal. Jason had a handful of music that had been shelved for 20 years, and bringing it back to life inspired us to write new songs.
What started as a three-piece band (Marty, Jason, and Timmy) soon needed more members to make the songs come to life. First came the search for a singer; we knew that with the way the music was shaping up, we needed someone who could not only sing but also write lyrics that complemented the tracks. Eric fit the bill within the first hour of trying out.
After we got a few of the songs nailed down, we noticed there was still one piece missing. We needed to fill out the guitars to make the sound complete, so Tom dusted off his gear and came to try out—although, to the rest of us, once he said yes, he was in, no matter how rusty he was. From there, we booked our first show, gave ourselves two months to get ready, and came out of the gate running with our first 12 songs.
After our first show, we didn’t quite know how to describe our music because it was more of a throwback compared to the power pop-punk most “punk bands” in the Twin Cities are playing today. The long way to describe it is mid-to-late ’90s/early 2000s pop-skate-emo-punk, but to be honest, we’re over labeling and subcategorizing our music, so call it what you will. It became a running joke in the band to just refer to ourselves as Elder-core—nostalgic and crabby about it—because we roughly out-age a lot of the punk and emo bands by 10 to 15 years.
Congratulations on the debut album, Constellations Strange. It sure takes me back to the 1980s. The songs have such a powerful drive and lyric-wise you cover a wide range of topics. Where do you get inspiration? From Face Tattoo to Stillwater, seems like you can get it anywhere.
It’s funny you bring up Face Tattoo as that song is actually inspired by a story that Marty had from his past. He contributed some of the lyrics on that one as well.
But you’re right, the songs are pretty broad when it comes to subject matter. Inspiration comes a lot from life experiences as well as some of our favorite pop culture nostalgia sprinkled in. But I’ve (Eric) always tried to write in a way that leaves things up for interpretation. When you do that, I find it allows the listener to feel themself in those words even if their story is completely different than my own. If someone connects with a lyric, that is the best feeling for me (Eric).
Elder Emo is a great song but makes me wonder – what is the age range in your usual audience? Does everyone get out on the dance floor?
Our audience definitely skews a bit older—our analytics show most folks are in that 30 to 55 range, leaning heavily toward the latter half of that. Our song Elder Emo is a satirical look at aging and embracing the fact that age is just a number, but we’re also starting to see more and more young kids coming out to shows. We love being a part of their discovery of music; live shows shaped our identities growing up, so it’s amazing to see such a multigenerational crowd.
People seem pretty impressed that we’re still running and jumping around on stage like we’re in our 20s. That high energy gets those older emos and punks out on the dance floor, though everyone is definitely a little more cautious now—probably popping a few ibuprofens before grabbing late-night Taco Bell on the way home! We are just so encouraged to see everyone—young and old—coming together.
What advice would your teenage self give to you now, playing the music of that era?
My teenage self would probably tell me to not slow down. I was a fussy, rebellious, emotional teen and I’m sure he would want me to keep that some of that spark about me no matter how much time has passed. Music doesn’t care what age you are. So long as it’s authentic. – Eric
My teenage self might be a little disappointed that I gave up on music for too long. Like a lot of people in my age bracket, I became an adult too early. I would hope teenage me looks at my journey, sees that I found a way back to what I love, and realizes I have no plans on stopping anytime soon. I also think teenage me would love the music we are playing and writing now. – Timmy
Please tell us about your upcoming release show.
The album release show will be on Friday, September 11th. This will be an all-ages show at the Pillar Forum. Doors open at 6:30 PM, and the show will kick off with our good friends from Powerdam at 7:00 PM. They will be followed by an absolutely amazing band, Radowl, at 8:00 PM, with us (FarFarAway) taking the stage at 9:00 PM.
Advance tickets are available online for $15, or $17 at the door. We are expecting a big crowd, so make sure to purchase your tickets in advance. Be sure to come early—every band puts on a high-energy show! Also, we usually hang out around the coffee shop side of Pillar or at our merch table, so swing by and say hi before the music kicks off.
So who makes up FarFarAway, anyway? We are: Eric (Vocals), Timmy G (Bass/Vocals), Jason aka “Moose” (Lead Guitar/Vocals), Tom (Rhythm Guitar/Vocals), and Marty (Drums).
Mostly Minnesota 