Seasons (Waiting on You)

"Seasons (Waiting on You)" is a song by American synthpop band Future Islands. It is the opening track on their fourth studio album Singles, and was released as the album's lead single on February 4, 2014.[1] The song received much critical acclaim, topping The Village Voice's annual year-end Pazz & Jop critics' poll[2] and also being named the best track of 2014 by publications such as NME,[3] Pitchfork,[4] and Spin.[5] In 2019, it was named the 34th best song of the 2010s by Pitchfork,[6] and was ranked 94th on Rolling Stone's 100 Best Songs of the 2010s.[7]

"Seasons (Waiting on You)"
Single by Future Islands
from the album Singles
B-side	"One Day"
Released	February 4, 2014
Recorded	August 2013
Studio	Dreamland Studios (Hurley, New York)
Genre	Synthpop, electronic rock
Length	3:46
Label	4AD
Songwriter(s)	William Cashion Samuel T. Herring J. Gerrit Welmers
Producer(s)	Chris Coady
Future Islands singles chronology
"Tomorrow" / "The Fountain" (2012) "Seasons (Waiting on You)" (2014) "A Dream of You and Me" (2015)
Music video
"Seasons (Waiting on You)" on YouTube

Critical reception

Accolades

Accolades for "Seasons (Waiting on You)"

Publication	Accolade	Rank
Consequence of Sound	Top 50 Songs of 2014[8]	1
Pitchfork	The 100 Best Tracks of 2014[9]	1
Pazz & Jop	Single of the Year 2014[10]	1
Spin	The 101 Best Songs of 2014[11]	1
NME	Top 50 Tracks of 2014[12]	1
PopMatters	The 75 Best Songs of 2014[13]	2
Drowned in Sound	40 Favourite Songs of 2014[14]	4
Slant Magazine	The 25 Best Singles of 2014[15]	8
Paste	The 50 Best Songs of 2014[16]	8
Rolling Stone	50 Best Songs of 2014[17]	9
American Songwriter	Top 50 Songs of 2014[18]	14
Pitchfork	The 200 Best Tracks of the Decade So Far (2010–2014)[19]	123
Pitchfork	The 200 Best Songs of the 2010s[20]	34

Live performances

The band's performance of the song on Late Show with David Letterman became an internet hit[21] due to frontman Samuel T. Herring's visual and vocal performance, which included elaborate and angular dance moves and death metal-style growls. Herring also put on a similarly unusual performance during the band's performance of the song on Later... with Jools Holland.[22]

Track listing

• 7-inch single[1]

1. "Seasons (Waiting on You)" – 3:46
2. "One Day" – 4:27

• Digital download (remix)[23]

1. "Seasons (Waiting on You)" (BADBADNOTGOOD Reinterpretation) – 3:43

Charts

Chart performance for "Seasons (Waiting on You)"

Chart (2014)	Peak position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[24]	50
UK Indie (OCC)[25]	25
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[26]	50
US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[27]	27
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[28]	37

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[29]	Gold	40,000
Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release history for "Seasons (Waiting on You)"

Region	Date	Format	Label
United States[1][23]	February 4, 2014	7-inch vinyl	4AD Records
	June 30, 2014	Digital download

References

1. "Seasons (Limited Edition)". Amazon.com. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
2. "The Village Voice's 42nd Pazz & Jop Music Critics' Poll: The Last Word on the Year in Music (Singles)". The Village Voice. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
3. "NME's Top 50 Tracks Of 2014". NME. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
4. "The 100 Best Tracks of 2014". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
5. "The 101 Best Songs of 2014". Spin. December 8, 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2014.
6. "the 200 Best Tracks of the 2010s". Pitchfork. 7 October 2019. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
7. Martoccio, Will Hermes,Brittany Spanos,Christian Hoard,Suzy Exposito,Charles Holmes,Claire Shaffer,Jon Freeman,Joseph Hudak,David Browne,Jon Dolan,Rob Sheffield,Joe Levy,Nick Catucci,Simon Vozick-Levinson,Andy Greene,Brenna Ehrlich,Brendan Klinkenberg,Hank Shteamer,Angie; Portwood, Jerry (December 4, 2019). "The 100 Best Songs of the 2010s".
8. "Top 50 Songs of 2014". Consequence of Sound. 5 December 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
9. "The 100 Best Tracks of 2014". Pitchfork. 15 December 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
10. "Single of the Year 2014". Pazz & Jop. The Village Voice. 13 January 2015. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
11. "The 101 Best Songs of 2014". Spin. 8 December 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
12. "Top 50 Tracks of 2014". NME. 26 November 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
13. "The 75 Best Songs of 2014". PopMatters. 22 December 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
14. "40 Favourite Songs of 2014". Drowned in Sound. 8 December 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
15. "The 25 Best Singles of 2014". Slant Magazine. 10 December 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
16. "The 50 Best Songs of 2014". Paste. 2 December 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
17. "50 Best Songs of 2014". Rolling Stone. 3 December 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
18. "Top 50 Songs of 2014". American Songwriter. 3 December 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
19. "The 200 Best Tracks of the Decade So Far (2010–2014)". Pitchfork. 18 August 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
20. "the 200 Best Tracks of the 2010s". Pitchfork. 7 October 2019. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
21. "Future Islands - "Seasons" @ Letterman 3/3/14". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-03-22.
22. Published on Sep 30, 2014 (2014-09-30). "Future Islands perform Seasons (Waiting On You) | Later... with Jools Holland - BBC". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-03-22.
23. "Seasons (Waiting On You) [BADBADNOTGOOD Reinterpretation] – Single by Future Islands". iTunes Store. United States. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
24. "Ultratop.be – Future Islands – Seasons (Waiting on You)" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
25. "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
26. "Future Islands Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
27. "Future Islands Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
28. "Future Islands Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
29. "Canadian single certifications – Future Islands – Seasons (Waiting on You)". Music Canada. Retrieved October 12, 2020.