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Furlan Marri is shaking off its dressy patent-leather shoes and sliding into its dancing kicks. FM is best known for two things: making affordable watches, and taking direct inspiration from coveted vintage models. FM’s past releases include a $620 homage to a Patek Philippe watch colloquially known as the Tasti Tondi. Now, FM is back with its third line, known as the Disco Volante.
With the Disco Volante, FM is staying true to its vintage-inspired roots while evolving slightly. I have come to associate FM with sober dress watches, but its latest release feels like the result of a few Tequila sunrises and a night out dancing. The new line takes its name from a case shape, Italian for "flying saucer," that has been embraced by many brands and is known for its wide bezel encompassing the dial. Many brands embraced the style over the decades: there are examples out there from Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, and Universal Genève. FM’s new watch borrows that exact name but innovates on the shape.
Most vintage Disco Volantes you’ll find are rather flat, but FM gave the shape some much-needed height. The watch’s case is built slightly like a tiered layered cake with one piece stacked atop another. I got to spend some time with the watch last week before its release and really enjoyed the extra dimension. “We loved the shapes of Disco Volante cases from the mid-to-late 1930s,” Andrea Furlan, the brand’s co-founder, said in an email. “The dream was to have our own take on the Disco Volante design with a modern twist.” In addition to the curved case, FM also added lume to the dial to give it a more modern and sporty feel—this is now the chicest way to check the time on the dancefloor. The curved case and lume aren’t the only contemporary tweaks to the watch, either. Unlike many vintage models that command prices like Andy Warhol paintings, FM’s new Disco Volante costs just $2,780. (They’re available for pre-order now.)
The addition of the distinctive Disco Volante also gives FM’s catalog some dimension. “We were thinking that a shaped case would be lovely in the collection, and we started working on that project a year and a half ago,” said Hamad Al Marri, Furlan Marri's co-founder. The co-founder also noted that oddball cases like these are currently right on trend in the watch world. FM’s Disco Volante may not be as daring as new pieces from independent brands like the Toledano & Chan B/1 or the Anoma A1, but they all speak to collectors’ growing desire to wring a little more fun out of their watches.
I did have a lot of fun wearing the Disco Volante for the brief time I had it. The watch comes in three colors: Havana Disco (salmon and brown), Disco Celeste (blue and white), and Disco Verde (green and cream). I opted for the Havana Disco thinking the colorway would offer up the vintage feeling I associate with FM, but if I had a do-over I would probably lean for the Disco Celeste or even Disco Verde, both of which better capture the fun-loving spirit of this watch. The salmon feels too prim in comparison. Another notable detail on this watch is the invisible lugs (the arms that connect the case to the bracelet), which are hidden underneath the case. Honestly, I missed the lugs, and it took me a second to get used to a watch without them.
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What FM retains as it continues to grow and launch new collections is the feeling that you’re getting a watch that looks much more expensive than it actually is. While the brand started with a $500 watch on Kickstarter, it’s quickly grown up. FM’s previous major release, a chronograph, was priced similarly to the new Disco Volante and encouraged Al-Marri to stay in this range. “It was interesting to see that we gained new customers with the Flyback Chronograph release,” he said, “and a good challenge for us to propose hand-finished movements at that price point.” The brand is growing, too. FM launched in 2021 with just two people and is now a team of 12. The Disco Volante, with its right-on-trend daring shape, is sure to keep the momentum going.
