Sounds on the Ground #19: Frankie and the Heartstrings
By: Dan Monsell
What’s the deal? Referred to in their press release as a “brand new old fashioned pop band from Sunderland”, Frankie and the Heartstrings are a wonderful set of newbies who we were massively impressed by at a chance encounter earlier on in the year. Coming across all underground mitten-wearing indie-pop romantics meets Dexys on Top Of the Pops in Eighties, this fashionable fivesome are clearly massive music fans with vinyl collections as big as the hooks in their catchy-as-influenza pop arsenal.
In honest truth it’s been hard to dislodge from our minds how impressive and endearing these lot came across to us live upon first viewing. Front-man Frankie Francis is a compelling front man in the spirit of a much more joyous Morrissey, or modern-day 50s fops such as Charlie Rumble Strips - witty, smart yet un-condescending and universally appealing. Their songs have an air of gentle intellectualism mixed with gang mentality that saw those fey Smiths chaps embraced by the football terraces.
We won’t get too carried away here, but with support slots lined up with Florence and The Machine, and all the right things in all those right places, the happy truth is that it’s likely that soon many an ear will hear their big time toons. Build ‘em up bold music critic statements aside, let’s just focus on the fact that here’s a good ‘ole new indie pop band to cherish, like they used to make them – and bottom line, these guys are good.
What can I hear? Two very special releases are supposedly on their way ASAP, as for now this lot are unsigned despite being picked up by Wichita management arm. So instead head on over to www.myspace.com/frankietheheartstrings to get a fix of their music.
When can I see them live? A nationwide tour, and some London tour supports with Florence and The Machine and The Drums. Check these out…
27 Oct 2009 The Barfly (Supporting The Drums)
6 Nov 2009 Lost & Found @ The Ruby Lounge Manchester
14 Nov 2009 Nation of Shopkeepers Leeds
28 Nov 2009 Fibbers York
29 Nov 2009 Cabaret Voltaire Edinburgh, Scotland
9 Dec 2009 O2 Academy, Glasgow (Supporting Florence & The Machine) Glasgow, Scotland
10 Dec 2009 Apollo, Manchester (Supporting Florence & The Machine) Manchester,
13 Dec 2009 The Academy, Brixton (supporting Florence & The Machine)
14 Dec 2009 The Academy, Brixton (supporting Florence & The Machine)
We all know music peaked in 1994, so give me a sound-bite about how we could compare them to some kind of obscure band from the Britpop era: Hmm… these fellas could be ones to push us into a new era of Britpop, which of course'd make us all feel whole again, but in terms of comparisons, let's take an amalgamation of members of Menswear, Suede and Blur, move them up to dizzy north of Sunderland, get 'em jobs in Social care, charity shops and schools and let's take it from there.
Artists in this article: Frankie and the Heartstrings