Frankie Rose
Frankie Rose played a pitch perfect set on a mellow Saturday night at Soda Bar.
Not all shows have great attendance, even if they’re well promoted and the artist is amazing. The Frankie Rose show had a modest crowd on Saturday, September 23rd. It was surprising because most weekends at the City Heights venue are packed to the gills when a Pitchfork-approved artist comes to town.
Brooklyn based Frankie Rose has been in a handful of bands over the years, including Vivian Girls, Crystal Slits, Dum Dum Girls, and Beverly. She didn’t stick with band life for very long but has continued to perform and release music as a solo artist since 2009. Rose has four albums, including her most recent, Cage Tropical (2017). Her solo music is similar to the other bands she’s been in but is darker and recalls 80s goth bands like Bauhaus, with The Smiths thrown in.
Saturday night at Soda Bar, Frankie Rose mostly played songs from her new album and the more recently released Herein Wild (2013). Frankie and her three piece band (bass, drums, and guitar) sounded rehearsed and tight. All musicians were technically very talented and it was fun to watch them play. Rose’s pretty soprano voice juxtaposed nicely with the darkness in her music. The second guitarist provided harmonies and additional vocals.
Rose’s entire set sounded very level and pitch perfect, perhaps because the band played along to a backing track from a synth positioned onstage. They definitely programmed extra percussion and synth into the track, but it was hard to tell (with my amateur music reviewer ears anyways) if other sounds were programmed in. Rose also ran her vocals through and effects box hooked onto her mic stand to give her voice a good dose of reverb. The effect of the synth an effects box made their set sound almost like I was listening to the album being played back.
For her last song, she played “Save Me” from her first solo release, Frankie Rose and the Outs (2010). She said a quick “Good bye” to end the show and didn’t play an encore – but the audience didn’t ask for one either.
Frankie Rose will soon release a cover album of The Cure songs and is continuing her tour in promotion of Cage Tropical. For more on Frankie, check out her website or listen to her new song “Trouble” below.