Frankie Rose and The Outs – Frankie Rose and The Outs

After jobbing around in the shadows of many a hipster Brooklyn band, Frankie Rose has finally taken centre stage and found the limelight. Frankie Rose and The Outs release their self-titled debut album through Memphis Industries, but does the quality of the record live up to the quality of the back story?

Being a member of three hipster Brooklyn bands was seemingly just not enough for former Crystal Stilt, Vivian and Dum Dum Girl, Frankie Rose. Rather than just lurking in the shadows keeping time, Rose decided to pick up her guitar and take the protagonist role. Together, with her three Outs (Kate Ryan, Margot Bianca and the wonderfully named, Caroline Yes!) Rose has put together a record much stronger and considerably more enjoyable than any of her previous efforts managed to muster.

Frankie Rose and The Outs draw their influences from various sources and wear them proudly on their sleeves. Unsurprisingly given her track record, there’s a bit of neo-shoegaze in here with plenty of lo-fi fuzzy guitar goodness. Over the top of the fuzz though there’s some surprisingly soulful and floaty vocals with a splash of 60′s girl group-esque harmonies to boot. Interspersing the retro pop wall of sound we’re hit with a couple of romping garage rock tunes that act as a keen reminder of Rose’s previous lives which may be gone but are not entirely forgotten.

Clocking in below the 30 minute mark, the eleven songs on Frankie Rose and The Outs don’t really have much fat on the bones. The record swoons along from one track to the next with almost seamless abandon.

High points include the delightful ‘Little Brown Haired Girls’ which simultaneously fuzzes and shimmers its way through three minutes of floating vocals that are carried along on a hissing wave of blissful reverb. If that’s not enough for you, it also packs a super catchy chorus. A terrific cover of Arthur Russell’s ‘You Can Make Me Feel Bad’ sounds like Phil Spector has repented, turned back the clock and taken charge of Jesus and The Mary Chain.

It’s virtually a given these days that any band worth their salt have something of a back-story about them. Something that helps grab the attention, creates a bit of buzz and affords a bit of standout. Frankie Rose and The Outs, have history in abundance but, unlike so many other wannabes the quality of their eponymous debut suggests they are a lot more than just another interesting back story.