It being St Patty’s Day weekend and all, I thought I’d channel the luck of the Irish (and UMBC, and Loyola Chicago, and Michigan… #marchmadness!) and a bit of my heritage to post about…a beloved Scottish band (cut me some slack, they’re close…) And like those two countries’ histories, which are so closely intertwined, the boys from Frightened Rabbit have been pairing up lately with some interesting artists on tracks that are worth a listen.
The most pronounced partnership appears to be their forthcoming one as Mastersystem, which has Rabbit frontman Scott Hutchison and his brother Grant (the band’s drummer) teaming up w/ Editors guitarist Justin Lockey and his brother James (from Minor Victories). The lead single “Notes on a Life Not Quite Lived” is a promising sign of what’s to come — a more revved up version of a Rabbit tune and a less electro/synthy version of the Editors’ recent work, which works rather nicely. Based on the Stereogum article that initially caught my eye, the four say this is a full-fledged venture and not a side project, so we’ll see how they juggle this with their regular bands. Hopefully they’ll make their way through town in the near future after the album drops in April. In the meantime check out the single here:
Next is one of the tracks from the recent Recorded Songs EP that I missed when it came out in September, “How It Gets In.” It’s a lovely little pairing of Hutchison’s voice with that of Julien Baker, whose delicate delivery and lyrics of heartache work quite nicely with those Rabbit regulars, as evidenced on her recent debut. We’ll see if the two cross paths again in the future (perhaps on her sophomore outing?), but if not we’ll have this one to enjoy. Check it out here:
Lastly we’ll close with the pairing of Hutchison and Manchester Orchestra frontman Andy Hull from several years ago, “Architect,” which is just a great song showcasing a pitch perfect marriage of those two singular voices (just like the Irish and Scottish! #fullcircle). It’s a really pretty song, one that makes you wish the two would find something else to work on together soon. Five years is a long time to wait once you know something this good is possible. See for yourself while we hold out for more here:
And just because we can, we’ll close with a freebie, one of the many gems from their sophomore effort The Midnight Organ Fight, which I had the pleasure to see them perform live last month for the tenth anniversary of that classic. It was a pretty magic night — they’ve been touring to venues they played when that album first came out instead of the big rooms they now readily sell out, which meant they played at my beloved Black Cat here, so was pretty amazing to see a favorite play such a great album in such a small space. I could have picked pretty much anything from this one to show you why these guys are so good, but this one’s always been a favorite of mine — it showcases the unflinching honesty and emotion that Hutchison regularly shares with his smart, sharp lyrics, and has a lovely melody to boot. One of many faves (from this album and all their others) — give it a listen here:
Until next time, amici… -BS