Friko - Where we've been, Where we go from here (2024)

 

Indie Rock / Chamber Pop / Midwest Emo

RIYL: Bright Eyes, Band of Horses, Horsegirl

 ✪ VINYL FANTASY 

★★★★★

Friko are now the band to beat in Chicago's teen indie rock scene that first grabbed national attention with Horsegirl's debut back in 2022. Like Horsegirl did toward their arty noise rock influences name dropping Sonic Youth among other now-legendary acts around the turn of the millennium, Friko also look backward to that same time period, only in place of noise they prioritize folk rock of the Saddle Creek ilk such as Bright Eyes (notice the similarities in their visual aesthetic). The title of their debut, Where we’ve been, Where we go from here, is not just a subtle nod to their inspiration but a powerful mission statement as the record’s nine tracks search for different ways to reinterpret that nostalgic sound as something meaningful to the next generation.

Ranging from explosive catharsis on exhilarating highlights "Crashing Through" and "Get Numb to It" to the gentler chamber ballads "For Ella", "Until I'm With You Again", and closer "Cardinal", Friko constantly toy with inventive structures that tickle the senses without straying too far from the heart-on-sleeve hooks of their forebears. The more innovative of these, such as the mini-epics "Where We've Been" and "Statues" and the spiky rush of "Chemical", bristle with electric energy as they effortlessly demonstrate Friko's worthiness of taking up the mantle to push the boundaries of a classic sound until it’s bent out of shape into something new.