Frederick the Younger
Human Child
Reviewed by: Ziggy Merritt
Coming out of Louisville, Kentucky, five-piece outfit Frederick the Younger is one of the more promising acts to take up the mantle of psych pop. Wisely they don’t box themselves into the trappings of the genre which can often turn an otherwise great record into an unintelligible mush of lo-fi distortion. With an EP already behind them, they largely avoid this pitfall in their debut album, Human Child. Their debut’s strength is its blues-inspired improvisational style that blends in well with a progression of anthemic psych rock guitar solos. Lending it some additional authenticity is lead singer, Jenni Cochran’s vocals which draw comparisons to the vintage pop stylistics of Janis Joplin. Yet within that melting pot of summery innovation what it struggles with is identity in its composition.
Some of that comes down to the odd addition of synth to some of the tracks with a particular nod “LP.” The track in question includes a sampling of synth that’s cut out of context with the overall tone of the record. It distracts from the bite of Cochran’s vocals and feels entirely underutilized to make its addition a practical one.
In truth Cochran’s vocals have the tendency to oscillate between overtaking the intensity of a song to being overwhelmed by the noise of everything else. One of the album’s lead singles, “Horoscope”, exhibits the former yet manages to pull it in check with the album’s focus on accentuating the epic character of the lead guitar. Raw and doused in a smoky cloud of reckless distortion it’s hard not to get excited when these solos come into play. But this trick itself is utilized a few too many times to save tracks such as “Leaves Are Gone” and “Not that Kind of Girl” which flow pleasantly enough yet are ultimately unmemorable.
The latter half of the album is where finds its legs. Much of the criticism I formerly levied against it falls away as it finally embraces more of its strengths. The production work itself feels sharper, shaping itself around a more equally blended mixture of Cochran’s punchy vocals and a billowing atmosphere of haze.
“Tangerine” falls into the spotlight as one of the late entry tracks that excites with propulsive energy. Cochran’s almost theatrical voice compliments the lo-fi warbling of the guitar giving the album its first true taste of rough-hewn garage rock. “Things are Just Things” likewise recaptures the psych rock overtures promised in “Horoscope”, instilling them here with a taste of hypnotic dream pop. It fits in just as neatly without crossing the delicate line that can make lo-fi music untrue to its origins. The shame is that the improvisation hinted at in Human Child is better replicated live where there’s more freedom to take risks and chances without the need to box each track into a finalized cut. Even so Frederick the Younger shows promise with a debut of infectious indie psychedelics that, faults included, never fail to impress.
Rating: Listenable
