Friko appear to be playing a game of Show, Don’t Tell. Performing at downtown Austin’s Waterloo Records, the band are seemingly partaking in the Texan capital’s cowboy culture: wearing double denim, vocalist/guitarist Niko Kapetan’s bursts of fretboard finger-tapping are accompanied by sequences of movement. He frequently side-steps towards drummer Bailey Minzenberger before pivoting into a 90-degree turn, as though in a line dance. The only thing missing is some pointy-toed boots.
This ‘unofficial’ gig – an offshoot event of SXSW not directly associated with or funded by the festival – feels like an exciting early-doors moment, dotted with both young music fans tightly hugging their new vinyl purchases and industry heads swinging their music press lanyards. Some gig-goers even lean from behind David Bowie cardboard cutouts in order to see the shoebox-sized stage before them. Beset with nerves, with beads of sweat forming around his curls, Kapetan asks how this afternoon’s (March 12) audience is feeling after opener ‘Crimson To Chrome’. The answer from the floor is resoundingly positive.
The Chicago duo, who are joined today by bassist David Fuller, make peppy songs that shimmer with shades of Bright Eyes and The Microphones, as well as intriguingly subtle hints of chamber-pop. They emerged from their hometown’s flourishing guitar scene alongside Horsegirl and Lifeguard, while their February debut ‘Where We’ve Been, Where We Go From Here’ has become something of a runaway hit among indie-rock circles. Alongside storming the US music press, the record has impacted the indie charts in Japan and is currently earning bigger streaming numbers there than the band’s home country.
Their songs are almost unreasonably anthemic. ‘Crashing Through’ has a hint of Black Country, New Road melodrama, as textures fold and crash into each other while Kapetan and Fuller trade vocals. The hazy, winding bassline of ‘Cardinal’ – a track that taps into a particular type of Gen Z yearning – is offset by grinding dissonance, complemented by the sweetness and shyness of Kapetan’s vocals. The contrast is gorgeous.
Friko will go on to play a further seven Austin shows throughout the week; as bands continue to drop out of SXSW due to its current ties to the US Army and weapons manufacturers, many are choosing instead to play alternative showcases. That self-assuredness – and belief in both their music and decision-making – is on full display here. Alongside his bandmates, who quietly sing along to nearly every lyric, Kapetan throws himself into the rumbling closer ‘Where We’ve Been’, buoyed by the enthusiastic response.
Friko played:
‘Crimson To Chrome’
‘Chemical’
‘Crashing Through’
‘In Out’
‘Cardinal’
‘Get Numb To It’
‘Where We’ve Been’