Folk-influenced English Rock: Frontier Index's Frontier Index

Rainbow Quartz presents a set of artists that give you the 60’s rock sound, tending even towards Byrds psychedelia folk rock, but without ever getting too sleepy. Frontier Index fits this description, although on their self-titled debut, there’s plenty of other sounds and influences in their shopping cart.

The album’s hook is the guitar part of the bridge of the first track, “Someday.” It comes on like sweet mary sunshine of a late 80’s band looking back with sheer fondness at the 60’s dawn of rock ‘n’ roll. Then when you hit the bridge, Matt Francis’ bass bounces down a nice groove. The twin guitar licks of John Hunter and Corey Hernden enter with a picked urgency on top of that bounce, and that’s when you sense where Frontier Index finds their direction in this already explored territory of rock ‘n’ roll.

There’s plenty of re-exploring to do in that territory, and while “Someday” with Hunter and Hernden on guitar motivates my listening energy for the rest of the album, there’s some fear that this expedition will never really land on a frontier that Frontier Index can call their own. “Collide” sounds like Coldplay in a garage (it even has Coldplay’s favorite image of stars). “Feel the Sun” takes an AltCountry slow walk with a Beatles chorus. “My Secret” is a sad lovers’ waltz. “If It Didn’t Work Out” channels Joe Cocker through a Gin Blossoms frame that is helped by some Wilco soul.

Those other parts of the album wander, threatening aimlessness, but Frontier Index can avoid this if they let those guitar licks and rhythm section leads be their compass. “Silver Suns” has that 60’s gloss to it, a sleepiness that gets a No-Doz kick from Mick Jackson’s drums which build to a hollow sound like distant thunder. Hunter and Hernden arrive for the bridge with a high tone urgency guitar wash that helps this dream arrive. Frontier Index will need to make sure the dreams arrive instead of just being lost to napland.

Other recent releases from Rainbow Quartz include:

The Get Quick’s How the Story Goes
An album that starts off sounding like those bubblegummy 60’s rock dreams mixes it up with tracks like “New Plimsoles” which take all of the piss out of punk and inject it back into 60’s harmonies. Some well-placed use of horns helps to heighten the New Wave meets jazz meets pop meets punk. If Joe Jackson had followed one direction, the Get Quick may have been that story.

Outrageous Cherry’s Our Love Will Change the World
Harmonica and trumpet greet you as Outrageous Cherry’s Our Love Will Change the World echo 60’s rock down to the echo quality to the vocals on “Pretty Girls Go Insane.” The Turtles, the Byrds, the Beatles, and the Kinks can be heard in Outrageous Cherry, like the ghosting of some distant AM station breaking into your current listening. A highlight is “Detroit Blackout,” a grooving quasi-instrumental (there are some strange voiceover effects) built on blues-jam guitar and drums perfect for a black & white cinema verite documentary about the streets.

A few Rainbow Quartz releases, including Frontier Index and the Get Quick, are available in the Music Spectrum Giveaway Closet if requested. See the Sidebar for info on how to get your FREE CDs.

Thanks to Frontier Index, Rainbow Quartz, the Get Quick, and Outrageous Cherry for the review and giveaway CDs.