Like a fine wine, the two January releases by Minnesota’s Frankincense have only gotten better as the year’s gone on and have left us wanting more. 2014 isn’t over yet, and while we’re just sitting here patiently waiting for more content, we’re just lucky that both tracks are as palatable as they are.
“Sister Carrie” is short, clocking in at under 2 minutes, but packs a whole bunch of 90s-infused energy before abruptly ending. “Tics and Spasms” is a bit longer and starts a bit slower, but ultimately grows to a noisy, collision of voices, percussion, and fuzzy guitar.
Heavy bass lines and thick distortion unite the tracks, and with the vocals of Samantha laid on top, their sound is explosive alternative rock. Their Facebook lists artists such as St. Vincent and Sleater-Kinney as influences; give the tracks below a listen and it’ll be pretty evident how these artists helped to shape Frankincense’s sound.
The outfit’s double EP release (Oomph EP / To Be Seen EP) is just as good – do yourself a favor and peep that, too, if you’re at it. If you’ve enjoyed both “Sister Carrie” and “Tics and Spasms”, be sure to check out Frankincense on Facebook and Bandcamp.