The Frightnrs - Nothing More To Say (eng)
We had mentioned recently Daptone Records in our article over the new album by Mystery Lights, one of the 10 best releases of 2016 according to the ClockSound team. It is the record company that I follow more closely than any other. Every new release, every new addition in its family. Gabriel Roth, Neal Sugarman and the whole team that they managed to put together is the living and contemporary proof of why we still love so much sounds of decades passed. One could go on and lay down a lengthy analysis over the reasons behind it, but I will avoid that. Because all lead to one and only power. The truth, the Soul.
As such, a few months ago, I was very intrigued reading for the first full length album of a new band called The Frightnrs.
But I feel the need at this point to warn you, using the words of Daniel Handler, that whoever seeks a story with a happy ending, it is better to read something else. This story is not pleasant, nor can it end with a note of optimism...
The first listen of the album was during a cold evening in Rotterdam. It was freezing outside so much, not giving us any other choice but to invite friends home, in an effort to avoid our exposure to that weather. Amid discussions that make no sense when put out of context (note: sometimes they make no sense anyhow) we decided to play this album, hoping that it would constitute an effective background, serving the same purpose that music serves in super markets or department stores. And I could not have been more wrong!
The thought described above lasted for 8 seconds. Until the drums fully kicked in, while any hope for a continuation of the discussion was lost 4 more seconds later, at the sound of a desperate voice repeating No, No, No, No…
For the next 40 minutes, we totally dedicated and surrendered ourselves to the music, being very careful to lay down as much accurate observations as we could, which would not need to be discussed and, thus, disrupt the flow of our experience.
The music of Frightnrs jumps out of the 60s or the 70. It makes the listener imagining those four guys in a basement in Kingston, detached from the rest of the world, trying to find hope in their music. Without us still having any idea about how close to reality the end of the previous sentence was.
Reggae, rocksteady, dub sounds. Dressed up with beautiful melodies and a relaxed atmosphere that yield an album that flows in complete harmony, inviting us to a second and third continuous listening, without it becoming tiring at any point.
But the dominant power lies in the voice. Without any pretentious Jamaican accent or sharp reggae vocals, Dan Klein dominates with his tunefulness. A soul voice that we would swear that emanates from the vaults of Motown or Stax. Rightfully, the producer, which by the way is Victor Axelrod (Dap Kings, Antibalas, Easy Star All-Stars etc.), chose to highlight them, placing them even more on the forefront. Dan Klein captivates us with his passion. He channels all his inner being in the microphone with a disarming honesty!
This album was, for the next months, our personal treasure, listening to it very often. I did not recommend it to almost anyone, having this irrational feeling that something so personal should not be revealed to someone that may not appreciate it that much.
Until a few days ago, when I bought it again as a present to a friend for his birthday. His love over music and especially for the warmth and the massive sound that was coming out of Motown, Upsetter Records of Lee Perry, the garage/psychedelic bands of the past or Can led him to set up the impressive Duct Tape Studio. A studio that is based on exactly these principles, after years of search for a huge set of old equipment (note: including an old Orange amplifier that had been actually used by Can themselves!). The album choice was right. But his love for it led to a tragic discovery. “Nothing More To Say” would be the first and the last for Frightnrs…
Some days after the commencement of the recording sessions at Daptone studio, the health of the singer started to deteriorate. Him, not yet knowing what happens, he quickly started having a rising difficulty to sing, feeling for some reason sick. This situation went on and became even worse the next months. Until the November of 2015, when he tragically discovered that he suffers from ALS. Very soon after, the disease conquered over his powers, at the point that he could barely move his body. But he had one purpose. To complete this album! While he could still breath well enough to sing...
With this huge burden crushing himself, the band and Axelrod, the whole team tried to fight the psychological pressure through their commitment to their music and their art. And while they succeeded in finishing the recording, there were so many things left to be done for the record to sound exactly as it should.
But Dan Klein’s time was running out. And he could not wait for the final completion. He HAD to see his dream coming true while he is still alive. And that finally happened! Partly though. It was ready, but it was impossible for the official release date to be set before September 2016. Much at his own sadness, because he knew that he will not be able to be with us until then. A prediction that sadly came true. Just one month before September 2, Dan Klein succumbed...at 33 years old.
This man with the magical voice never had the opportunity to see his work being released to the world. He never had the chance to sing all those songs live. He never had the chance to realize that his voice accompanies many, happy or not, moments of people unknown to him. And we never had the chance to say a simple “thank you” for his generosity…
But that’s life. And like he said…“all my tears won’t bring you back”
Daptone Records, 02.09.2016
