When an artist incorporates their music influences into the very fabric of their being to the extent that their music can’t help but also weave in elements of their inspiring predecessors, it can be a rewarding listening experience, especially when they also manage to nurture their own unique sound in the process of creating and performing music. Today we present you a duo, who may wear some of their influences on their sleeve while others remain a complete mystery.
From their music, we can suppose that New York cabaret-inspired art rock duo Frenchy and the Punk are big lovers of Dresden Dolls, The B-52’s, Blondie and Talking Heads. We can also recall such artists as Les Rita Mitsouko, Siouxsie and The Banshees and Nina Hagen here, which can only be a good thing because – where did any of those artists go wrong? They didn’t. It’s quite cool to see these particular inspirations woven together into the musical output of the NYC two-piece.
With their seventh album ‘Zen Ghost’ on the way in late Octobervia the label EA Recordings., we are pleased to unveil lead track ‘Mon Souvenir’, which is less so about a tourist trophy than it is the notable experiences from our past that tend to impact us and continue to affect us beyond that. Making music that can easily be described as bombastic, Frenchy and the Punk find a happy medium between the sonic atmosphere and thoughtful melancholy of post-punk music and the unmistakable drama of cabaret. No doubt there are enough songs about depression in the world, so it is refreshing to find a band who is as beautifully manic as some of the finest artists on America’s ‘early punk’ scene. Frenchy and the Punk, imaginably, would feel right at home at a venue like New York’s CBGBs.
Made up of singer, percussionist, and lyricist Samantha Stephenson and guitarist and composer Scott Helland. Frenchy and the Punk thrive on creating dark folk, post-punk and cabaret-influenced music. Helland and Stephenson met in NYC 1998, when Stephenson spontaneously jumped on stage to accompany Helland during his solo guitar performance. The artistic union was immediate, powerful and undeniable. The rest is history.
Vocalist Samantha Stephenson explains: “”Mon Souvenir – the idea of mind phantoms – is the pervading theme of the album. Meaning ‘My Memory’ in French, this song’ deals with the idea of those experiences that haunt us even when we think they are gone. We can build layers of protection through the years that end up masking our true emotions, making it difficult to heal. It may take a lifelong journey to shed those layers, get to the core and finally transcend those experiences. Dark times make for dark songs. ‘Zen Ghost’ was written and recorded during the downtime of 2020-2021. Here, the duo’s shadowy sound takes an even darker turn. An inward spin, into the pair’s previously unexplored personal planes and interpretations of the insanity of our increasingly tumultuous age. But despite its more pronounced moodiness, like the rest of the band’s oeuvre, ‘Zen Ghost’ offers plenty of opportunities to dance in the darkness.”
French-born, but raised in England and America, Stephenson’s early study of piano and dance ignited her eventual rejection of corporate conformity and fueled her quest to lead a truly autonomous life through art and music. A son of jazz-loving teachers, Helland grew up in Western Massachusetts, where he was a vital player on the region’s famously fertile early hardcore punk scene. He was also co-founder and bassist of Deep Wound (along with future Dinosaur Jr. founders J Mascis and Lou Barlow), as well as Outpatients.
With their unique music and striking aesthetic, they have managed to steadily build a following of fervent fans on the mystical-folk/steampunk festival, coffeehouse, convention and club circuits, not surprising given their reputation for giving boisterous, revival-like live shows. The live element is very important for Frenchy and the Punk, having opened for Thomas Dolby, Dinosaur Jr., The World Inferno Friendship Society, Rasputina, Cruxshadows, Hurray For The Riff Raff and The Young Dubliners. They have also performed together live with Dead Can Dance’s Peter Ulrich and Dresden Dolls’ Brian Viglione.
Tapped as one of the Top 25 duos in the US by Yahoo! Music, the freewheeling pair has released a raft of recordings, including the acclaimed albums ‘Happy Madness’ (2010), ‘Hey Hey Cabaret’ (2012), ‘Elephant Uproar’ (2013), ‘Cartwheels’ (2014), ‘Bonjour Batfrog’ (2014), and ‘Hooray Beret’ (2019).
As of September 8, ‘Mon Souvenir’ will be released digitally everywhere, including Apple Music, Spotify andBandcamp. The ‘Zen Ghost’ album will be released on October 28 and is available for pre-order digitally via Bandcamp at https://frenchyandthepunk.bandcamp.com/album/zen-ghost and on CD via the band’s website at batfrogs.com/product/zen-ghost-cd
CREDITS
All songs written by Samantha Stephenson and Scott Helland
Samantha Stephenson – lyrics, lead vocal, percussion, keyboard
Scott Helland – guitar, bass, drums, backing vocals
Jason Sarubbi – upright bass on ‘Church of Sound’
Braxton Bellew – additional electric bass on ‘Church of Sound’
Recorded and mixed by Jason Sarubbi at Split Rock Studios, New Paltz, NY
Mastered at The Cage, Coventry UK by Martin Bowes
Cover photo by Alice Teeple
Pen and ink drawings by Scott Helland
Album cover design by Scott Helland and Samantha Stephenson
Artist photo by Alice Teeple
TOUR DATES
Aug 28 Poughkeepsie, NY – Porchfest
Sept 04 Hannibal, MO – Big River Steampunk Festival,
Sept 10 Westampton, NJ – Burlington Amphitheater Concert Series
Sept 17 York, PA – Enchanted Fae Festival
Sept 24 Clarksville, OH – Earth Warriors
Sept 30 Troy, NY – Troy Night Out
Oct 08 Poughkeepsie, NY – Gallery 40
Oct 15/16 Shepherdstown, WV – Shepherdstown Fae Festival
Oct 22 Nyack, NY – Prohibition River Live
Oct 28 Baltimore, MD – FaerieCon
Dec 10 Exeter, UK – Yule Ball
Feb 4/5 Manchester, CT – Stupid Cupid Steampunk Festival
Feb 18/19 Gettsyburg, PA – MythiCon Festival
April 01 Galveston, TX – Galveston Steampunk Festival
April 8-9 Baltimore, MD – Between The Worlds
April 15/16 Chicago, IL – Chicago Steampunk Expo
Follow, support and fans out over Frenchy and the Punk
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