Followers of the Dutch indie scene are already familiar enough with Amsterdam’s Frostparade, but this is an introduction for outsiders who have no idea what this one man project is all about. Frostparade is Auke van der Wielen who records albums in his home studio, and they inevitably receive small scale releases from Living Room Records. The last such album being Sing You To My Side at the end of January.
In his bio he openly states Guided by Voices as an influence, and that’s fair enough. There is a strong hint of GbV in the sample song ‘Nine to Five’, but not to any degree of imitation. The main comparison is the simplicity of both the recording and the melody, but there is still plenty happening in this song to catch your attention. Strumming away on the guitar, it has a great chorus, is full of layers, and basically comes out sounding bigger and brighter than a typical 4-piece band. You aren’t likely to catch Frostparade playing live, though, but based on this song alone, the albums are well worth checking out.
Website: http://www.frostparade.com/
MP3: Nine to Five
Steven McCarron
Photo: Auke van der Wielen
:: back to top ::