Friko - Where we've been, Where we go from here
Pitchfork: Album Review (7.9)
Paste: Album Review (8.9)
Friko Will Perform At KCMP’s Winter Dig Out (2/26) & SXSW In March
“Friko’s debut album sounds absolutely urgent.” — PITCHFORK
“Friko are one of indie rock’s most exciting new acts.” — UPROXX
“Friko are making their mark within Chicago’s bubbling indie-rock scene.” – ALTERNATIVE PRESS
Chicago band Friko — vocalist/guitarist Niko Kapetan and drummer Bailey Minzenberger — shares the new single, “Get Numb To It!” from their forthcoming debut album, Where we’ve been, Where we go from here out this Friday, February 16th, on ATO Records. Another song illuminating the immense depth of their musicality, “Get Numb To It!” emerges as a full-tilt, pogo-ready anthem etched with so many unexpected details. “When we recorded that song Niko and I were each on pianos on opposite sides of the room, just slamming on them for texture,” says Bailey. “There are moments all over the record where we were both improvising at the same time, but they’re mostly used in a very subtle way, without making it the main focal point.”
An essential new addition to Chicago’s long lineage of forward-thinking indie rock, Friko transform every song into a moment of collective catharsis. Formed in 2019, Friko soon began taking the stage at legendary Chicago venues like the Metro, Empty Bottle and Schubas Tavern, self-releasing their acclaimed debut EP Whenever Forever in 2022 and making their festival debut at Bonnaroo the following spring. Known for their high-energy live show, Friko aim to deliver a live experience that’s fantastically disorienting in its emotional arc. Mastered by Heba Kadry (Björk, Big Thief) and engineered by Jack Henry and Scott Tallarida, Where we’ve been, Where we go from here embodies a sonic complexity befitting of a band that names Romantic-era classical music and the more primal edges of art-rock among their inspirations. Friko hopes that their music’s emotional potency might have a galvanizing impact on audiences.