A Frames (band)

Last updated
A Frames
Origin Seattle, Washington, United States
Genres Post-punk, noise rock, garage punk, post-punk revival, experimental rock, art punk
Years active1999 (1999)–2010 (2010)
Labels Sub Pop, S-S, Dragnet, Born Bad
Past membersErin Sullivan
Min Yee
Thomas Northcut
Lars Finberg

A Frames were an American experimental rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1999. The trio consisted of Erin Sullivan, Min Yee and Lars Finberg. Finberg left the band in 2006 to focus on his other project, The Intelligence, and was replaced by Tommy Northcutt who remained with the band thereafter. The band was called Bend Sinister from 1996 to 1999. [1] [2] A Frames cites Cows, Scientists, Stick Men With Ray Guns, Scratch Acid, Joy Division, and 60's garage rock among its influences. [3] A Frames started its own label, Dragnet Records, in January 2000 in order to release their music, and later the band signed with Sub Pop Records in 2004 for the release of Black Forest.

Contents

Band members

Musical style

A Frames sing about technology and apocalyptic cultural shifts, although many of the lyrics and themes are meant to be humorous. The band's style has also been described as experimental noise as [4] the vocals are dark, monotone and bleak while the sound is aggressive. The drum beat is often mechanical and pounding, producing a raw, minimalistic sound. [5] The sloppy, chaotic and sharp chords, however, are kept in line by the ever-steady rhythm. [6]

Discography

Singles

Albums

Compilations appearances

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bratmobile</span> American punk band

Bratmobile is an American punk band from Olympia, Washington, formed in 1991. They are known for being one of the first-generation "riot grrrl" bands. The band was influenced by several eclectic musical styles, including elements of pop, surf, and garage rock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poison Idea</span> American punk rock band

Poison Idea was an American punk rock band formed in Portland, Oregon, in 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unrest (band)</span> American indie rock band

Unrest was an indie rock band from the Washington, D.C., area. It was one of Mark Robinson's projects for what would eventually become the TeenBeat label, also created by Robinson while in high school. Developing from an experimental approach of never playing the same song twice, earlier material seemed to be influenced by everything from punk to funk to Ennio Morricone. Original members Robinson (guitar) and drummer Philip Krauth were joined by Bridget Cross on bass in 1990 and their sound evolved into a minimalist but lively kind of pop. The two full-length albums released with this line up, 1992's Imperial f.f.r.r. and 1993's Perfect Teeth featured pop songs interspersed with avant-garde percussive and sonic tracks, sometimes featuring nothing but white noise, beeps or sirens. EPs released around the same time period reveal a more pronounced gap between pop and experimental elements. The group broke up in 1994 with Krauth pursuing a solo career and Robinson and Cross continued for a time as Air Miami, which released two singles and one album, me me me. Since Air Miami's demise in the mid '90s, Robinson has continued to release various solo projects, as well as albums with his bands Cotton Candy and Flin Flon, and continues to run the TeenBeat label as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eric's Trip</span> Canadian indie rock band

Eric's Trip is a Canadian indie rock band from Moncton, New Brunswick. Eric's Trip achieved prominence as the first Canadian band to be signed to Seattle's flagship grunge label Sub Pop in the early 1990s.

This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb was a folk punk band from Pensacola, Florida, United States. Their first recording was released in 1997 on Ghostmeat Records. Their later releases have been on Plan It X Records and No Idea Records, but now appear on their own label Plan-It X South. This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb initially started as a new wave band, with folk singer David Dondero on drums. They quickly switched to playing country music, but their punk roots were evident enough in their music that they became one of the premiere bands at the forefront of the folk-punk genre. They did several US tours, including an Alaska tour 2003 played at Geekfest, and toured Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naked Raygun</span> American punk band

Naked Raygun is an American punk rock band that formed in Chicago in 1980. The band was active from 1980 to 1992, along with reunion shows in 1997, and since 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rick White (musician)</span> Canadian musician and singer-songwriter (born 1970)

Rick White is a Canadian musician and singer-songwriter. Born in Moncton, New Brunswick, he was a member of indie bands Eric's Trip, Elevator, Perplexus, and The Unintended. White first played music, in a band called "Bloodstain", in 1984, before starting his own band "in 1986", called "T.C.I.B", which later transitioned into the band name, "The Underdogs", which lasted from the summer of 1987, until June 1988. By the summer of 1989, The Underdogs had broken up, and Rick had joined another band, "The Forest", which lasted from the 1989, until June 1990, with a one-off recording session happening in December, 1990. Prior to Eric's Trip, and while in Eric's Trip, White also recorded two solo-produced albums, one in March 1990, and another in August 1991, but both were not released until 2022. Known for lo-fi recording, he has also recorded and produced music for The Sadies, Orange Glass, Joel Plaskett, One Hundred Dollars, Dog Day, HotKid and his former Eric's Trip bandmate Julie Doiron.

Grifters is an indie rock/alternative rock band based in Memphis who have released albums on Darla Records, Doink, Sonic Noise, Shangri-La Records, and Sub Pop Records. The band released five studio albums from 1992 to 1997. In the years following 1997, the band had breaks in activity with some members pursuing other musical projects and with the band sporadically touring in the years after. However, in recent years they have continued to tour on a consistent basis and have stated interest in recording new material. The band has released and reissued some of their material on Bandcamp.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Dirtbombs</span> American garage rock band

The Dirtbombs are an American garage rock band based in Detroit, Michigan, notable for blending diverse influences such as punk rock and soul, while featuring a dual bass guitar, dual drum and guitar lineup. The Dirtbombs were formed by Mick Collins as a side project and started recording songs by 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Circle (Finnish band)</span> Finnish experimental rock band

Circle is a Finnish experimental rock band formed in Pori in 1991. Their eclectic, ever-changing style has been associated with genres such as krautrock, heavy metal, progressive rock, and ambient. On some albums they have defined themselves as New Wave of Finnish Heavy Metal (NWOFHM).

Fleurety is a Norwegian avant-garde metal band. The band was formed in 1991 by Svein Egil Hatlevik and Alexander Nordgaren.

Plexi was an American gothic noise rock band consisting of Michael Angelos, Michael Barragan and Norm Block. Formed in 1993, their original name was Godseed. Their sound has been compared to bands such as Bauhaus, Sonic Youth, The Cure, Bailter Space, Swervedriver, The Psychedelic Furs, My Bloody Valentine and Psi Com. Plexi's material combined a mix of detached, wry, existential, and romantic lyrics with a flamboyant blend of glam rock and artsy avant-garde textures and noise. Guitarist Michael Barragan was known for regular use of an Echoplex unit to create chaotic walls of sound.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Catheters</span> American punk rock band

The Catheters were an American punk rock band from Bellevue, Washington, which formed in 1995 as a 4-piece with singer Brian Standeford, guitarist Derek Mason, bassist Paul Waude, and drummer James Lysons. They originally played hardcore punk in the vein of bands such as Black Flag and The Circle Jerks. In 1998 they added second guitarist Lars Swenson and began cultivating a dirtier '70s glam-rock sound, as heard on their eMpTy Records releases. The records sold fairly well and gained them the attention of larger labels such as DreamWorks and Sub Pop, the latter of whom signed the band to a recording contract in 1999.

Eric Gaffney is an American songwriter and recording artist, and has been home recording on cassette since 1981. An active participant in the Western Mass hardcore scene, in 1983 he founded, wrote songs for, and drummed with Grey Matter, opening hall shows with Jerry's Kids, F.U.s, The Freeze, Big Boys, Raw Power, Adrenalin O.D., Siege, 7 Seconds, Outpatients, Pajama Slave Dancers, Da Stupids, and others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rachel Carns</span> American drummer

Rachel Carns is an American musician, composer, artist and performer living in Olympia, Washington, U.S. Raised in small-town Wisconsin, she went on to study painting and drawing at Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York City, where she completed her B.F.A. in 1991. Carns began her career as drummer for Kicking Giant, later collaborating with several bands, including The Need. She is a celebrated graphic designer, working under the name System Lux, and plays drums and percussion with experimental performance art group Cloud Eye Control.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Intelligence</span> American rock band

The Intelligence is an American rock band from Seattle, formed in 1999. Founded by multi-instrumentalist Lars Finberg, the band currently consists of Finberg, alongside Dave Hernandez (guitar), Drew Church (bass) and Kaanan Tupper (drums).

Creaming Jesus were an English band, influenced by gothic rock, punk and thrash metal, who formed in London, England. Formed in 1987, their original line up was Andy (vocals) Lil (vocals) Tally (bass) Roy (drums) Lindy (drums) and Paul (guitar). Their original sound was a wall of percussive noise, Slayer-influenced thrash metal guitarists and screamed vocals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Forgotten (band)</span> American punk rock band

The Forgotten is an American punk rock band based in San Jose, California. The Forgotten have toured the U.S., Canada, Europe and Japan numerous times.

Erin Smith in Washington, D.C., is best known for being the guitarist of riot grrrl band Bratmobile, a band with drummer Molly Neuman and vocalist Allison Wolfe.

Uzi was an American alternative rock band, formed in 1984 in Boston, Massachusetts and disbanded in 1987. The band featured Thalia Zedek, Danny Lee (drums), Randy Barnwell, Bob Young (guitar) and Phil Milstein. Never achieving commercial success during their short period of activity, the band gained a cult following, becoming a part of Boston's underground rock scene.

References

  1. "A Frames". Discogs.com.
  2. "A Frames". Subpop.com.
  3. Schroeder, Audra (2005-03-18). "Live Shots: A Frames". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
  4. C., Jenny (February 2007). "The A Frames: Greatness Rides In A Station Wagon". The Nerve Magazine. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
  5. "City Pages". Archived from the original on August 1, 2008.
  6. Williams, Richard T. (2005-04-22). "A Frames: Black Forest". PopMatters. Retrieved 2008-07-10.