Frog | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Queens, New York, US. |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2012–present |
| Labels |
|
| Members | Daniel Bateman Steve Bateman Thomas White |
| Website | frog |
Frog is an American indie rock band. The group was founded by Daniel Bateman and Thomas White in Queens, New York in 2012. In 2019, White left the band and was replaced on drums by Bateman's brother Steve. [1] [2] [3] White has since rejoined the band on bass. [3] [2]
They have released six studio albums through labels like Audio Antihero and their own Tapewormies imprint, which have received praise from Pitchfork, Stereogum, and The Line of Best Fit [4] [5] [6] as well as airplay from KEXP, [7] KCRW, [8] European national radio, [9] [10] [11] and various BBC stations. [12] [13] [14]
Daniel Bateman and Thomas White began playing together in the folk group Uncles, [15] a collaboration between Bateman and songwriter Will Schwartz. [14] After Uncles ended, Bateman and White formed Frog. [3] [16] They released their self-titled debut album in 2013 via Monkfish Records. [17] [18] After finding praise on sites like Gold Flake Paint and Drowned in Sound, [19] [20] the duo signed with the UK-based Audio Antihero label for Kind of Blah in 2015. [21] [22] [23]
This second album received support from US-based radio (WPRB and WMBR) [24] [25] and press support (Magnet and Impose). [26] [27] The band also performed for a BRIC Arts Media television broadcast. [28]
Kind of Blah received further coverage from UK press publications like Clash, Bearded, Artrocker, DIY Mag, [29] [30] [31] and The Digital Fix. [32] [33] Tracks from the album were also aired on the BBC's Radio 1 (Huw Stephens) [34] and 6 Music (Gideon Coe, Steve Lamacq, and Tom Ravenscroft) [35] [36] [37] stations, and the band recorded a session for Dandelion Radio. [38] [39] Their “Judy Garland” single later also placed at #17 in the 2015 Festive Fifty chart. [40] In addition to Frog's exposure via UK media, their “Catchyalater” single was remixed by British artists Benjamin Shaw, Jack Hayter (Hefner), and Broken Shoulder (Fighting Kites). [41] [42] [43]
In January 2016, Frog toured England and Scotland to promote Kind of Blah. [44] [1] On this tour, they played a live session for Resonance FM, [45] and were interviewed for Amazing Radio, [45] in addition to performing in London, Colchester, York, Glasgow, and Edinburgh. One of the tour's lineups included The Drink, and another was well reviewed by The Skinny. [46] [47] The tour was also filmed for the 2018 Kings of Blah documentary by Alex Coppola. [48] [49] [50]
After Kind of Blah, Frog reissued their self-titled album through Audio Antihero [51] [52] and contributed a remix of Magana's “Golden Tongue” to the b-side of her “Inches Apart” single. [53] [54] [41]
Frog followed up Kind of Blah in November 2018 with Whatever We Probably Already Had It, [55] [56] [57] receiving airplay from Roddy Hart on BBC Radio Scotland and Robert Rotifer on FM4. [58] [59]
White relocated to England in 2019 [60] [61] and Frog's August 2019 follow-up, Count Bateman, was a solo album from Bateman as a result. [62] [63] [64] Frog then went on hiatus due to changes in Bateman's professional and personal circumstances [65] [1] [66] but contributed a live version of “Rubbernecking” to the From the River to the Sea: The Terrible Truth About Palestine fundraiser compilation for the United Palestinian Appeal in 2021. [67] [68] [69]
In August 2023, the Brooklyn-based CIAO MALZ released a cover of You Know I'm Down from Frog's Count Bateman LP, [70] which was featured on KLOF Magazine, God Is In the TV and Resonance FM. [71] [72] [73] In February 2025, CIAO MALZ recorded a second Frog cover when she performed Wish Upon a Bar in a session for the "Top Spin" show on BFF.FM. [74]
Frog returned in November 2023 with their fifth album Grog, [75] [76] for which Steve Bateman formally joined as the band's drummer. [4] [77] [52] The album's singles received support from Pitchfork and Stereogum [78] [79] while the album was included in Bandcamp Daily’s weekly “Essential Albums,” received 9/10 from God Is In The TV, and was graded 7.4 in a review by Pitchfork's Nina Corcoran. [80] [81] [1]
Grog was the top debut in the North American College & Community Radio Chart [82] with airplay from KCRW, WKDU, and WUTC. [83] [84] [85] The “Maybelline” single was played by BBC Music Introducing, [86] and Grog was the “Record of Note” on Hart's November 17, 2023 show. [87] “U Shud Go 2 Me” was also added to the Amazing Radio playlist. [88] To support the album, Bateman appeared on Roddy Hart's January 1, 2024 show as the “Me-in-3” guest. [89] [90]
Outside of the UK and US, Frog received airplay from national radio outlets Kosmos 93.6, Radio 3, and FM4 [91] [92] [10] as well as the Politiken, Polityka, Bant Magazine, [93] [94] [95] and Rolling Stone Argentina publications. [96]
In December 2024, Frog released the "DID SANTA COME" single, alongside an announcement for their sixth album, 1000 Variations on the Same Song, and North American tour. [97] [98]
The band returned in January 2025, with the "MIXTAPE LINER NOTES VAR. IV" single, [99] [100] and to announce a February 14 date for the new album. [101] [102] The following week, they released the "JUST USE YR HIPS VAR. VI" single [103] [104] before the "HOUSEBROKEN VAR. IV" on February 7. [105]
On February 11 2025, Stereogum named 1000 Variations on the Same Song as their "Album of the Week." [106] [107] The album was released on February 14, [108] and it was featured in Pitchfork's "11 New Albums You Should Listen to Now," [109] in addition to receiving positive reviews FLOOD Magazine, Our Culture Magazine, Rosy Overdrive, and other outlets. [110] [111] [112] On the day of the album's release, Frog reached No.1 in the Hype Machine "Most Posted Artists" chart. [113]