Review: Friko @ The Sinclair 3/8
Photo credits: Alexander Jibaja
Review by Robin Sheng
Chicago indie-rock band Friko delivered a passionate and fantastically emotion-charged performance at The Sinclair in Cambridge, Mass. on March 8. Known for their emotionally sincere and sonically eclectic style of music, Friko released their debut album “Where We’ve Been, Where Do We Go From Here” last February to significant critical acclaim. After more than a year has passed since the debut album’s release, which has broadened their audience from their local Chicago scene to the wider indie music world at large, the band is moving into new dimensions. Having confirmed that they are currently working on another album, Friko played several unreleased songs at the concert that will be likely found in their next record.
After opener Starcleaner Reunion established an intriguing atmosphere with a somewhat stylistically diverse setlist, Friko took the stage by storm. Their performance at The Sinclair was first and foremost overwhelmed with visceral passion and intense emotion. On “Crimson to Chrome,” lead singer Niko Kapetan adequately balanced power and delicacy in his vocal delivery while mixing in sporadic yelps that established a charmingly raw quality for the performance. “Statues” is another song that exemplifies the band’s emotional strengths. The final section of the performance featured the inclusion of all instrumental layers at once, ending with visceral screams from Kapetan that felt emotionally cathartic in every way possible. The emotional expressiveness of Friko’s music was further complemented by the lead singer’s energetic and idiosyncratic stage presence. During “Crimson to Chrome,” for instance, Kapetan moved frantically across the stage, sometimes seemingly on the verge of collapsing, only to rise in full strength again. The lead singer’s physical rises and falls were a perfect accompaniment for the song’s lyrical themes concerning emotional contradictions, providing a brilliant visual representation of the band’s ethos.
While Friko certainly leaned into their most visceral instincts through their performance with great success, they also maintained their established strength of cohesive arrangements as a band. One particularly impressive aspect of the band’s performance was their aptitude at utilizing drastic shifts in dynamics. The song “Chemical,” for example, featured a moment of sudden stopping and restarting that evoked a shocking sensation, a moment that was established by the band’s meticulous handling of complex rhythms during the chorus section. “Where We’ve Been,” a song highly reliant on layering and rising progressions, was further refined in the live setting. Additional atmospheric layers not found in the studio version created an even tenser build-up to the song’s explosive chorus, enhancing the definitive feeling of the song.
Of course, Friko is not only about their louder moments. Calmer and more stripped-down tracks were appropriately sequenced throughout the concert between noisier songs, all of which were also performed with great care. “Cardinal,” for example, felt even more confessional and intimate in the live setting. While Kapetan did struggle a bit at reaching the difficult high note during the song’s choruses, his charisma and emotional resonance as a performer made it almost unnoticed, earning significant applause from the audience.
The unreleased songs performed by the band further demonstrated their capabilities at accentuating distinct strengths while also continuing their stylistic evolution. The concert’s opening song, “Guess,” notably played even more significantly into quiet-loud dynamics, as the band delivered a fantastic explosive chorus after several verses of minimal guitar strums and intimate vocals. “Dirty Diamond” took the band’s intensity to further heights, resulting in a manic and anxious performance that perfectly captured a feeling of emotional desperation. Its use of angular guitars accompanied by messy and yet entirely resonant screams was particularly instrumental in the portrayal of such emotions. Friko ended the concert with “Dear Bicycle,” a song that the band introduced to the audience as the likely closer of their next record. In addition to the song’s unique melody and intimate atmosphere that grasped the audience, its slower tempo and ascending intensity further served as a suitable closing note for the concert. As Kapetan intricately and sincerely delivers the line “Oh to be a bicycle,” one is inclined to be reminded once more that the essence of live music is emotional resonance, a quality that Friko embodied in every way throughout their performance.