Frankmusik - By Nicole (2014)

With the singer having parted ways with his record label over three years ago, By Nicole is the second instance London-based producer and artist Frankmusik has independently crafted himself an album. By Nicole is in fact Vincent Turner’s fourth studio album in total, after first finding success with the 2009 debut Complete Me. It seems he’s been able to sustain his knack for energetic, synthpop masterpieces since then.

If you’ve been following Turner on social media over the past six months or so, you will have seen just how much work was put into the creation of this self-funded release. He is quite the jack-of-all-trades. It is the attachment to the music which makes tracks such as ‘Conclusions’ and ‘Fire’ all the more personal. The latter seems to be about the determination to pursue a tough career in music despite the struggles undoubtedly encountered so far.

In typical Frankmusik style, thematically at least, it is a break-up album – most likely directed at this elusive ‘Nicole’ character. Singles ‘These Streets ’ and ‘Dear Nicole’ echo this in a way unheard in his earlier discography. There’s always been a strong association with upbeat electronic pop with Frankmusik and he’s always needed to develop his balladry. By Nicole sees him get the balance right with the aforementioned ‘Dear Nicole’ a highlight of his career so far.

What’s most unusual about this guy’s voice is that he actually has one. Turner is vocally faultless throughout and no more so than up against the scarcely-remembered Natasha Bedingfield. ‘Crash And Burn’ includes the album’s only feature and is one of its highlights. It feels like the late-noughties all over again. The inclusion of Bedingfield, who has a beautiful, distinct voice much like Turner himself, is a stroke of genius. It’s about time these two hit it big on the pop scene once more.

Frankmusik’s lyrics and themes are actually quite quirky. The incredible ‘Teacups’ plays on overused clichés yet presents them in a fresh and exciting manner. ‘We made mountains out of molehills / Storms in our teacups / Made much ado about nothing / Which is why we broke up’ is similar to 2013’s ‘Cake’. It’s a great listen nonetheless.

With that, however, is an overruling strive for great melody and progression. Lyrics are one thing, but when paired with that all-encompassing Frankmusik brand of soaring, high-energy levels of euphoria, he becomes a genre onto himself. ‘Uh Oh’, ‘Stabilizher’ and the glorious ‘Ephermeral Summer’ demonstrate this fabulously.

It’s been a tough old journey for Turner so far, which is why it is such a delight to see an album of such immense quality come out of that. Nothing lacks here, with production quality in particular a real credit to his craft as an artist. He’s quite the seasoned expert at this music lark. Future releases will most likely be just as difficult, but it sure does produce one of the most gratifying listens of any pop album released this year.

Tracklist:

01. White Table
02. Fire
03. Misdemeanor
04. Go
05. Uh Oh
06. Crash And Burn feat. Natasha Bedingfield
07. Stabilizher
08. Call To Arms
09. Fled
10. Tea Cups
11. Ephemeral Summer
12. Interval
13. We End
14. Dear Nicole
15. These Streets