Brattleboro, Vermont isn't exactly known for churning out chart-topping music acts right now. However, in the town of approximately 10,000 people, four teenagers that form the indie-soul fusion band Moxie have gathered nearly 1-million plays on their top song on Spotify and continue to make their mark on the industry with the release of "Frank."
Since their 2018 full-length release, The Fall LP, Moxie kept reserved in 2019 releasing only one single. Now, with several more live performances under their belt, they have brought rejuvenated energy into 2020 culminating in the completion of their second album, Flow of Color, out June 1st.
After dropping "Hard to Be" the first single from the new project earlier this month, "Frank" comes as a more melancholic track to contrast and compliment the upbeat energy of the former. Rei Kimura's deep soulful vocals are always the driver of their tracks and nothing changes for their latest piece.
"Frank" opens to a lick that teens of the mid-2000s will surely recognize as it mirrors "Youth" by Daughter, a song that encapsulates a generation in a few simple chords and something Moxie is trying to do themselves.
While the familiar riff is very similar, the track drifts away from that resemblance with the commencement of Kimura's unorthodox vocals and the lead guitar taking on its own harmonic tones. Guitarist Leander Holzapfel shifts to plucking a surfy undertone as Kimura's vocal line starts to mimic the rhythm. Bassist David Cohen weaves together the changing tempos throughout the track thanks to his lead-like basslines.
As everything drops out, except the high-hat and some bright, bubbly guitar licks, Kimura's vocals return with full force— first faded and washed out but then resurface for a resurgence and resolution into one last hurrah of liveliness.
As Moxie continues to develop their distinctive sound and continue mature musically, there is nothing out of reach for these bright musicians. Flow of Color should be seen as an integral next step for the Vermont-quartet as they seek to separate themselves from today's musical status quo.
