FRONTBACK - Don't Mind The Noise

11 songs
39:59 minutes
***** ***
Black Lodge

Bandpage

I haven’t been listening much to hard rock lately because I came to the conclusion that the genre really doesn’t have anything new to offer anymore. Two and a half years ago, I saw the disappointing Five Finger Death Punch opening for Judas Priest, which only confirmed my opinion.

But then, once in a while, one stumbles over the exception to the rule. In this case I am talking about Frontback. The Swedes released two EPs in 2008 and 2011, followed by two longplayers in 2013 and 2017, but I only discovered them with their third album Don’t Mind The Noise.

Vocalist/guitarist Anlo Front, the only remaining member of the original line-up, attracts attention with her strange military uniform. A short intro is followed by Fearless which features timeless rock’n’roll. The songs take advantage of Anlo’s charismatic voice which comes with a certain punk attitude. Let’s Play Rock’n’Roll is another cool track that knows how to get the listeners’ attention. The band is rocking unperturbedly through the compact length of the album. The four Swedes have managed to craft a sizzling mix of rock’n’roll, noise, melodies and punch. Only When The Wind Is Gone is a more sedate track, with the band maybe trying get a certain arena rock flair into their music. Despite a certain kitsch factor, even this piece works well within the confines of the album.

Frontback will be touring this fall with Thundermother, and it’s hard to imagine a more fitting package. It’s been shown time and again that no one can rock in a more authentic way than the Scandinavians. Frontback’s music is kept deliberately simple, but it’s also incredibly entertaining and even repeated listening won’t take the fun out of the songs.