by Grady Mitchell | Vancouver quartet Frankie, comprised of singer/guitarist Francesca Carbonneau, keyboardist Nashlyn Lloyd, bassist Samantha Lankester, and drummer Zoe Fuhr, have pioneered their own new genre based on their distinctive style of dark, folky music. They’re calling it “twinkle rock”.

That’s not to say everything in the Frankie universe sparkles. The delicate beauty of Francesca’s voice and the intricately woven instruments masks the dark core of their music. “It’s kind of like when a dream interferes with a nightmare, and all of that happens in one song,” says Zoe. The collision between those two extremes – the immense possibility of dreams with the nocturnal tortures of nightmares – is where twinkle rock happens.

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In various ways, almost every Frankie song embodies this. Powder, despite its light and airy instrumentation, lays out an emotional spiral and some none-too-healthy methods of coping. The frantic pace of Someone Once mimics the story of mental decay it spins, just as the steady, forbidding rhythm of Painted Birds amplifies a tale of romance gone dark.

Formed in December 2013, the band has faced most of the challenges arrayed against a new act, compounded by the stereotypes facing an all-girl group. “You have something to prove,” the band agrees. Most common is the genuine, post-performance surprise that audience members show at their live shows. But those kinds of reactions just motivate them to work harder. “We can’t just be cute up there,” says Nashlyn. “We have to be good.”

The momentum they’ve built over only six months is a testament to that, and shows no signs of slowing. On Saturday, July 26th the band will play a show at Sitka on West 4th. They have two festivals scheduled later in the summer: Edge of the World on Haida Gwaii on August 9th, and another at Ponderosa Festival at the end of that month. After that, they plan to hole up for the Fall and get an album done. For more from Frankie, check out their website.

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