The Frontier Brothers
Austin, Texas, United States | SELF
Music
Press
"The Frontier Brothers are what might have happened if the love children of Randy Newman and Stephen Malkmus were born, as the Brothers claim to have been, in the Betelgeuse planetary system [...] The songs are well-crafted and giddily fun."
- Jesse Hughey
All I can say is "I'm in love with a robot." The Frontier Brothers are the perfect soundtrack for your next rock'n'roll space party. - Whitney Matheson
"the songs are doggedly interesting time and again . . . The Frontier Brothers achieve something I've never quite heard before: a punky sort of rock that isn't afraid to dress up with some Bacharachian fussiness."
- (Andrew Dansby, Oct. 2008)
Last year’s Space Punk Starlet was instantly intriguing, a stunning, sprawling, glorious mess of a debut that hides gorgeous pop arrangements behind the group’s blessedly unstudied weirdness. - The Onion (Austin)
On Space Punk Starlet:
"The band has clearly reveled in their studio time and have released a superior effort in the vein of an early – less annoying – FLAMING LIPS." - Brian Lush
"Their songs are pulsing with tight melodies and talented musicianship. The Frontier Brothers sound exactly like what would happen if The Flaming Lips smashed Brandon Flowers in the face: awesome." - Marc Perlman
"Their debut album Space Punk Starlet is proof that there is far more to them than any other American Indie Rock band out there at the moment. In fact, upon hearing the 14 gems on what is an album with no fillers, it is hard to confine them to the indie box." - Nathan Nicholson
"If you haven’t seen this band or heard their brilliant release, Space Punk Starlet, do so." - WOXY
"The Frontier Brothers cover the territory between The Beach Boys and The Kinks, with just a touch of mad Syd Barrett" - Vivien Goldman
"This album is pretty awesome. A genuinely captivating, raw album that’s good for jamming out with your friends, rocking out by yourself, or simply to fill those moments of silence that are just begging for a good tune." - Leslie Ann
'We're irreverent, and glamorous, and pissed off, we've had enough,' offers charismatic Frontier Brothers front man Marshall Newman on the title track of 'You Should Start A Band.' Everything that makes this three-song blast of Bowie-meets-Devo glam rock maddeningly catchy is right there in that line: a sense of humor, quotability and plenty of attitude, delivered with a wink, a fetching synth line and an audience-ready shout-along.
From that anthemic opener to the more-tender-than-you'd-expect 'Burning Panties' to the irony-soaked rocker 'Don't Try and Take My Guns,' the Frontier Brothers spend 13 minutes wrapping clever songwriting and a satirist's sense of wit in towering hooks and winning melodies. Like local glam-rock contemporaries the Black and White Years and the Bright Light Social Hour, they've found the winning formula where funny, observational songwriting intersects wholly unpretentious rock 'n' roll. - Austin American Statesmen
"one of Austin’s more eccentric, infectious and fun rock groups... unerringly brilliant" - Adi Anand - Austinist.com
Discography
The Strut Single - 2011 TBA
2010 Debut on NPR's Earth and Sky
You Should Start A Band EP - 2010
Single Radio Debut
April 1, 2010: #21 on Specialty Radio Charts (SubModern)
Widespread national and college radio play including..
101X Austin, KUT, 101.9 RXP New York, KCRW, WEND Charlotte, WXPN Philly
Space Punk Starlet LP - 2008
Space Punk Starlet (101X Austin, KVRX Texas, KUT Austin, WOXY Radio, WNYU, LALA)
Solar Power Struggle EP - 2007
Jump Blues (KVRX Texas, WRVU Nashville, KTCU Fort Worth, WRVU Nashville, Pop Candy Podcast, KTCU, KVRX Texas)
Electronic Progress EP - 2006
Christmasville (Darkhorse Radio UK, KVRX Texas, Radio Crystal Blue)
Photos
Bio
From a bar room brawl to sweaty clubs across the nation, The Frontier Brothers are raising fists and turning heads with their own rowdy brand of gun-slinging indie pop. The Austin-based quartet's 2010 EP, You Should Start A Band, has built an impressive buzz; After the group debuted the new single "You Should Start a Band" at their CMJ showcase in New York City, legendary DJ Matt Pinfield immediately picked up the party-punk anthem to feature on the acclaimed NYC rock station 101.9 RXP. The single spent 5 weeks on the specialty radio charts (FMBQ - peaked at #21). In 2010 alone, The Frontier Brothers shared the stage with such diverse acts as Matt & Kim, Wale, and What Made Milwaukee Famous and played sold out shows at venues such as NYC's Webster Hall (Studio) and Austin's The Parish Room.
Of course, The Frontier Brothers are no strangers to attention. The dynamic indie rockers have been critical favorites since the release of their sharply crafted cinematic debut, Space Punk Starlet in 2008. Zap! Bang! Magazine hailed Space Punk Starlet as “proof that there is far more to them than any other American Indie Rock band out there at the moment.” Writing for Paste Magazine, Andy Whitman listed the album among his favorites for 2008. Spin Magazine tuned in to the buzz as well, featuring the band in the June 2008 SXSW feature, “Bands on the Run.”
As The Houston Chronicle proclaims, "The Frontier Brothers are something I have never quite heard before, a punky sort of rock that isn't afraid to dress up with some Bacharachian fussiness." Dressed up or throwing down, The Frontier Brothers have staked their claim - a joyfully raucous remedy to the bored hipster blues.
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