Frightened Rabbit

I’m liking The Midnight Organ Fight, by the Scottish Band Frightened Rabbit rather a lot. The review at Slant Magazine could have been written by me, except for the silly remark about Adam Duritz. Instead it was written by Wilson McBee, whose name is even more wonderful than that of the band.

Elsewhere, I’ve seen FR compared with the White Stripes. They were a guitar+vocals/drums sibling duo, and Scott (vocals/guitar) and Grant (drums/vocals) Hutchison sometimes sound like Jack and Meg. But that’s truer on their first album, The Greys (and especially of its title track) than on Midnight Organ Fight.

Frightened Rabbit sometimes remind me of The Proclaimers, with their tendency to be Scottish, folky, and anthemic all at once. But their duo days are behind them: they are now a 4-piece. Anyway, you should sample for yourself, so…

Here’s the video for “Head Rolls Off.” Shooting a music video in a school classroom, and having the kids come in to dance around is one of those ideas so brilliant that I’m surprised I haven’t seen it done before. Another thing I like about the video is the closing credits. It’s a rather bold choice of single, what with all the stuff about Jesus and God, but the kids rock regardless.