Protopop
Exeunt Records
Protopop, Royal Fins debut album, is a unique synthesis of alternative elements accompanied by new school music and sound. Right off the bat its not hard to slap a label on this band genre-wise; they almost sound like Franz Ferdinand and Panic! At the Disco fusion.
Their lead singer, Justin Dietrich, has a magnificent voice that isn’t necessarily original in tone but through his lyrics, he shines. "Danger" is a personal favorite as it deals with the relatable Femme Fatale, or those people in your life that you know are bad for you yet you can’t seem to get away from them. "The Rush is the Action" is another well written song that stands alone as far as sound and composition.
“Your Visit to America” was unknown to the band until the day it was recorded. When nearly finished with the album, the band needed a song that was a break from the guitar, bass and drum tracks that comprised the bulk of the album. Improvising in the studio, keyboardist Brandall Brawner sat down at a grand piano and within an hour had written, arranged and recorded this haunting piano melody.
Brawner mans the synthesizer as well in the band and throughout the album you can hear some interesting sounds that he litters about to give the whole sound that extra boost. Bar Arl on drums is exceptional as well, listen for a kick ass solo at the end of "Gone Blind." The last man in the band, Squid (as he is labeled on the album), played the guitar and bass for the album. Squid is not a conventional player and uses all sorts of nifty pedals and effects to give his tracks the perfect sound. The song “Tides Always Turn” is held together by a powerful steady bass line accompanied by a strange swishing effect on the guitar making for a very unique rhythm.
Royal Fins’ Protopop will be officially released August 21, 2015 on the independent Saint Louis label, Exeunt Records.
