Frankie and The Witch Fingers, SONS OF ZÖKU @ The Gov, Adelaide 8/11/2022
It’s always tough on a school night to venture out for an early week gig but I’m glad I caught Frankie and the Witch Fingers at The Gov. Hot damn! This band can really play and for the next ninety minutes they made plenty of the right noises to the loyal crowd who have an ear for up and upcoming talent. To be fair the band are still building their profile in Australia with the first show of their tour in Adelaide. It would have been quite easy to take one look out at the crowd and dial it in but no, they played with plenty of fire and brimstone playing as if they were in an arena to twenty thousand people. Fingers crossed that this is the first of many tours here.
Most people I know when I told them I was seeing this band said Frankie and the who? As their bio says they were formed and incubated in Bloomington IN before moving west to Los Angeles to scrap with the garage rock rabble. Their DNA is very much prog-infused psychedelia with a twist of garage. Think Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard and Tropical Fuck Storm and you’re pretty close. Adelaide locals, SONS OF ZÖKU were great warming the stage for what was to come. Hard to believe that I have not seen this band before whop are literally right on our doorstep.
Wasting no time at all Frankie and The Witch Fingers – Dylan Sizemore (vocals, rhythm guitar), Josh Menashe (lead guitar, vocals), Nikkie Pickle (bass), and Shaughnessy Starr (drums) – took the stage powering through opening song Empire. The set list was close to being a good spread of all seven albums to date. Cocaine Dream, Tracksuit, Mild Davis and Electricide absolutely rocketed along. No pointless banter clogging up the set, it was all about the music and drummer Shaughnessy Starr was incredible to watch, absolute powerhouse.
It was loud, it was raucous, it was great to watch! Newer tunes Cavehead which morphed in to MEPEM… and Reaper. Hells bells Dracula Drug, Realization and Work off ZAM was so good. Finishing on Tea the parochial crowd chanted for one more song and as that chant started to wane the band returned. Singer and rhythm guitarist spoke on behalf of the band thanking everyone for turning out for their first Australian tour and was full of gratitude. What a song to finish the night on covering the mighty Stooges I Wanna Be Your Dog. If the band were going to leave a lasting impression they did with that one. Killer band, killer show, don’t miss Frankie and the Witch Finger.
Live Review By Rob Lyon