Friko Shares New Single “Get Numb To It!”
Chicago band Friko — vocalist/guitarist Niko Kapetan and drummer Bailey Minzenberger — shares the new single, “Get Numb To It!” from their debut album, Where We’ve Been, Where We Go From Here, which was released via ATO Records and Cadence Music Group.
Another song illuminating the immense depth of their musicality, “Get Numb To It!” emerges as a full-tilt, pogo-ready anthem etched with so many unexpected details and will be featured as a KCRW Today’s Top Tune this week.
“When we recorded that song Niko and I were each on pianos on opposite sides of the room, just slamming on them for texture,” says Bailey. “There are moments all over the record where we were both improvising at the same time, but they’re mostly used in a very subtle way, without making it the main focal point.”
First off care to introduce yourself to our readers?
Hello, we are Friko! Me and Bailey met in high school when we sat next to each other in a music theory class senior year but didn’t talk. It wasn’t until after high school when I started playing bass in Bailey’s band, then after my high school band broke up I asked Bailey to play in my band which we later named Friko. Luke Stamos, who played bass on the record, played with me in various bands since middle school and left the band after the record because music was never a career thing for him. But we’re all still very close and he even records or plays with us sometimes still.
Tell us a bit about your recent release.
“Where we’ve been, Where we go from here” is the culmination of about 2.5 years of writing/playing around Chicago constantly. The band (me, Bailey, and Luke) all lived together for most of this time, and that combined with working with our two close friends, Jack Henry and Scott Tallarida, made this a very special/homegrown record for us. We recorded everything before we signed to ATO so it was possible mostly because of the generosity of Scott letting us use his studio for free, and Jack Henry devoting endless time for whatever we could pay out of pocket. It was pieced together over time because of the lack of funds starting with us fully recording and mixing four songs, then two more, then the last three. For me, this record represents our collective friendship and how much you can do when a small group of folks puts everything they have into a project.
How do you typically go about the songwriting process? Do you have a specific method or creative routine that you follow?
For this record it mostly involved me bringing a song finished in guitar and vocals to the band. From there we would arrange it and Luke and Bailey would write their parts. Then in the studio, we’d further those arrangements with more overdubs that we couldn’t foresee when practicing as a three-piece.
When starting songs, I don’t really have a method to it. I’ll just feel something strongly and start playing around on guitar and piano. One lyric will pop up out of nowhere and I’ll just go from there.
Looking ahead, what are your plans for supporting this new release? Are there any upcoming tours, music videos, or additional content that fans can look forward to in connection with this project?
We’ll be touring constantly for the next year or so! All over the US, some Canada, and other places in the world that we’re very stoked to go to (but I don’t think we can announce yet)
We may do some additional videos or release a B-sides EP, but for the most part, we want to let the record stand on its own.
Looking back on your musical career, is there a particular moment or accomplishment that you consider a turning point or a highlight?
It was honestly when Scott sat us down when we had the first few songs for this record. It should be known that Scott has known me since I was 16 years old and has seen me write a LOT of bad songs lol.
But he basically told us that we were coming into ourselves as a band and had something special. That gave us the confidence we needed to go into this record with everything we had.
Last but not least, it’s time to pay it forward, what upcoming band or artist would you recommend your fans check out?
Some up-and-coming local Chicago faves of ours are Hemlock, Sick Day, and Chaepter, among many others!