Frankie Cosmos - Next Thing

Frankie Cosmos
Next Thing
2016
Spotify

I was just sitting here thinking "well at least 2016 didn't have very much 'twee'" that is until I started listening to the new record from Frankie Cosmos Next Thing. I am being a bit over zealous calling this album 'twee', and while the ditty nature of these tracks might make you think they are disposable, but you would be very wrong. Unlike many artists these days who are going longer and longer Cosmos keeps her songs super concise getting in and out usually under two minutes. Leaving you wanting more is an understatement as a song like "Fool" seems like it could never be long enough. Cosmos also never lets a track fade out, she has an ending and you are going to hear it. The run times can also be a bit misleading. You would never expect a track that is only 1:49 to dive in to what it is like to be alone even when you are with people so beautifully but Cosmos does it on "Embody". As with a lot of the indie set production is minimal leaving in plenty of buzz and warmth if that is something that you are in to. She is able to mine so much depth from these songs it is quite incredible. "I'm 20" feels much more like a song of someone who has lived a full life and is reflecting rather than someone who is just looking out to the world for the first time.

What Cosmos is really great at though is observation. She is able to paint such a clear and direct picture of what she is trying to describe both the physical and the emotional. You are getting her thoughts devoid of some kind of filter other than the way she thinks. Vocally She is often off, but it serves the purpose of keeping her delivery very direct. Their is not much in terms of flowery language, and that is the point, Cosmos wants to bring you in to the song just as much as she wants to perform it. She is able to make everything just that little bit more small and digestible in a very great way. This smallness at times though can be a bit off putting making the songs feel more sweet than they actually should. Their is plenty of edge in her lyrics, but translating that to the music is often confusing on Next Thing. The minimalism is interesting but what would really set this record off is if she had some production help to just bump it up to that next exciting level. Really great stuff for the super indie set here, and some great work for a very young artist.

7.3 out of 10