Meet the Band: Mike Crooker (guitar, bass), Christopher Foldi (vocals, keyboards), Michelle Strong (vocals) and Rob Crossley (drummer)
It Takes a Woman's Touch: Crooker and Foldi have known each for about 10 years and have worked together on a variety of projects over that time. Crooker works on film soundtracks and would often need Foldi to sing demo vocals. They wanted to start a proper band but they could just never get their schedules to sync up. "We developed a good songwriting relationship," Crooker explains. "I wrote [the song] 'Cascade' a year ago and Chris did the vocals for it. We thought we'd revisit it but in the fall, he got Michelle [Strong] to sing on it. That was it and I knew we had to release it and become a band."
The Live Show: While the group has existed for about a year, it has never played a live show. The upcoming show at 21 Lounge will be its live debut. "That show came by accident because the guy booking the show knows Chris and called him up," Crooked explains. "It's a challenge and we wanted to get it up and running and we'll have a live drummer to add to the sound. We've spent hours shooting and editing video footage to sync up with the show. It's a test."
New Releases on the Horizon: Four of the songs for an upcoming EP are completely finished. Crooker anticipates a fall release for a full-length album.
Why You Should Hear Them: "Cascade" is a perky electro-pop single that recalls the better synthesizer-based music of the '80s (think Depeche Mode or the Pet Shop Boys). "I would go with electro-pop," says Crooker when asked to describe the band's sound. "The songs are pretty hooky. I was making a joke the other day about unearthing the past to create the future. I was laughing because we have one guitar tone that sounds like the Fixx or [the Police's] Andy Summers. It's so 1983. We thought it was perfect for the song."
Where You Can Hear Them: frigidtouch.com
Where You Can See Them: Frigid Touch performs with Night Panther and Kachina at 9 p.m. on Thursday, June 6, at Club 21. — Jeff Niesel
