Post-metal and screamo enthusiasts Frail Body release their sophomore album ‘Artificial Bouquet’ and prove themselves to be worthy champions to reinvigorate the screamo genre.
‘Artificial Bouquet’ encompasses themes of grief, depression and isolation against a backdrop of abrasive emo violence. Frail Body (made up of vocalist and guitarist Lowell Shaffer, bassist Nic Kuczynski and drummer Nicholas Clemenson) emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic wild with anger and frustration. From the very first track on this album, ‘Scaffolding’, listeners are captivated by the unrelenting gravity of Frail Body’s lyricism and musical construction. Through a total list of eleven songs, ‘Artificial Bouquet’ takes us through an seamless odyssey of pain and resilience.
In preparation for the album’s release, Frail Body teased us with three early singles with pairing music videos. These tracks gave us a glimpse into what to expect from the band’s second album, hinting at its post-metal influences and screamo soul. Lowell and Nicholas also discussed the album on the As The Story Grows podcast (listen to their episode here), explaining their writing and production process for ‘Artificial Bouquet’ and the challenges they faced in doing so. Lowell spoke in particular about the lasting effects of his mother’s passing and how the creation of the album took from his difficulty processing his grief and the trauma he endured, especially through the pandemic. ‘Artificial Bouquet’ is not only an emotional outpour for the trio, but a message for beyond the grave; Lowell creates in an attempt to reconcile with his mother and to make up for unresolved issues and unspoken conversations.
In approaching these difficult emotions and experiences, Frail Body utilise a variety of different musical styles and sounds, explaining on the As The Story Grows podcast,
“Pulling from grindcore and pulling from post-rock in the same thing… there’s not really that many genres, besides maybe blackgaze or, like, some of the other fringier things that sort of unite things like that.”
Frail Body’s conglomeration of musical staples forms the foundation of ‘Artificial Bouquet’, creating an exciting new experience for listeners. They combine a dedicated screamo nature with blimps of electro new wave and thrash metal to truly express the agonising pain shared over the past few years in regards to death, loneliness and isolation. In regards to their heavy screamo influence, they appreciate the “honesty” of the genre, saying “People just get on stage and they bare it all and it’s really cathartic”.
The band are evidently thrilled to finally be releasing this LP and have hinted towards many upcoming live shows this year across the US and Europe. They really value the importance of performing live, even describing themselves as “a live band, first and foremost.”. We’re eager to see Frail Body expand their fanbase through these live shows beginning with two back-to-back release shows in Chicago and Cudahy, MI, with an array of supporting bands.
You can buy the LP and ‘Artificial Bouquet’ merch through the Deathwish website now.
The full tracklist for ‘Artificial Bouquet’ is as follows:
1. Scaffolding 03:30
2. Berth 01:45
3. Critique Programme 05:39
4. Devotion 06:22
5. Monolith 02:31
6. Refrain 02:44
7. No Resolution 04:08
8. Runaway 04:10
9. Horizon Line 02:52
10. Another Year Removed 02:14
11. A Capsule In The Sediment 04:50
