Credit: Far Out / Short Porch

Killing for Kindness: introducing Short Porch with ‘Frank’, your new favourite weirdos

Wed 17 January 2024 23:00, UK

Of all the acts of kindness a lover can partake in for their significant other, killing a person is both the grandest and most misguided. That makes this concept perfect fodder for a bit of off-kilter Brooklyn indie, and Short Porch have duly obliged with ‘Frank’, a ditty that asks what loveliness could repay a callous slaying.

So, we caught up with the band to delve into their grotesque, groovy world, and they explained: “‘Frank’ is one of three murder stories on our upcoming record The best of… Short Porch vol 1.” This clever title for a debut album is indicative of the quirky smarts that endeared us to the band.

They continued: “This is one of our favourite songs to play live and one of the first songs we put together that used that heavy, kind of psychedelic, organ sound.” That sound swaggers consistently throughout the track as the band refuses to overcrowd the arrangement and relies on repetition that soothes you while the words pull you along into the dark narrative espoused by a diabolical narrator.

“We recorded ‘Frank’ and the rest of the record with Charlie Dahlke of the Brazen Youth at Ashlawn Recording Company in Lyme, CT. Everything was tracked live in a big, centuries-old barn that Charlie converted into a massive live room,” they explained.

And this suited them perfectly. “We definitely pride ourselves on being a live band, and we wanted to preserve that energy in the recordings, so we were really lucky to capture these songs circled close together just like we would be if you were to see us live,” they add. “All we did for three days was record, drink beers, and barbeque, and it was kind of a dream.”

For Fans Of: walking down the street with your world wrapped up in headphones, and having the song play out as a screenplay on the dull paths before you in the playground of your imagination… feeling both a little invigorated, uncomfortable, and groovy as you do so.

Who the fucking hell are Short Porch?

Well, according to the band themselves: “Short Porch is Sean McNulty (guitar/vocals), Jon Hunt (bass/vocals), Joe Mudge (guitar/vocals), Mary Kate Mulhauser (keys/vocals), and Joe White (drums). Formed in the winter of ‘22 in Brooklyn, the band has been steadily gaining a local following, playing significant NYC venues like Elsewhere, TV Eye, and Sultan Room.”

They add: “‘Prickle Bush’, the band’s first single, was released in May; their first album, The best of…Short Porch vol 1 was recorded with Charles Dahlke of the Brazen Youth this past summer and is due out February 1st, the same day as the band’s first headlining show at Brooklyn Made.”

Check out the fiendish majesty of ‘Frank’ below, a tale that could be described as Shakespearean, had the Bard lived to see the day that the value of life so scarce that an indie band can come up with a comic tale about killing someone in the hope of getting something “good” in exchange, and you can actually somehow picture the sort of guy the dastardly protagonist is.