Frank and Earnest's debut EP, Old Francis offers up a pretty decent slab of lower-fi punk rock.

One of their vocalists sounds distinctively like Matt Canino, though musically this is rougher and less loosely enthusiastic than Latterman. So maybe a RVIVR comparison is in order. (Especially considering how "Red and Black" quickly mentions the presumed shittiness of a Friday night out if it involves "homophobic dudes.") Either way, when opener "Addictionary" comes through, that'll probably be what you're thinking. A different singer takes the reigns for "Stick a Fork in Me, I'm Done", so that's when the band have a little bit more of their own identity. No matter who they do or don't sound like, it's not bad, though.

Their distorted guitar tone definitely carries a bit of Jawbreaker in it too, it should probably be mentioned. This is evident some in "'87" and "BFF", while the acoustic-ushered-in "Red and Black" fumbles through with some earnest sloppiness.

It feels as though Old Francis could be a little more effective if it was shorter–at eight tracks, they probably could have saved two or three of these for a split or something, since it starts to wear a little bit toward its end. Still, this is a just-above-average start for Frank and Earnest, whose name seems to suit them well.

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Old Francis EP