Cologne Music Week: Frogcodile

The cross between a sticky amphibian and a dangerous reptile? This seems as bizarre as it is threatening and yet somehow familiar. The refreshing sound of the Wuppertal art-rock band FROGCODILE draws the listener into a melancholic-hypnotic spell, and in the next moment puts him into joyful ecstasy. In front of groove-controlled guitar collages somewhere between Radiohead and The Police, frontman and mastermind Dennis Kresin tells of the reflections of a philosophical journey of thought. The album "Shuffled Pieces_Puzzled Brains" (2018) follows on from the thoughtful and desperate predecessor "Refractions" (2017). Extended by electronic elements, the new sound is more minimalist and approachable. Nevertheless, the mostly intimate voice can be carried away to loud, almost grunge-like excesses. Longingly searching for meaning and shaped by a loneliness asking itself into it, the lyrics flow through echoing guitars and creaking synthesizers. But without pulling away this darkly coloured carpet of sound from under the listener's feet, the songs repeatedly break out of familiar pop structures.