With Frankel’s Anonymity is the New Fame, subtlety is the name of the game. Filled to the lip with fondly constructed pop and cloud-like structures, this is slow and easy stuff worth sitting under the stars for.
Frankel is actually L.A. songwriter Michael Orendy and he doesn’t like being the center of attention, making his latest album’s title all the more fitting. He plays all instruments on Anonymity save for drums (Kevin Stevens), pouring his passion and instinctive artistry into each piece of music and each dazzling arrangement.
Perhaps it’s accurate to suggest that Frankel has a few Howard Hughes tendencies, living out his life as a sort of reclusive genius type. Finding interviews or materials of any sort of informative nature can be an uphill climb for a journalist, so one has to peg things together using the sound of his voice. It’s a little like feeling one’s way along a wall in the dark: intriguing, exhilarating and ultimately rewarding when the doorknob is finally reached.
Anonymity is the New Fame, out on Autumn Tone, is a compelling record from start to finish. It plays on the theme of being anonymous, again apropos for Frankel, and each track passes by like a well-mannered nod or a silent hello to a stranger.
Frankel builds things on subtle tones and soft whispers, engaging the listener to peer closer into the darkness and listen for sound within the elastic silence. His nuance is natural and easy to soak up. There is comforting flow to the plucking of guitar strings and the playing of piano and the use of electronic haze that carries through the veins of the album and into the bloodstream of the listener.
“Ticket Machine” is one of the best examples of this flow. To say that the song is mild would be an understatement, as it almost barely exists sonically. Frankel’s vocal tones delicately illustrate the vagueness of his perception, operating lovingly over remote noise and gently-strummed guitar.
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