Hop Along’s Frances Quinlan and frequent collaborator Kyle Pulley team up for a new project fuelled by multi-layered art pop. It’s been way too long since we’ve heard from Hop Along, and even pretty long since we’ve heard much from bandleader Frances Quinlan in general.
The launch of Frances’ solo career was cut short with their debut solo album “Likewise” coming out right before COVID, and they haven’t done much since, outside of contributing a song to the “I Saw the TV Glow” soundtrack, but now Frances is back with the debut EP by a new project, “Parts Work”.
It’s a collaboration with Kyle Pulley, who worked on most Hop Along albums and played in the band Thin Lips, and it features contributions from other familiar faces like Thin Lips singer Chrissy Tashjian (who’s done backup vocals on every Hop Along album) and former Hop Along member Dominic Angelella.
It’s just four songs but the music is so fleshed-out and multi-layered that it feels like a substantial return for Frances. It’s more heavily electronic than Hop Along and more chaotic and maximal than “Likewise”, resulting in a batch of lively art pop arrangements that stand out from everything you’ve heard from Frances before. So it’s fresh but also instantly familiar, thanks to the larger-than-life voice and distinct songwriting style that couldn’t have come from any other person in the world. And damn it feels great to hear that voice again.
The Fat Angel Sings 