Los Angeles band Francisco The Man brought some heat to Allston Rock City’s Great Scott this past Sunday evening. On tour in support of their first full-length LP Loose Ends, the West Coast group’s fiery power pop lit up lit up the audience with emotive songwriting and sharp, fuzz-driven musicianship.
Francisco The Man wasted no time in unleashing their manic, melodic sound. The set was focused on material from their full-length and was executed unquestionably well. Vocalist and singer Scotty Cantino captures the emotional content of his writing in a crystalline manner, often hanging in the higher register of his range. There is a beautiful quality to almost all of these tunes that lends a common thread between them, a certain longing tinged slightly, and sometimes no so subtly, with restlessness or anger. Songs like “It’s Not Your Fault” set a precedent early in the set of thoughtful lyricism and an unrelenting sonic attack.
Perfectly complimenting Cantino’s at-times wild singing is the dual attack of Brock Woolsey and Néstor Romero on guitar and bass, respectively. Woolsey provides a solid foil for the Cantino’s vocals and noise-laden guitar. Meanwhile, Néstor Romero’s bass playing acts as both anchor and lead, as Romero often plays in the higher octaves and emulates or takes melodic charge. The three stringed instruments often chase one another around, creating a circuital, snaking dynamic in their songs. Drummer’s Abdeel Ortega rounded out the quartet with percussive work that varied between thunderous fills and hi hat-driven, danceable rhythms which kept the audience moving.
While FTM’s set was defined by frenetic, pointed playing and singing, a remarkable aspect of the evening was the band’s ability to allow songs the room to breathe. Melodies were built up carefully, fuzzed-out guitars battling one another before reaching an apex, and then disintegrated into spacy walls of distortion. The tune “Progress,” for instance, blasted through the back of Great Scott, all while the players maintained a practiced control, wrenching all feeling from each blistering note.
The evening itself came to an apex towards the end of the set, as better known songs from the band’s known repertoire appeared – the aforementioned “Progress,” the infectious groove and desperation of “Loaded.”
With tunes that at once evoke cutting emotional reflection and wail absolutely electric while setting perfect rhythmic momentum, Francisco The Man brought their West Coast fury to a snowy Boston and set the audience alight. Turning heads with their national tour, one can only expect that will be able to bring that experience back to L.A. and turn out another batch of thoughtful and riff-laden songs and maintain their propitious momentum.
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