FRONTIER INDEX DOWNPLAY THE TWANG
At this point, it's completely understandable that the members of Frontier Index are no longer comfortable with the "alt-country" tag, and the "cosmic country" handle isn't much better.

Sure, the Stratford hombres wear their Gram Parsons influence on their flannel sleeves, and that comes across clearly in listening to the eight-song demo they recorded soon after forming back in 2003. Yet if you've seen Frontier Index playing around town, it should be apparent that they've got something a little more soulful going on than your typical No Depression twangers.

They might throw out the Burrito Brothers arrangement of You Don't Miss Your Water for an encore, but what sets them apart from the cowpunk crowd is that the guys in Frontier Index actually know the William Bell version on Stax that Parsons copped.

"Everyone thinks of Gram Parsons as this country-rock innovator," says singer/guitarist Corey Hernden, a mild-mannered Exeter grade school teacher by day, " but to me he seemed more interested in that area where country meets soul, and that's where we line up."

Hernden describes himself as one of those music freaks who's always checking the composer credits to trace the music back to its source.

"When I got to James Carr, his singing was so raw and powerful that it just knocked me flat. I mean, Otis Redding is great, but his stuff doesn't get to me like James Carr's – it hits really hard. That's what we'd like to do with our music."

Since October, Frontier Index have been working toward that goal with producer Andy Magoffin (Hidden Cameras, Constantines, Royal City), re-recording the songs from their promising early demo session, with the added benefit of having two years to fine-tune their material while upstaging touring artists like Preston School of Industry.

According to Hernden, it was hearing what Magoffin did with Royal City on Alone At The Microphone that made Frontier Index want to make the trip to London to record their debut album, which is scheduled for release in June.

"Since we've been playing all the songs for so long now, we wanted to record the album live off the floor. After hearing that second Royal City album, we thought Andy would be good at that, and we were right. We just set up, he got everything sounding great and then stepped back and let us do our thing. The whole thing took about 10 days to finish.

"Sonically speaking, it's a huge leap forward for us. Everything is bigger and beefier, but there's still this amazing warmth and presence to it. I'm fairly confident that anyone who hears our new stuff won't immediately think 'alt-country. '"

That Frontier Index seem to be trying to distance themselves from the whole alt-country thing might not go down well with the folks at their label, Rainbow Quartz, who were apparently planning to release their self-titled debut on the label's hayseed subsidiary, Turquoise Mountain. Oops.

It might be time to rethink any proposed sleeve designs that involve horses, Colt .45 revolvers and trains.

"Hey, I like George Jones, Hank Williams and Kris Kristofferson, but I think the alt-country trend has passed its best-before date. When we were discussing the album artwork, I didn't want to lead anyone in that direction, so no horses, no trains – none of that stuff.

"I just want to stay away from anything that might date or pigeonhole our music, and let people make up their own minds based on what they hear."

It's a rite of passage for every cowboy-shirted rocker to record at Andy Magoffin's House of Miracles. The closest one of Magoffin's miracles that the Frontier Index sound like are The Parkas, but even there the comparisons are loose. Instead this Toronto quartet fuse some atmospheric guitar work into their twang-y rock 'n' roll. On their debut, they tend to rely too much on the start-quiet-then-build pattern and hazy, harmony-backed breeziness, but when they stir it up with some majestic electric guitar and gorgeous melodies — as on the steamroller of a ballad "If It Don't Work Out," the harmonica soul of "I Ain't Hurtin'" and closer "On & On" — the results are captivating.

Akin to a minor league baseball team, New York City's Rainbow Quartz imprint sports a roster of moderately talented but not outstanding prospects, however, new T.O. signees Frontier Index shine as RQ's star shortstop, a prodigy who seems destined for the big leagues. More country-leaning than their British Invasion-inspired label brethren, Frontier Index's penchant for C&W doesn't let that form's limitations confine their loftier ambitions. The twangy starting points serve as launching pads for skyscraping crescendos worthy of early Mercury Rev ("Silver Suns," "San Antone"), spiritualized striving ("Live For You"), classic-rock cribs (the Joe Cocker-nicking "If It Don't Work Out") and pure-pop pleasures ("Someday," "Collide"). In a mere 41 minutes, Frontier Index have shot from relative obscurity to number one successor to Royal City's local avant-country supremacy.

You’d be hard pressed to find a more collaborative and unabashedly brilliant Canadian band than 1960’s heirlooms The Band. Beginning with 1968’s Music From Big Pink, Robbie Robertson and co. created a series of seminal works that plumbed the depths of Americana to create a sound that was thoughtful, intelligent and, most importantly, timeless.

It might be a stretch to suggest that Toronto’s Frontier Index will ever approximate The Band’s level of notoriety. Yet if the last couple of years are any indication, The Frontier Index might just possess the yams to etch themselves a legacy to call their own. They’ve even got their very own Levon Helm in drummer/vocalist Mick Jackson, who recently sat down with Soul Shine to review the story of The Frontier Index.

“I took the drums by default, even though I was one of the singers,” says Jackson of the band’s salad days. “Corey and Matt had their instruments so I ended up on drums, drumming and singing together. It’s just natural for me at this point.”

The Corey and Matt in question are Jackson’s high school chums Corey Hernden (guitar/vocals) and Matt Francis (bass). The trio met in localized theatre mecca Stratford and immediately, clicked over a shared admiration of The Band, The Beach Boys and Gram Parsons. Yet it wasn’t until a move to Toronto, and the addition of lead guitarist and fellow Stratford ex-patriot John Hunter that The Frontier Index was hatched. This was early 2003 and the group has yet to look back.

From the onset, The Frontier Index’s immediate brand of “cosmic-country-soul” found takers within Toronto’s gauche indie rock circles. And before long, the Index found themselves knocking back suitors left and right. It was that easy. There was even a faithful gig where audience members stormed the stage during the band’s set, which in Toronto, is paramount to the Tiananmen Square Massacre. Luckily, the band had a solid supporting cast in place from absolute zero, which allowed such uproars to unfold with minimal blood loss.

“There have been pretty huge expectations on this band since our very first gig,” confirms Jackson. “Dan Burke booked our shows early on—he really enjoyed our music and worked really hard for us. Eventually, he passed us over to Craig Laskey at The Horseshoe, who also really liked us and got us all these great opening slots. We’re almost like a ‘house band’ at The Horseshoe at this point—the bartenders know us and we like to drink so it sure seems that way at times.”

Indeed, The Frontier Index has shared the Horseshoe stage with such luminaries as The Sadies, Lowest of the Low and The Preston School of Industry, led by ex-Pavement twiddler Scott Kannberg. In the soil of these gigs and others, seeds were planted and ultimately germinated in the form of a recording contract with foppish Manhattan-based indie Rainbow Quartz. Known for their jangly guitars and colourful artwork, the label is a solid fit for the Index’s classic singer/songwriter spew.

“They came after us; a friend of a friend had come to see us and he ended up working for Rainbow Quartz,” says Jackson. “We were talking with some other people at the time but they were definitely the most anxious and excited about working with us.”

But what about the tunes, man? The bloody tunes? Well, those are coming, and soon. The Index spent the first weeks of 2005 hashing out material in London with renown push-button deity Andy Magoffin (Royal City, Constantines, Hidden Cameras). So by the time you read this, the mastering process will be underway with an intended June street for the band’s Rainbow Quartz debut. It’s then—and only then—that the true power of The Frontier Index’s “cosmic-country-soul” will take full effect. But until that time, barbarianism begins at home, and Jackson is thankful for the solid roots his band has sprouted.

“We didn’t even know that many people in Toronto when the band formed but the city’s been such a great environment for us the last few years—really supportive and caring. We’ve discovered it’s really not that big a city when you think of it in terms of a musical community.”

Catch The Frontier Index live on the following dates:
February 4: Toronto, ON El Mocambo (w/ The League Champs, Beneath Augusta)
February 5: Ottawa, ON Babylon (w/ Cuff the Duke)
March 5: Toronto ON Healey’s (CMW showcase w/ Telepathic Butterflies, High Dials)

It was a game-time decision but I headed down to the Horseshoe to partake in the Frontier Index CD release party for their self-titled debut album on Rainbow Quartz. I wasn't nearly as wiped out as I usually am by Friday evening, and the promise of a spot on the guest list and gratis CD didn't hurt. For the record - I CAN be bought, and it doesn't take much. No sir.

Leading things off were The Parkas, formerly based out of London but now scattered all over Southern Ontario. Big props to them for not only keeping the band together, but still sounding good while doing it. Starting off a little slow, they seemed to gain energy and confidence with each article of clothing the singer doffed. Their set wasn't long enough for him to do an Anthony Keidis impersonation (thankfully), but by the end they were fully in the zone, sounding not unlike Exile-era Rolling Stones at last call, a staggering (in the wobbling sense, not the heartbreaking genius sense) blend of country rocking soul. The dudes are some kind of funny onstage, too.

The middle act went to Andy Magoffin, who incidentally produced both the Frontier Index and Parkas. First performing a couple of numbers with just Jenny Mitchell of Barmitzvah Brothers as Crime Travellers, he then brought up the rest of the band to complete The Two Minute Miracles lineup. After the high-energy Parkas, Magoffin's considerably quieter pop gems got lost a bit in the crowd chatter, but still sounded good. I confess that I didn't give him my undivided attention, I ended up by the merch table talking comics with Graig, but what I heard when I tuned in sounded good. Honest.

By this point, it was pretty goddamn late, the guests of honour at this particular party not taking the stage until 12:30. I'm impressed by how much better of a live band Frontier Index have gotten since the first time I saw them last August (opening for the Parkas, coincidentally). They've headed further in the country direction, playing up the natural twang in guitarist Corey Hernden and drummer Mick Jackson's voices but keeping one foot in the rock world (on the monitor whilst soloing, natch). The best touchstones I can think of are post-Olson Jayhawks with a dash of 'Mats swagger thrown in. That's about how I'd describe the album as well, after just one intial listen. The production is very clean and reminiscent of Wilco's A.M.. But back to the live show - the band was certainly feeding of the positive energy of the crowd, composed of family, friends, fans and general well-wishers to put on a terrifically tight show. Now with a proper album to support, I'm expecting Frontier Index to start making some waves in the greater public consciousness through the second half of the year. Hopefully big things are coming.

The album is out in Canada on Tuesday, the US in August and internationally come Fall. Check out their electronic press kit for some audio that I couldn't actually get working and pics - six of the eight of which are mine! Here are some more for them to pad their press kits.