Mull It Over 033: Franklin, My Dear
Bursting onto the scene at the beginning of 2024 with their infectious debut 'Bebby', Franklin returns with B.A.T.O.F
When Spotify Wrapped comes out in just a couple of months (consider this a warning) there is one song I that can say with cast iron confidence will be in my top five most played: Bebby - the debut single from young Belfast whippersnappers Franklin, released back in February - has been on regular rotation all year in my Air Pod Pros as I plod around the perimeter of Ormeau Park, trying and failing to get back to a time when I could run a 5k in 25 minutes.
And such is the passage of time. I’ve been writing this newsletter for all of 8 months and covered a lot of music and artists in that relatively short period. No band, however, has made me feel as happy, excited, as jealous and joyous as Franklin. Fresh, fun and fucking bursting with energy, this is the unquestionable sound of the youth on the ground in Northern Ireland in 2024. Lucky for us, this week they’re back with single number two - the enigmatically titled B.A.T.O.F.
Fuelled, as all generations have been before them, by the nostalgia of eras prior, Franklin are riding high on an optimistic thirst for pop-punk guitars and portraits of real life themes prevalent in much of the Midwest emo from the 2000s which has enjoyed a spectacular return to the foreground in the 2020s. Certainly, if you are reading the right publications in 2024 you will have noticed a marked increase in the almost hero worship mentions of bands like American Football, Death Cab For Cutie or Sunny Day Real Estate, where for the former you can actually now spend the night at the iconic house featured on their eponymous debut. What could be bigger than the Oasis reunion announced just this week? Potentially, a reissue of all of Seth Cohen’s mixtapes from 2004.
For Franklin, and singer Kevin Hillick, it is no accident that their band is evoking these themes and sounds: “I tend to take lyrical inspiration from bands like Movements, American Football, Motion City Soundtrack and The Wonder Years” he tells me. In a genre that would appear at times to be hard to graduate from angsty young adult to respected elder statesman, there is one influence that tells me Kevin is as clued in to the importance of longevity as much as writing hooky songs about not wanting to go to work - “Soupy Campbell is one of my biggest inspirations, he's an incredible songwriter and his songs definitely shaped who I was growing up”. The Wonder Years frontman (whom I must highlight is only 38 - I wonder what his 5k time is?) is respected for the literary notes in his lyrics and his openness to evolving in a scene where, as mentioned, it is safe and easy to stay in the constricting and stunted juvenile lane.
Which brings me to Bebby. The first single from Franklin stopped me in my tracks for its absolute simplicity. I mean that as a compliment. It is catchy, but it doesn’t drown you with melody - the band know where to say nothing here, which is important. The verses are driven by a plucky bass which serve well the ace up Hillick’s sleeve - his honeyed and powerful take on vowels. Allowed to stretch out words and sentences with this impressive tick, I can see why he aced the band’s audition for the frontman position. And that chorus. “Oh Bebby, I gotta go to work. It’s impossible to leave when you’re here, lying in my shirt”. It is an astoundingly frank and real line in a song that makes you feel like you’ve just been having a chat with Hillick over a coffee. There are no pretensions; it's not trying to be political or ‘post-punk’ - it’s a guy that can’t bear to leave his partner and go to work for the day. Who hasn’t felt that? The hook that undercuts it, well, listen for yourself. Like guitar solos? It’s got that too.
“I try to take a sort of ‘slice of life’ approach to writing songs and they tend to kind of just be about what's been happening in my life.” - Kevin Hillick, Franklin
Despite only arriving on the scene in February of this year, the Franklin boys have been busy. With a successful launch party for Bebby in The Union Bar with support from fellow pop-punkers Parker, they also headlined Mandela Hall’s recently launched local music showcase LEVELS.
“Mandela Hall was something else and definitely one we won't forget in a hurry. I'm so happy to be able to say that not only were we asked to play a venue like that, but we HEADLINED it too” Hillick tells me. You can tell from the all caps of ‘headlined’ that this is a band that is fired up and absolutely thrilled to be doing what they’re doing. The sentiment is infectious. Playing under the hallowed ‘Mandela Hall’ marquee will doubtless do little to curb the passion of these guys, and all this with just one song to their name. Well, until today.
B.A.T.O.F, the brand new single from Franklin is released today, Friday 30th August and arrives immediately with a Van Halen riff put through a Weezer-branded nutribullet. That should be enough to put a spring in your step as we approach these last days of Summer. If you were expecting something a little more along the lines of the austere nature of American Football’s debut that would have been so easy for these boys to come out with for single number two, then you will be pleasantly surprised. I don’t doubt they have that sound in them, in fact I know they do. But this track blasts out of the speakers like Bebby turned up to 11. Hillick is playful with his delivery again on B.A.T.O.F, elongating words and employing a phrasing that is all his own. It exudes a confidence in the singer that belies his young age and relative newcomer status on the scene. The guitar work here as well is accurate and emotive to the point that I suspect Franklin have spent a lot of time, just the five of them, honing their sound and becoming a really, really tight unit - confident in the end result. The product is a finely tuned piece of work, more along the lines of a band who are two or three albums deep, rather than two songs. So, the biggest compliment I can pay to B.A.T.O.F? It sounds exactly what you expect a Franklin song to sound like. And I base that off the back of only one previous release. It is instantly recognisable. Partly down to my constant playing of the first single, partly down to the distinct flavour of the five of these young lads together. At risk of getting ahead of myself, it makes me excited for what is coming next.
The band tells me: “We definitely have enough songs at this point for an album, but nothing totally in the works at the minute.” In just one line you can hear all of the poise and confidence of a band of youngsters who have their whole careers and whole lives ahead of them. It is beautiful to see and it is beautiful to listen to.
At risk of aging myself even further in this article, allow me to quote the United States’ Depression era president.
"...the youth of today are our sole investment in tomorrow." - Franklin D. Roosevelt
(I am younger than Soupy Campbell).
B.A.T.O.F. is out now on all streaming platforms. You can listen below.
The Mull It Over Substack Playlist