Andrew Veeder on February 10th, 2017

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FRTNK (pronounced Fourteen-K) is an alternative hip-hop group born out of the Moreno Valley and now based in Los Angeles. The trio of Benjamin Aragbaye, Bryan “The Mad Scientist” Ramos and Barin Butler formed while in high school in 2009, releasing a six-track EP “Operation AU” in 2011 as well as a follow-up, “Moreno Beach.” Their music fuses different genres and sonically shifts between eclectic grooves in the vein of Gorillaz or N.E.R.D., incorporating live instrumentation into their production, and harmonies into their rhymes. Recent single “Let Go” dwells on a relationship’s poor timing and working through that emotion as it rides muffled 808 beats and a synthy melody. “Lorraine,” on the other hand, slows it down to a dusty neo-soul vibe with clack-and-snap production and a tasty guitar riff ,while pondering trying to save a lady of the night from said night. FRTNK’s forthcoming EP “Perplex City” is due later this spring.

||| Stream: “Let Go” and “Lorraine”

||| Also: Watch the video for “Let Go”

||| Live: FRTNK play Couture tonight with MEMPHS, Selina Carrera, B Slade and DJ Soundwave, with tickets available here.