Premiere: Richard Frenneaux ‘Arcades’

‘Arcades’ is the uplifting debut single from Richard Frenneaux, the Brisbane-based songwriter and producer, ex-frontman of post-punk band Red Light Company. ‘Arcades’ crackles with euphoria via hypnotic ’80s sounding, churning synths and positive vocals.

Frenneaux describes the meaning behind his debut, “Arcades is a song about coming to terms with the realisation that those halcyon days of summer have to come to an end; the endless cycle of substances,relationships and games that all meet at the same conclusion. There is that optimism which comes with youthful expression. This quickly turns from carefree to dysphoria and you discover that you’re doing it to yourself.”

Repetitive lyrics enhance this theme so the listener also feels like they are repeating the cycle. The euphoric feeling magnifies with an elongated chorus and sparkling electronic flourishes.

Richard Frenneaux was the main songwriter, frontman, and producer of the 5 piece post-punk band Red Light Company who reached number 13 album in the UK charts, selling over 20k copies in the first week of release touring internationally alongside artists such as Editors and The Killers. Frenneaux then moved into writing and production, where he had the opportunity to work with many artists, from remixing Lana Del Rey’s ‘Born to Die’ to developing acts such as Laura Welsh, Noemi, Parson James, and Mt. Wolf under Communion Publishing. Two years ago, in 2017, Frenneaux moved to Brisbane, Australia and built a studio to focus solely on his own music. ‘Arcades’ is a very promising debut.

‘Arcades’ is released on 13th December.