AFROPUNK

PREMIERE:

FRANCINE

THIRTEEN’S

‘QUEEN MARY’

IS DARKLY

CAPTIVATING

#SOUNDCHECK

With a skipping minimalist beat that sounds like nervous tapping, Austin-based Francine Thirteen’s latest single ‘Queen Mary’ is a lesson in uneasy suspense. An ultra low organ bass is juxtaposed against Francine’s haunting soprano, teasing a release from the tension that never comes. The track builds and contracts; a kick drum heart beat is reflected and refracted. Like the best darkwave, this is a track all about the manipulation of tension and ambiance. “What good is your crown / With your heart on the ground? / Oh Mary…”

By Nathan Leigh, AFROPUNK Contributor

‘Queen Mary’ is intended as part of an EP focusing on female archetypes in a dystopian empire. Each one, ‘Mother Mary’, ‘Queen Mary’, ‘Sister Mary’, and ‘Lady Mary’ focus on the woman’s power, its intersection with the balance of power between citizen and state. Dystopian sci-fi is always best when it focuses on the conversations our society is having now from a new angle, and so far Francine Thirteen delivers. The full EP comes out this summer.