Frankie Sparo is a singer/songwriter guy based in Montreal. Earlier this year, he toured Europe opening for A Silver Mt. Zion, and the stripped-down Godspeed unit served as backing band during his set. When the caravan swung through Amsterdam, they dropped into radio station VPRO for a live broadcast, and this four song EP is the document.
Frankie Sparo must be one of those artists that works better in small doses, because this 18-minute gem is far more enjoyable than his recent full-length, My Red Scare. The disc includes three songs from that album-- one of which is radically reworked, and the other two are sweetened with the Silver Mt. Zion touch-- and then closes with a solid Stones cover. It's a fine little record, and oddly enough, it's more diverse than his twelve-song long-player. Even more importantly, when this brief EP ends, I wish there was just a bit more.
"Diminish Me New York" is perhaps the best song from the debut, and he wisely opens both Arena Hostile and most of his live sets with it. A Silver Mt. Zion add some subtle industrial sound effects, which are perfect, and the string swells give the tune the majesty it deserves. As I stated before, the lyrics are almost unbearably sad in light of what's happened to New York since it was recorded, but it would be hard not to appreciate Sparo's sense of lyric detail in any circumstance.
"The Night We Stayed In" gets a little boost from a walking double bass, and the strings here seem slightly maudlin, like incidental music from a fancy Italian wedding. Oddly enough, the warmer, brighter treatment the tune gets here works much better with Sparo's downcast vocals than the dark shadings of the debut, providing a welcome contrast.
"Here Comes the Future" is also from My Red Scare, but the tune is barely recognizable in this vastly superior version. For the first time on either of his two records, Sparo actually picks up the tempo a bit, and it suits him nicely. Surprisingly, the mood is lightened further by the presence of some slightly cheesy drum-machine handclaps. Organ, violin and viola once again flesh out the sound, making this perhaps my favorite moment of Sparo's thus far.
The final Stones cover is a good one, the less-than-obvious ballad "I Am Waiting." It's nice to hear Sparo's grizzled voice wrapping itself around a superior melody, and the spare instrumentation (this one is just him and guitar) helps highlight the fact. I enjoyed My Red Scare, but I was sure I'd never seek out another Sparo record. Arena Hostile is a touching, modest artifact that will make me think twice.
