Like many people under the age of forty, siblings Angel and Lulu Prost found god in the drop on Avicii’s “Levels.” It’s hard not to: the classic track embodies everything that transformed EDM from party playlist material to a commercialized cultural sensation in the late aughts and early 2010s. “Levels” is loud and blindingly bright—a colossal anthem barging down the walls to let the glow-stick rave spill over. When Frost Children played “Levels” at a DJ set in Copenhagen in the midst of their 2024 European tour, the duo were reminded of the song’s infinite potential. They would go on to make a love letter to the era of Peak EDM, gloriously reviving the maximalist, full-throttle dance music of Skrillex, Spitfire-era Porter Robinson, Zedd, and all the other artists that would be on the lineup at Ultra Miami in 2012.
As though they haven’t been doing that already. The prolific duo has released five full-lengths since they officially formed as Frost Children, quarantining together in their childhood home during the pandemic. Their albums tracked the duo as Frost Children transitioned from a quarantine project to a fixture of New York City’s downtown club scene. Under the guise of “hyperpop” or “indie sleaze,” the duo had been remaking pre-bubble-burst EDM for years. Frost Children’s fifth album, Sister, is another faithful recreation of that era. But what makes Sister an improvement over prior Frost Children records is that the duo has mostly abandoned posturing as cooler-than-thou club kids. 2022’s Spiral and 2023’s Speed Run were full of in-jokes and references that blurred the line between authentic and sarcastic. Were the lyrics in 2022’s “FOXBOP” delivered like a 3OH!3 impression to make fun of them? Or to emulate them? Regardless of the answer, it was gimmicky. There’s a clear-heartedness to Sister that was absent from their prior dance records. Their music is no longer coated in Cheeto-fingered gamerspeak or terminally online irony. It’s not about them: It’s about the drops. The bangers can just be what they are.
And they are, mostly, well-executed EDM. This is their bread and butter. Lead single “Control” centers around a filthy dubstep drop while Lulu shouts out, “Let me take over control.” The lyrics are both nonsensical and besides the point (“Every lie is wearing off / Instead of lying, say what you’re thinking inside / I wanted a friend but you wanted a fairytale life / Let it go”). It’s just something to yell over the volume of the drop. More effective is “Dirty Girl.” The song’s steam-blast, chainsaw-buzzing synths are primal and sexy, perfectly suited to the lyrics “Dirty girl / Take it or leave it.” It’s a Frost Children song that, finally, sounds effortlessly cool. The duo makes a clear homage to Porter Robinson on “Falling,” with its vocal samples and big, euphoric synth line. Frost Children even nod to the scores of pop-EDM collabs that defined the early 2010s: Kim Petras, who would thrive as a feature on David Guetta’s 2012 album Nothing But the Beat, essentially fulfills this promise on “Radio.” And Babymorocco’s horny art-school schtick adds some swagger to “Ralph Lauren.”
But with Sister, Frost Children never quite get anywhere besides revivalism. On their second album of 2023, Hearth Room, the Prosts proved they’re capable of more than just Fall Out Boy vocals over squelchy synths. That album had a tenderness and restraint to it, coupled with some of the duo’s best songwriting. Occasionally, Sister returns to Hearth Room’s softer mode: the title track is an ode to the Prost’s sibling love, but it feels bogged down by heavy drums and uninspired lyrics, “Turn around and face me / Sister.” It lacks the light touch of “Marigold,” still a Frost Children discography highlight. “Don’t Make Me Cry” similarly aims for high emotional stakes, but it can’t help itself from an undeserved ear-shattering drop.
Frost Children have yet to find a way to let these two modes—the lamplit glow of Hearth Room and the face-melting dance music of SPEED RUN—coexist on the same album, not to mention the same song. But they get the closest on “2 LØVE,” Sister’s closer. Its simple vocal sample and feathery piano are nostalgic and airy, gathering momentum by turning its phrase into something anthemic and universal. It’s no “Levels,” but it aims for something similar. Angel and Lulu keep on remaking the sounds of their childhoods, hoping to find the same magic those era-defining EDM tracks have. Can you blame Frost Children for trying? For finding beauty and meaning in Avicii’s synths and trying to do the same themselves?
Andy Steiner is a writer and musician. When he’s not reviewing albums, you can find him collecting ‘80s Rush merchandise. Follow him on Twitter.
