Sounding, acting different becomes image of Frends

June 14, 2012 at 12:00a.m.

Even though there’s no “I” in the name of New Philadelphia-based band Frends, don’t be mistaken. The outfit is nothing more than an outlet for singer Evan Crowther to have fun performing electronic-dance music for the Midwest.

“I started the band when I was 16 as The Apothecaries,” Crowther said. “At first we had more blues-based songs because of the band members. I like to say our old music was terrible. It was pretty bad. I was just following what the original members had written. When I took over the writing, I changed the name to Frends and started playing mainly electronic driven-indie dance-type music. We like to use a lot of disco beats. It’s always been me up front but there have been a lot of people behind me. I have changed the backing members maybe 10 different times.”

Frends is readying the release of its self-titled debut, which is due out in September. Among the CD’s 12 tracks are band favorites such as the danceable “Toronto” and the bouncy “Focused Families.”

Crowther said audiences have been warming up to the group’s material over the past year or two. However, finding the right gigs has become a hurdle for the electronic act, which often gets pegged for jam-band bills.

For instance, the last time through Northeast Ohio, the group opened for Bright Light Social Hour. Crowther said while that show was solid, he’s looking forward to when the outfit returns to Youngstown on Saturday at the Lemon Grove. There’s new music in the mix, as well as interesting covers by The Misfits.

It turns out sounding or acting different has become Frends’ image, which somewhat apes the same creative motif as the singer’s biggest influence, Of Montreal. In a nutshell, Crowther said he’s not afraid of his stage histrionics being imbued with, well, weirdness.

Therein lies the creative spirit of Crowther, who doesn’t let the lack of a crowd ruin his evening.