The FMs To Subvert The Gender Binary On Forthcoming Double-Side

Please meet The FMs -- the Brooklyn-bred (and now Ithaca-based) duo of Matte Namer (they/them) and Frankie Rex (they/them, he/him) who are looking to use their forthcoming double-single release (“Song X” and “Bad Girl”) on April 30 via DSPs & vinyl to help extract the stigma & continued ignorance embedded in society’s gender experience. Merch will also be available in conjunction with the release (with all profits being donated to the Black Trans Travel Fund).

Embracing androgyny and amplifying the voices of “the other” (their band name is even a play on the gender binary), The FMs are not making music just for entertainment’s sake, but making music to exist as a foghorn for their unwavering support of anyone who remains steadfast in their truth and identity; their very existence is a statement and they are not backing down.

The forthcoming double release of “Song X” and “Bad Girl” was recorded at Greenpoint’s ADIM Studios with Grammy-winning engineer Brian Forbes and John Siket (Sonic Youth, Blonde Redhead, and Fountains of Wayne) and it’s like two adrenaline shots of synth-bolstered space pop that pairs provocative lyrical content, with the cathartic and rebellious spirit of the alternative punk rock scene. The double-side serves as a powerful reclamation of one’s own identity, shredding apart the unrealistic expectations of femininity (on “Bad Girl”) and pointing out the absurdity of gender defining (on “Song X”). 

Of the upcoming double side release, Frankie Rex says that it’s “a celebration of individuality and strength of being confident in your identity. It's an unapologetic ode to one's versatile nature of being able to not conform to the typical hetero narrative of gender roles.”

Though officially formed in 2017, Matte Namer and Frankie Rex have been friends since their high school years growing up in NYC -- a time in both of their lives that was rife with moments of self-reflection/analysis, ostracization, depression, and experimentation. Both Namer & Rex found their journeys of self-discovery and identity weave with one another, and with a shared musical bedrock of artistic inspirations (artists that unapologetically march to their own beat like Nine Inch Nails, St. Vincent, A Perfect Circle, New Order, Elliott Smith, to name a few), The FMs were born. 

Whether it was through the self-curated immersive live performances that helped start their career (intimate and inclusive underground art performances that took place on a historic boat docked in Brooklyn) or via their 2017 debut album ‘Machinacene Epoch’ (which took cues from glam, synth-pop, industrial, stoner rock, dance music, and beyond), The FMs have been long-standing proponents of using one’s own unique voice to continue important conversations about topics like gun violence, toxic masculinity, selfie culture, and artificial intelligence.

Much more to come...

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