Frogpond Leaps Into National Spotlight
After Alexakis Settles Legal Fracas, Band's Days Of Frustration Appear Over

It's odd how prophetic the title of Frogpond's debut album, Count to Ten, has become. First there was the frustration of the long wait to record it. Then there was the problem of changing record labels in midstream. Then, finally, there was Art.

As in Alexakis, the ebullient singer/ guitarist from Everclear, who produced Count to Ten as a favor to the band--or so they thought. In a rather bizarre turn of events, after the album was released, Alexakis then demanded a $10,000 fee in addition to percentage points from the album's sales. This resulted in a legal battle, which was then settled by the band agreeing to sign a letter in which Alexakis maintains that, essentially, he was right and they were wrong, although he would forego most of his financial interest in the project. All of this gained the band national attention in the media, and elicited an outpouring of sympathy for them, the little guys (er, girls, in this case): Frogpond became the underdog fighting the grand battle against the bigwig.

Still, the band never intended it this way, and secretly wished the disagreement with Alexakis had never happened. They're a relatively soft-spoken all-girl band from Kansas City trying to work their way up the hard way, hoping their music can simply speak for itself, and so felt a bit uncomfortable with the attention. All the more reason for the title, then. "Yeah, that's what Count to Ten is about, the frustration," says vocalist/ guitarist Heidi Phillips, referring also to the fact that the album's release was delayed by the decision of their former record label, Relativity, to drop all its rock acts (the album was eventually released on TriStar). "You know when your mom says 'take a deep breath and count to ten, calm down, have patience?'" asks Phillips. "I'm a very impatient person."

And that snafu came after waiting for Alexakis to find the time to produce the album. The foursome moved into a house together in Kansas City and waited while he was busy gallivanting across the country with Everclear. In between Alexakis' schedule, the band blocked out a week to record; the "week" became 2 1/2 days because of severe floods--both outside and inside the studio.

Even with a lack of studio time and experience, Frogpond tracked 12 songs that cut the pop/garage rock edge. From the opening jangle of the guitar on "Talk To Me" to the sweet sounds of the closing "Pretty Song," Frogpond offer up uniquely memorable hooks on Count to Ten that are reminiscent of Nirvana and the Breeders. The unsettling lyrics, penned by Phillips, are predominately about trust and disappointment in relationships... and (what else?) waiting. "Hey, she's an artist," laughs guitarist Kristie Stremel, "she has to be tortured." That's a little too true, in this case. -Jennifer Clay

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