A. Sinclair
Thu., March 19, 1am, Red 7
“Our baby’s due on March 21st – the Saturday of South By,” reveals Frank Smith frontman Aaron Sinclair, whose recently rebranded band, A. Sinclair, is scheduled to play three times during the festival. Since the group’s last gig falls on that same date, the Houston native finds humor in the serendipitous timing, already acquiescing to his soon-to-be daughter.
“Oh, she’ll be the dictator,” he laughs. “I mean, she already is. I suspect it’ll be a long time before I’m back to calling the shots.”
After living in Boston as a member of disbanded rock outfit the Lot Six, the multi-instrumentalist relocated to Austin in 2007. (“In March,” he inserts. “Just in time for South By.”) This year marks his ninth consecutive Fest go-round, but the first as a label-supported performer, with the quintet having signed to L.A.’s Dangerbird Records last year. The group is currently recording a full-length follow-up to 2014 EP Pretty Girls, which the label re-released last fall.
“They’re all about building something new instead of exclusively going after big, established artists,” says Sinclair. “Which is neat, because there doesn’t seem to be a lot of labels doing that right now.”
Whereas the singer’s former band was Americana-slanted, A. Sinclair boasts a harder edge, upping its rock ante with a third guitarist in lieu of a keyboardist.
“Frank Smith originally started as a county-banjo-pedal steel type of band,” he explains. “Slowly though, we moved further away from that sound, and more toward guitar-rock. We’d been using the same name for 12 years, but since the music became so different it just seemed like the right time to change things up.”
As the band readies its rock & roll, the dad-to-be braces for imminent change, readily accepting the likelihood that he’ll be missing a show or two. He considers his odds.
“Babies are never born on their actual due dates anyway, are they?” he asks, quasi rhetorically. “Well, the shows are booked, and whatever happens, I don’t think anyone’s gonna get mad at me for having a baby.”
This article appears in March 6 • 2015.