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Growing up can be a funny thing. The older you get, the more freedom you enjoy. As such, you can act more like a kid (when appropriate, of course!). Max Frost walks a fine line between exhibiting childlike excitement during the creative process as a producer and multi-instrumentalist and lyrically embracing a tried-and-tested perspective as a seasoned songwriter. As such, the Austin, TX-born and Nashville, TN-based sonic outlier breaks the rules (and the walls) between sounds and vibes, delivering a fiery, fascinating, and free interpretation of what pop music can be in the 21st century. On the heels of hundreds of millions of streams, sold out shows, and praise courtesy of Variety, NPR, Rolling Stone, and many more, this balance defines his debut for Nettwerk Music Group, Shelby Ave Pt. 1 EP.
“In my life, I feel more like an adult than I’ve ever felt, but musically I’m more like a kid than ever,” he affirms. “I stopped worrying about creative consequences and over-projecting expectation or concern into the world. It’s freed me up in a great way. I’m able to make what I want to make because I’m writing for myself. I’ve done that in the past, but there are less complications and obstacles now.”
As a kid in Austin, Max grabbed a guitar at the age of eight and never put it down. He achieved his first taste of virality with “White Lies” and “Adderall,” paving the way for his full-length debut Gold Rush in 2018. The standout “Good Morning” scored a slew of syncs, including Pepsi, ESPN, CBS, Shameless, Grey’s Anatomy, The War With Grandpa, and American Idol. He emerged as the rare presence who could share the stage with either Gary Clark, JR. and Fitz and The Tantrums or Panic! At The Disco and Twenty One Pilots. Between packing headline shows, he delivered show-stopping performances on Good Morning America and Live! With Kelly and Ryan. He even found himself in the studio with none other than Sir Elton John.
2022 saw him elevate again with the Flying Machines EP. Atwood Magazine praised the latter as “a freshly independent, free-spirited return that soars with irresistible energy, unbridled passion, and intimate, captivating wonder,” while American Songwriter applauded his “playful, poignant psychedelic pop fusion.” In the wake of the project, he escaped Los Angeles and put down roots in Nashville. He wrote and recorded in a house on Shelby Ave, hence the name of the EP, and creatively realized a vision all his own.
“It’s like I’ve had nine lives in my career,” he admits. “Unlikely things outside of my control have happened and given me other opportunities or opened up completely different worlds. Of course, I needed to keep making music. More than ever before, this feels like a new chapter. It’s a philosophical change. Everything is new and on my own terms.”
This energy courses through the first single “Creep Back.” A thumping upright piano melody sets the tempo as a slick bass line and bold beat move in lockstep with one another. Max’s hypnotic high register takes hold on the hook, “I hate the way you creep back in my mind. Don’t you know it happens all the time, and I get so lonely, lonely babe.”
“When I wrote it, I had been living in isolation at the cusp of the pandemic freshly after a breakup,” he recalls. “Despite all kinds of distractions, tours, and good things happening in my life, this person just remained a fixture in my mind. It came to a point where I accepted it might never change.”
Then, there’s “Black Hole Love.” Ethereal harmonies swoon over a head-nodding beat, slick bass line, and breezy guitar. Co-written with Mikky Ekko, he contemplates a romance that’s just not meant to be. The doo-wop-style melody anchors the chorus as he laments, “You dream of someone different, float on through skies within it all, in a black hole kind of love.”
“This song is about being in love with someone you can’t be with,” he says. “Your attraction to them pulls you in, but you’re forever just in orbit because of outside forces pushing you away. Your love is in a black hole in space.”
Propulsive guitar and a swaggering beat light up “Cig In The Morning.” On the hook, a sensation of confusion glows like embers at the end of the day’s first smoke, “This is what feels like sleeping in The Matrix, waking up again you’re just gonna do all the same shit.”
“It evokes the whole spirit of the EP,” he exclaims. “It’s very much about the balance between wanting the answers and meaning in your life, yet knowing these things will forever be out of reach. You have all these questions, yet you’re just a person sitting on the porch with a cigarette.”
Stark piano complements his raw vocals on the pensive, poetic, and powerful “Stand By Me.” It builds towards a final question, “We’re just surviving, will you stand by me?”
“Eternal love is supposedly ‘meant to be,’ but it may never actually be,” he sighs. “You know someone is out there for you, but in the end, are they really the person you’re supposed to be with? Will they stand by you when all else seems lost?”
Ultimately though, Max’s energy might inspire you.
“It’s easy to be cynical,” he leaves off. “You can find yourself expecting too little out of life to ever give it a real chance because you’re waiting for the letdown. The real artform is remaining sane amidst all of it. Most of these songs are written about something that’s melancholic or dark, but they’re still trying to land in a beautiful place without bastardizing the truth. This music represents exactly how I feel about my life at this time.”