About “Frank”

Henry McIntyre’s new single “Frank” is a coming of age tale exploring the confusion of early adulthood. There is the nostalgia for childhood, the last breath of adolescent angst and, most prominently, the conflicting fog of the path forward. Inspired by graduating college and the urge to abandon ambitions for a traditional 9-5 path, McIntyre finds himself proverbially “stuck on two tracks,” trying to forge the messy path ahead into adulthood. He’s “rolling with the punches” but doesn’t “feel alive,” unfulfilled and unexcited by the prospect of normalcy. As an artist, there is certainly a struggle to continue fighting for one’s dreams, and McIntyre is holding on to his identity by refusing to conform. He accepts that there is only one way forward, this is his “path now, it will start to unwind” and realizing that, despite the pressure to give in to expectations, “it’s the way we live and breathe at the end of the line.” Accepting himself and his, perhaps bumpier, path forward head on, McIntyre is “not turning back again for no one.”

Preview “Frank” on Soundcloud

The single was recorded at Henley Row with producers and Boston music scene veterans, Dan Nicklin and Nate Leavitt, with the song being mixed by Pat Dicenso. In tandem with the song’s lyrics, the story of the production itself is a sort of coming of age story. Leavitt was McIntyre’s guitar teacher, starting when McIntyre was only 8 years old. They have maintained a relationship for over 10 years, with Leavitt observing and guiding his path to maturity. From early recordings of impromptu jams, followed by demoing McIntyre’s earliest songs, to the crafting of “Frank,” Leavitt has watched McIntyre grow and mature as a musician and a person. This journey culminated with Leavitt’s work on “Frank,” playing bass, perfecting vocal lines, and co-producing with Nicklin. “Frank” is the story of Henry McIntyre’s emergence into adulthood, both in song and creation. 

Preview the official music video directed by Carissa Johnson of Fuel Heart Productions

About Henry McIntyre

Henry McIntyre is a singer/songwriter from Boston, MA. The self proclaimed “long lost emo Beatle,” McIntyre plays a blend of indie folk and Beatlesque pop, mixing catchy melodic choruses with confessional lyrics. His sound draws to mind artists such as Elliott Smith, the Cure, and the La’s. Beginning his career at the age of 9, McIntyre played lead guitar in the rock band, Black Diamonds. In the band’s 8 year existence, they released two EPs and played venues such as House of Blues Boston and the Hard Rock Cafe. The band even earned the Guiness World Record for the World’s Youngest Professional Rock Band. As a solo artist, McIntyre has played Boston mainstays such as The Middle East Upstairs and The Jungle as well as playing as far as Nashville, Denver, and Los Angeles. His intimate debut EP, Highly Influenced, was released in 2018 followed by his next release, Box on the Ear, in 2019. McIntyre reemerged with his Beatlesque single “Starting Over” in January 2022. The follow up single, “Frank,” was released in May 2022. The meditative single was produced by Boston music scene veterans Dan Nicklin and Nate Leavitt at Henley Row, with mixing done by Pat Dicenso. 

Lyrics

Let’s get it over with 

I’m better now but lost in the fog

And nobody’s right, nobody’s wrong

Guess I have found myself stuck on two tracks

Hanging on by pleasantries and bullshit and smiles

No it’s not right but I cannot lie 

If this is it I’ve had one hell of a time 

My mother says it’s normal to be questioning now 

I guess it is I just don’t know how 

I’m guessing I was thinking that I should know

Myself better by now

To be Frank I’m doing well

And I’m rolling with the punches but I don’t feel alive

And I’m not turning back again for no one 

To be Frank I’m doing well

And the writing’s on the wall 

But I’m not ready to try 

And I’m not turning back again for no one

Hanging out and climbing tree pretending to fly 

A simpler time but I cannot lie 

This is my path now, it’ll start to unwind

Holding on to all these things that have become me 

You’re questioning me but you cannot see

It’s the way we live and breathe at the end of the line

My father says it’s normal to be changing now 

I guess it is I just don’t know 

I’m guessing I was thinking that I should know 

Myself better by now

To be Frank I’m doing well

And I’m rolling with the punches but I don’t feel alive

And I’m not turning back again for no one 

To be Frank I’m doing well

And the writing’s on the wall 

But I’m not ready to try 

And I’m not turning back again for no one