Cody Frost’s debut single ‘Verbal Warnings’ introduces her as an artist with a singular, uncompromising outlook. It’s opening sets her accomplished yet charismatic vocals to unadorned piano, lulling the listener into a deceptive sense of what to expect. And then it pops like a sonic boom into a rebellious clash of electro-pop with punk attitude and metallic dynamics. By the timeCody signs off just three minutes later, she’s dropped a statement: this is an artist worth paying attention to.
Cody’s lyrics are born from her own experiences: heady highs and crashing lows, despair and disillusionment, self-care and catharsis. They’re stories which feel real simply because they are real. ‘Verbal Warnings’ is Cody’s lyrical ‘fuck you’ to a boss who assumed that she’d tolerate his condescension for the sake of her job. Unsurprisingly, it turned out he was wrong.
“I used to work in a kids soft play area that was part of a pub,” she explains. “My boss there was an absolute douchebag who just lived for his job, which made me so angry. The only way I could channel that anger was to write a song about him and people like him in general – those people who think they’re superior to you because they’ve got a company car and think they’re set for life.”
Although she’s just 21-years-old, Cody already has a wealth of experiences to draw on. She grew up in Burnley, where she lived in a pub that was subject to repeated break-ins. That manifested itself in insomnia, which in turn led to depression and anxiety. She never felt safe, so always had a baseball bat to hand.
Her escape was music, and by her early teens she was posting covers of songs by Frank Ocean, Nirvana and Slipknot to YouTube. She soon became a regular busker in the centre of Manchester. She didn’t have a microphone, so needed to belt out performances to gain attention and to make money, in the process developing a skill that is now a real asset.
It wasn’t until her later teens that she was diagnosed with ADHD. She admits that she had been struggling with day-to-day life, from lacking concentration in college to poor time-keeping, and that diagnosis set her on the path to a new start. It resulted in a new found clarity of she wanted to do creativity and how to focus on developing her music.
That creativity was realised with the help of Dan Weller, whose previous work includes production for Cody’s favourite band (and dream collaborators) Enter Shikari and co-founding the cult metal group SikTh. Together they’ve created a selection of songs which Cody is preparing to unleash, which touch upon everything from punk to drum ‘n’ bass.
Outside of music, Cody further expresses her creativity by working as a tattooist. She often showcases her work on Instagram, such as this portrait of The Joker.
‘Verbal Warnings’ is released alongside an official video, which melds Cody’s attention-grabbing performances with some in-your-face animation. Expect much more from her soon.
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