‘Are you ready for a journey into the mind of a girl who’s dedicated her heart to music?’, Fran asks daringly on ‘May I Introduce Myself’, the first song of her anticipated first solo LP, Frantastic. For those following contemporary electronic music, little introduction is necessary: the 33-year-old psychologist is known for her dreamy house collaborations with husband and producer/ DJ Oliver Koletzki, with whom she co-wrote hits such as ‘Hypnotized’ and the successful album Lovestoned. The time has, however, come for Fran to bare her musical self and let the wild desire to create run free. Far from the totalitarian fist of the major labels, Frantastic was born in complete autonomy with the help of newcomer producers Oded K.dar (MiMi Müller-Westernhagen / Eddy Stevens – Moloko) and Martin Seyer (Krabbz Soundsystem). The result is an impressively personal journey through the mind of an intelligent, emotionally rich songwriter, pitched against a diverse sonic backdrop of pop, electronica and folk.

Literally exploding, the aforementioned opener bursts of colour and confidence. Here, Fran’s uplifting lyrics ethereally flow over poppy electronica beats, climaxing in a chorus that proclaims ‘If you believe you can do anything!’ – a tongue-in-cheek mission statement Fran is clearly out to prove on Frantastic. ‘Sunglasses’ starts with a crunchy downbeat as Fran’s mesmerising voice lyrically considers the tension between anonymity and exposure in celebrity culture, while the song peaks in a piano-driven chorus. Things take a turn towards a more organic sound on ‘Since You’ve Been Gone’. Jazzed-up, soulful rhythms create a light-hearted vibe that initially stands in contrast with the Aretha Franklin inspired break-up scenario the narrator is proposing to her unfaithful lover. The chorus reveals the narrator’s moment of realisation, in which she asserts her own strength and independence: ‘Since you’ve been gone I’ve been hearing my soul’.

Next up, wild 8-bit bleeps and sharp synths introduce the wonderfully bouncy beats of ‘Arcade Love’, which describes a feeling most of us are all too familiar with: you enter a room and your eyes lock with a perfect stranger. The electrifying moment feels like an eternity, charged by a feeling of intense desire… until it passes. On ‘Frantastic’, the LP’s title track, Fran then shows a completely different side – her often highly feminine singing makes way for a tough, decisive semi-rap that reveals Fran’s attitude to life as she states ‘So I’ll keep rollin’ and creating ‘til the day that I drop and it’s the only thing I know that makes me high and makes me pop’. Giving way to a softly pulsating beat, ‘Frantastic’ flows into the beautifully rounded ‘Zen Dance’, on which Fran’s sweet voice simply bedazzles the listener as she presents her views on the often mindlessly celebrated hedonism prevalent in dance music culture. Musically, ‘The Spell’ continues the highly romantic marriage of pianos and soft, upbeat rhythms. While it – telling of the moment one finally moves on from an old love – proclaims ‘I broke the spell you put on me’ in a purposely mock-gospel fashion, the fast pace and cello arrangement of ‘Down’ emphasise the song’s empowering message at heart: don’t bring me down, because I will fight back.

The album slows down its tempo with ‘Psychoanalysis’, another particularly personal song due to Fran’s background in psychology. While languid synths and drawn-out, distorted guitars shiver over minimalistic drums, Fran deconstructs her patient’s layers to great effect. Next, Fran delivers another ballad in the form of ‘Ocean of You’, which, thanks to its gorgeously serene vocals and oceanic theme, stands in sharp contrast to the cool, almost paranoid feel of ‘Cheesecake Mountain’. Here, Fran perhaps reveals her darkest, most menacing self as high-pitched words of warning fly over an eerie musical landscape, part organic percussion, part disorienting electronica. Penultimately, ‘Scratch a Goodbye’ is placed perfectly as it serves as a last letter to a lover before the inevitable goodbye. On ‘Summer’, the Album’s heart wrenchingly intimate finale, Fran’s layered voice evokes an enchanting bird song, praising summer’s infinite promise of love. Recorded on her own balcony with only a ukulele and a toy drum machine, it encapsulates once more and most poignantly what Frantastic stands for: a stunning, singular DIY-vision, brimming with the wonderful versatility to be found in Fran’s musical mind, which, we are certain, is yet to be exhausted!

Catalogue number: SVT089