Editor’s Picks: Name A Better Live Band Than Young Fathers

Frieze Editor’s Picks is a fortnightly column in which a frieze editor shares their recommendations for what to watch, read and listen to.

Admittedly, I’m late to Young Fathers. Many will read this headline, roll their eyes and think: we already know. I recently saw the band touring their fourth album, Heavy Heavy (2023) – and heavy it was! Think of bass that could do more damage to your crockery than Julian Schnabel. The crowd loved it.

The five vocalists stalk the stage, each almost in their own independent worlds, coalescing in unison to deliver music that feels punchy and vital. US audiences can catch them supporting Depeche Mode throughout December or headlining arenas in April. You can expect these live shows to elevate the album to an emphatic intensity.

Elsewhere, New York publisher The Waverley Press is fundraising to realize the first monograph dedicated to Gerard Malanga’s films. Malanga was Warhol’s right-hand man in the early years, and undoubtedly ­– if the rushes the press has teased online are anything to go by – his archive contains some Silver Factory gems. Also, staying in independent publishing, writers and frieze regulars Donna Marcus Duke and Sam Moore launch the first iteration of Tissue Papers, an anthology of trans* literature, at Whitechapel Gallery on November 23.

In terms of visual art, I recommend Thomas Abercromby’s ‘John’ at Collective in Edinburgh, a filmic homage to his late father, and Anya Gorkova’s solo show ‘Are You Seeing Anyone’ at South Parade, London, co-curated with General Information (opens on November 22), which focuses on the universality of romantic longing. Plus, Karim Boumjimar’s ‘Fluid Forms’ at Alice Folker Gallery, Copenhagen, a series of exuberant watercolour and crayon drawings on the body as a site of resistance, and Jesse Glazzard’s ‘For Love or Nothing’ at 1014 Gallery, London, photographing queer domestic relationships.

And with the passing of Nini Nobless in August, I’ve been revisiting her back catalogue of music as one half of Canadian Hi-NRG duo Lime. I’m also enjoying the sounds of East London songstress Kuntessa, whose forthcoming EP, Pussy Pitstop, arrives on November 22, and dipping into Sampler1 (2023), an album of music produced by visual artists, including Cory Arcangel, Col Self and Marianna Simnett, celebrated here for their innovative use of sound. Set for release on December 1, the album is available to pre-order (pay what you can) from Jack Jelfs and Haroon Mirza’s OUTPUTS label today.

_{Main image: Young Fathers, Heavy Heavy (detail), 2023. Courtesy: Ninja Tune}