Review Summary: A great, practically improvised piano pop album that is perfect for late night listening.
As Eric Frisch, the New York lover of all thing The Beatles and Beach Boys says himself, this EP could have easily had the name “Early In The Morning”.
Frisch took along his friends and musicians to Toronto to record two of the songs that appear on "Late In The Night" - the title song and "As Long As I’m Alive". Then they did one more - "Loved You All Along". It was getting late, but it seems that everything and everybody were in the groove.
The recording started at midnight, and by 4 in the morning the three songs were done - one take and only vocal overdubs. As Frisch puts it, he even completely improvised the lyrics for "As Long As I’m Alive". in the studio itself. Then Frisch taught the band the fourth song "Turn On Your Light", and by seven in the morning the EP was done!
But instead of improvised, avant-garde jazz, we get some great piano-driven pop, which when listening doesn’t give an inkling that it was recorded in one take. Along with the inevitable Beatles and Beach Boys comparisons, you can also hear that Frisch has a lot of respect for Phil Spector’s ‘Wall of Sound’ production concept with the thoughtful use of echo.
Frisch himself cites also more modern influences like Real Estate, Foxygen and Best Coast, but that has probably more to do with the musical concepts and the feel since Frisch in no way copies any of the mentioned.
Of the five tracks on the EP, the closer "Loved You All Along" is the most striking, combining all the best elements you could hear in the Lennon/McCartney songs with Brian Wilson flourishes. A very good EP that wants you to go back and search out the Frisch’s three previous releases.
