Album Notes

What is The Franchise?

No, it has nothing to do with fast-food restaurants. The Franchise is a D.C.-based band that specializes in an intriguing blend of styles.

We somehow incorporate slightly-too-clever alternative rock and new wave sounds with earnest acoustic contempo-folk.

The music, mostly original, has been described as "geek rock," but you don't need to be a geek to like it.

It's a combination of bright, melodic rock with lyrics that are occasionally silly and that often cover unusual topics: aliens, anger management, pets, redecorating, and natural disasters.

The result is kind of interesting: sometimes heartfelt, sometimes quirky originals, plus irreverent interpretations of the music we grew up with - it's geek rock with an '80s twist.

If you enjoy what used to be called "college rock," alternative rock, and New Wave-things along the lines of Talking Heads, REM, They Might Be Giants, U2, the Cure, XTC, Cake, early Police, etc., then you might enjoy The Franchise as well.

Do check it out.

The personnel of The Franchise are:
David Barak
Noah Kaye
Anna London
Jerry Marzouk
and Patrick Nolan

Patrick and David met through our spouses' jobs - they briefly worked for the same company - and decided that we needed some more people. David had sang with Jerry in an A Cappella group, so he was approached, and Anna followed swiftly after. At our first gig as a four-piece, Noah approached us and asked to come jam, and the five-piece linup was solidified.