Once has a relationship has fractured to the point of separation there is little need to retread old ground. The old adage of if it didn't work the first time it never well has been proven in both life and music but there are exceptions to the rule.

Sometimes that unique but departed person merely needs to re-energize and gain back the drive and hunger that saw the relationship thrive and prosper when it mattered. Sometimes that separation is needed, although not popular at the time, but in the rare instances where both parties are prepared to focus on the future instead of dwell on the past the strengths of the individual become the strengths of the collective.


When Frankenbok parted ways with vocalist Dan McDougall in 2015 diehard fans were devastated. McDougall was widely acknowledged as the band's premiere vocalist out of the handful that had fronted the band, with his intensity and menace only matched by his aggressive nature. He led the band by example, with no quarter given but plenty taken.

Unfortunately, with personalities such as this the highs are matched blow for blow with the lows and after a period of unrest and instability McDougall left the band and was replaced by Dan White. Although White was a more than adequate replacement whispers continued to fester that McDougall's exit had detracted from the aura that surrounded Frankenbok with some openly campaigning for his return.


When White left the band towards the end of last year and the band put out a statement saying that a replacement was being considered in-house only the most optimistic dared to believe that a return from McDougall was possible. As more time passed before the bands next gig in late January the whispers gained traction until today's announcement that McDougall would, in fact, take his spot front of stage. Hopefully gone would be the friction that caused the break-up and in its place a renewed sense of unity that would see Frankenbok return to full force.


"It feels fantastic, absolutely fantastic", grinned McDougall when pressed how it felt to finally be able to speak publically about his return. "We had another rehearsal last night and the band is on fire! We've got a thirty minute set at Blaze and we were trying to squeeze in too much so we ramped it up by a couple of BPM's on the last run through and it was way too fast (laughs). Right now I have to say that I'm very happy to be back in the band but in a way, I never really left. I just kind of changed positions. My other band Never and Frankenbok both rehearse out of the same place here and I continued to do stuff for the band behind the scenes. I made film clips for them and recorded the last album so I went from being the vocalist to behind the scenes so it hasn't been much of a stretch really. I live at the rehearsal studio so every practice for the last year and a half I have been present at".


When White and Frankenbok parted ways in December that close proximity worked in McDougall's favor.


"Prior to Frankenbok touring Japan in November, I had been thinking about vocals a little bit. It was the first time in a few years that I had seriously considered singing again and prior to the boys leaving I did a recording of them running through the set in the rehearsal room minus Dan who had left early that night. After they left I had a bit of a play with it singing over the top of the music and it felt good. I already knew most of the songs so I cranked them through the PA and belted them out. When the band got back Azza (guitarist and founding member) had a chat and he explained the situation to me and said that while the tour was unbelievable things weren't so great on a personal level. I got the impression Dan wasn't fitting in with the rest of the guys and it became apparent that they would be in need of a new vocalist pretty soon. I told Azza what I had been playing around...