Walk into any Frankie and the Witch Fingers show and the first thing you’ll notice isn't the music. It’s the smell. A thick, humid cocktail of vaporized sweat, ozone from overdriven tube amps, and that specific, sweet-and-sour scent of a hundred bodies packed into a room that was definitely not designed for this many people.
They’re loud. Really loud.
But if you think this is just another group of LA kids trying to mimic the 1960s, you’ve missed the point entirely. Frankie and the Witch Fingers are currently the most dangerous band in the garage-psych circuit, and it has nothing to do with retro-fetishism. While the rest of the world was busy arguing over whether rock is dead, Dylan Sizemore and Josh Menashe were in a Vernon, California rehearsal space turning their guitars into weapons of mass distraction.
From Bloomington Basements to Global Domination
The "LA band" tag is a bit of a misnomer, or at least an incomplete truth. The core of the group actually traces back to Bloomington, Indiana, around 2013. That’s where Dylan Sizemore, originally a solo act with a kick drum and a guitar, met Josh Menashe and Glenn Brigman.
They moved to Los Angeles in 2014, and honestly, that’s when the "Witch Fingers" mythology really started to cook. They didn't just join the scene; they cannibalized it. They took the sun-drenched fuzz of Triptides (a band Menashe and Brigman also played in) and injected it with a frantic, nervous energy that felt more like a panic attack than a summer vacation.
Fast forward to 2026, and the lineup has solidified into a terrifyingly tight unit. You’ve got Dylan on lead vocals and rhythm, Josh handling the lead guitar and synths, Nikki Pickle (formerly of Death Valley Girls) anchoring the low end with a bass style that’s more "lead" than "support," and Nick Aguilar—a drummer who plays like he's trying to break the floorboards. Recently, they added Jon Modaff on full-time synths, a move that fundamentally shifted their DNA.
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Why 'Data Doom' and 'Trash Classic' Changed Everything
Most psych bands find a groove and stay there until they dissolve. Frankie and the Witch Fingers decided to set the groove on fire.
Their 2023 record, Data Doom, was a turning point. It wasn't just about pedals and feedback anymore. They started pulling from Miles Davis’s electric period—think Bitches Brew but played by punks on way too much caffeine. Songs like "Empire" and "Mild Davis" utilized 7/4 time signatures and Afrobeat rhythms that felt less like a "jam" and more like a mathematical equation designed to make you hallucinate.
Then came the 2025 release, Trash Classic. This is where the band really threw a wrench in the gears.
"Everything is designed to break so that you'll buy more, more, more... the best thing we can do is try to find the beauty in the trash."
— Nikki Pickle
If Data Doom was their prog-rock odyssey, Trash Classic is their industrial-disco nightmare. They moved away from the "psych-rock" label and leaned into something twitchier. Influences like XTC’s Drums and Wires and the mechanical sarcasm of Devo are all over this thing. It’s a record about digital burnout and the absurdity of late-stage capitalism, delivered via gurgling synths and guitars that sound like they're being fed through a woodchipper.
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The Vinyl Obsession and the Hypocrisy Debate
If you’re a collector, you know this band. They are the darlings of Greenway Records.
We’re talking about "Sewer Spew" variants—liquid-filled LPs that look like radioactive sludge—and dozens of different color-ways for a single release. Some critics on Reddit and in fanzines have called them out for this. They ask: How can a band write songs like "Economy" and "Political Cannibalism" while releasing eleven different versions of the same plastic disc?
It’s a fair question. But the band’s response is usually pretty pragmatic. In a world where streaming pays fractions of a penny, the "merch-industrial complex" is the only thing keeping an independent touring band in van tires and guitar strings. They aren't the corporate machine; they're the ones trying to survive it. Plus, let's be real: the art looks incredible.
What to Expect If You See Them This Year
The 2026 tour schedule is relentless. From the Stop/Time Festival in Iowa City to a massive Sunday slot at Mosswood Meltdown in Oakland alongside Bikini Kill and Iggy Pop, they are everywhere.
If you’re planning to catch a show, here’s a tip: don’t stand in the front if you value your personal space. A Frankie and the Witch Fingers pit is a high-contact sport. Dylan Sizemore spends half the set looking like he’s possessed, his eyes rolling back while he yelps into the mic, and the interplay between Menashe’s synth-heavy textures and Nikki Pickle’s driving bass is enough to rattle the fillings out of your teeth.
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They’ve moved past the "flower power" psych aesthetic. This is the new era of the band—more synth, more anger, more precision. They aren't just playing songs; they’re conducting an experiment in how much energy a human body can expend in a 90-minute window.
How to Get Into the "Witch Fingers" Lore
If you’re new to the band, don't just start with the hits. You need to understand the evolution.
- Listen to 'ZAM' (2019): This is the heavy stuff. It’s the bridge between their garage-rock roots and the more experimental territory they occupy now. "Dracula Killer" is mandatory listening.
- Watch the KEXP Sessions: Specifically the 2024/2025 performances. Seeing how Nick Aguilar and Jon Modaff lock in helps explain why the band sounds so much "bigger" now than they did five years ago.
- Track Down the Live Albums: Their Live at Levitation and Live at KEXP vinyl releases capture the raw, "real-time" chaos that a studio album sometimes polishes away.
- Follow the Visuals: Check out the artwork by Jordan Warren and Carlo Schievano. The band treats their visual identity as a continuation of the music—a dystopian, comic-book-inspired world that matches the "Data Doom" aesthetic.
The LA scene is crowded, and "psych" is a word that has lost almost all meaning in the modern lexicon. But Frankie and the Witch Fingers are one of the few groups actually moving the needle. They aren't looking back at the 60s with longing; they’re looking at 2026 with a healthy dose of skepticism and a whole lot of volume.
Go see them. Bring earplugs. Prepare to sweat.
Next Steps for the Fan:
- Check the official website for their upcoming 2026 dates in Mexico and Spain.
- Secure a copy of the "Trash Classic" liquid-filled vinyl before the resale prices hit four figures.
- Listen to their influences—specifically Miles Davis's On The Corner and Devo’s Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!—to see where the DNA of their new sound comes from.