Freedown Revealed
The mysterious, almost neo-apocryphal Wausau band you may have read about in the occasional CW article … Freedown … made their long-awaited debut this weekend at The Longshot in Tomahawk, opening two nights for the Scott Holt Band. Pal Dino made this show happen (also including Michael Murphy & the Mob, and Mean Tooth Grin) and much was revealed on stage. This foursome of 16-year-olds exhibited bona fide chops and an impressive grasp of pacing, with original material, covers of classic and contemporary rock, a short acoustic set featuring guitarist Ian’s spot-on version of Jimmy Page’s White Summer/Black Mountain Side, and Ian playing as Tyler sang their co-written Summershine. Freedown’s diminutive drummer Danny combined power and restraint like a pro. Zak, filling in on bass for the band’s usual bassist Dan vacationing in Italy, played as though he’d been with the group since forever. Video was captured and I will attempt to provide a link to that asap.
Bear in mind, this was the kids’ first experience in this sort of setting, with a professional PA and monitor system, lights and adult audience. The reaction from the audience was enthusiastic … and obviously surprised. No one expected kids this young to play with such command and breadth of style. A particularly magical moment occurred on night number two, as Scott Holt called the boys onto the stage for an impromptu jam/lesson session. I don’t know what Scott expected, but you could see the excitement on his face as he led the boys in Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll” and joined in with Freedown’s own “Taste of Red” and “Feel.” Eventually Holt and his band yielded the stage to the youngsters who closed out the evening at maximum volume.
Afterward, on-the-spot reviews from a wide-eyed Scott Holt and his bassist Richard Sanders were joyous. Advice was extended to the boys from these road veterans on how to command the stage, how to use a microphone, how to “turn up your guitar!” Drummer Danny was praised by all as a powerhouse.
Really, what these two nights were about, was a sort of cultural continuity … seeing the ongoing thread of the blues/rock tradition; watching the lines between generations blur as the music flows forward on its decades-long journey with familiar chord progressions, accessible pentatonic scale leads, strong sense of melody and the insight that says “take ‘em up, then bring ‘em back down again.” This is not a case of the “look at me, I’m so cool” kid band. This group’s music and approach to performing is not about mindless aggression, gangsta posturing or pandering to the chickees. Refreshingly, it’s about music.
Look for Freedown around the area in weeks and months to come as they continue to grow as musicians and performers. And when you do see them, try to remember: they’re just kids.
Dino Corvino said:
So this freedown band, they had a good time?
March 25th, 2008 at 10:16 am #
Tom Neal said:
They had a time few of us ever have. I expect they’ll never forget it. Thanks, Dino.
March 26th, 2008 at 1:53 pm #