Sound Republic: Music News

Freestate Release Surrender

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By Ellie AMB
29 July 2007

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Freestate

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Surrender

The combination of raw power and melody make for a powerful beast and Melbourne's FREESTATE launch their debut album with enough raw power and melody to quickly scale the heights of the Australian heavy rock scene.

With integrity and musical abilities akin to The Butterfly Effect and Karnivool, and riffs that would make any Wolfmother proud, FREESTATE bring a presence which bridges the gap and pushes the boundaries of rock music genres.

Forming as FREESTATE in Melbourne in 2002, the band's members first began writing together in high school, selecting a name that pertained to the state of freedom that their music brought to their lives- emotionally, spiritually and physically. Initially just some kids having fun, the band quickly got serious when their first live shows struck a chord with their audience.

Things changed for the band when in their first year together, a beloved friend of the band passed away after a battle with cancer. Her hope, faith and laughter in the face of such adversity inspired the band to take their music further in the hope of inspiring others to grasp life with both hands. �Throughout her life she challenged us, practised compassion and left an imprint on everyone she met,� said vocalist Drew Kario. �The experience of losing her changed our perception of life forever and taught us to grab it in all its beauty. We hope that through our music we can do for others what she has done for us.�

In 2006 the band began recording demos with producer Ricki Rae and throwing the results up on their MySpace. While surfing around one night, director of Sydney label Crusade Records Tom Vernette discovered the band and chased them down until he had their signatures. �I was online one night and a friend of mine sent through a MySpace URL of a band they'd found. I had a listen and knew straight away that it was the right band for Crusade,� said Vernette. �FREESTATE are the real deal both live and on record and it's an exciting project to be on board with.� �We're really pleased to find a label like Crusade that really understand what we need as a band. We have the luxury of having SonyBMG as distributor but at the same time having the attention that only a boutique label like Crusade can provide,� said Kario.

While recording their debut album Surrender, the band kept busy touring the country supporting bands such as The Butterfly Effect and Full Scale, gaining a loyal and constantly growing fan base. Surrender is as solid a debut as you are likely to see from an Australian act. With strength in tracks like Twice Alive, hooks galore in tracks like Man Who Couldn't Lie and experimental sounds in Necessary and Phoenix, FREESTATE show themselves to be a band assured of both where they are and where they are headed. With the rest of 2007 on the road and the album hitting stores in August, make sure you don't miss the power of FREESTATE.

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