Futurebirds /Jordan Sellergren/ Dan Tedesco

**NOTE: Proof of vaccination status is required for all 2022 concerts at Codfish Hollow Barnstormers!** 

FUTUREBIRDS LIVE IN THE BARN

Recorded at several studios (Portico, Chase Park, Rialto Row, Dialback Sound), the LP is a snarling devil-may-care batch of 12 tunes. It encompasses a seamless blend of hard rock, psychedelic alt-country and folk stylings — something signature to the unique sound, tone and attitude of the Futurebirds.

“We recorded this album all over the place,” says guitarist/singer Thomas Johnson. “In a lot of ways it kept us from bogging down, at times it was probably inefficient, but ultimately everyone of the songs captures the vibe(s) of the spaces and cities we occupied while we made it.

‘I’m Killin You’ really captures the vibe of the whole record for me. The main theme I had in my head while writing it though, was getting past the negative shit that can live on the periphery (or in the forefront) of life. Killing the bad side of human nature. Being self-aware, and being honest with yourself and trying to find peace with the person you’ve become or are becoming (or always were).”

“We’ve been putting one foot in front of the other for a decade now. Every tour, we get smarter about how we operate, how we craft a live show, how we utilize everyone’s individual talents,” guitarist/singer Carter King adds. “Every day, we become better songwriters, more comfortable as artists and producers, better business people — it’s all about teamwork.”

Now on the backside of a decade of road warrior hard-knocks and well-earned accolades, the Athens, GA rock sextet has been hitting its full stride as of late. It’s a sense of time and place where what’s most important remains at the forefront of the group’s philosophy and deeply-held personal mission — a group of friends making sonically innovative music.

“We have one of the oddest and most talented mix of people to make up a band that I’ve ever seen. Everyone is extremely talented in an assortment of different ways, hilarious, tough, creative, scrappy,” King says. “Stylistically, everyone brings something different to the band, and we’re getting better at simultaneously nurturing those differences, melding them together into one unified thing.”

With a touring schedule resembling some haphazard spider web spun across America, the Futurebirds are unrelenting in their quest to bring the melodic party to your hometown, no matter how far away the destination or how small the stage may be.

“And we’ve learned a lot about life along the way,” guitarist/singer Daniel Womack reflects. “Watching other bands rise and fall, watching the sunrise and the sunset, cried because it hurt, cried because it felt good, watching strangers turn into friends and some into family.”

“In a lot of ways the live show is the last frontier, the last thing left in the music industry that can’t be digitized and given away for free,” Johnson adds. “It’s the thing that keeps us coming back. The act of making something awesome and unique with six individuals, creating a sound-weave, connecting to the core of human existence, that’s the teamwork.”

Ultimately, the underlying message of the Futurebirds is making sure everybody feels included in the grand scheme of things — this absurd reality that is life itself — where compassion from both sides of the microphone and drinks held high, and in unison, is the name of the game.

“There’s a reciprocated energy between us and the crowd, where everyone is riding on that same wave together,” Womack says. “And when you’re in that moment, everything about this band life makes sense. The feeling that exists in that moment between the crowd and us — that’s why we do what we do. That’s Teamwork.”
 JORDAN SELLERGREN
http://jordansellergren.com
jordansellergren.bandcamp.com

 

DAN TEDESCO

My story is…..that I have no story, per se. I come from a solid family. It’s a point of pride. I grew up in the far west suburbs of Chicago.  The only serious addiction in my life, if you’d like to call it that, has been with music. Let me bring you up to speed.

Piano at age 5.

Violin at age 9.

Guitar at age 11 after hearing Eddie Van Halen.

And that, as they say, is all she wrote.

I’ve been madly in love with it ever since.Growing up my ears were fortunate enough to be treated to a fairly eclectic musical mix: The Beatles, Dylan, Paul Simon, James Taylor, The Band, The Beach Boys, Pink Floyd, CCR, Bob Seger, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty. Even a healthy dose of Mozart, Beethoven and Wagner. A friend in my neighborhood used to make cassette mixes for me: The Who, They Might Be Giants, The Police, The Clash. I missed the grunge period, and it wouldn’t be until nearly a decade later that I’d discover the power of Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden. Once I found the guitar, things focused in a touch. It wasn’t unusual for me to fall asleep at night to the sounds of guitar wizards like Joe Satriani and Eric Johnson. And the random Van Halen record was never far away.

Then there was the jazz period. Wes Montgomery. Joe Pass. George Benson. Charlie Christian. John Coltrane. Elvin Jones. McCoy Tyner. The things I learned from those guys. Man. It’s everything really. The spirit of jazz. The freedom of it. That’s been it’s great influence on me.

But I was always a rock ’n roll kid. Pete Townsend more than Pat Metheny. And, ultimately, I craved power chords over the complex harmonies of jazz.

High school was a weird time. I straddled the jock world, playing baseball, and the music world, as a member of the high school jazz band. Most mornings, after being dropped off by the bus, everyone would hang out in the lunchroom before first period. Not me. I’d head straight to a room adjacent to the school’s band rehearsal hall, writing music on the computer. Like I said, it was an addiction. Outside of school, I jammed in a duo with one of my best friend’s, who happened to be a fantastic drummer. We wrote all kinds of stuff. Lots of instrumental music (queue the Satriani). Recorded various demos. But neither of us sang. That made it hard to play out. And most of the other kids were interested in the classics: Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Stones. They weren’t interested in what we had going on.

So, like many of my heroes, I was a bit of a social outcast. That, if anything, was and has always been my struggle. Everyone has at least one. And I found my comfort, security and confidence in the world out on the fringe, populated by the misfits. The world of rock ’n roll.

Let Me Play My Old Guitar, and sing for you my song
Let Me Play My Old Guitar, and sing for you my song
I promise you my friend
I Will Not Do You Wrong

– DT