“It’s the way I want to live my life,
Having the freedom to make my own decisions and not adhere to the rules of
others,
To make art for my own well being, not for acceptance from the masses,
To listen to what my heart beats to, not to slave for another’s,
Give me the FREEDOM to make a life I choose - or hand me my DEATH”
In the 1820's during the Greek War of Independence
"Freedom or Death" became the war cry for the people of Greece. Their
passion, beliefs and desires were so strong, that they accepted no substitute.
The Toronto-based, indie duo of Steve Fernandez and Sway Clarke adopted the
name, as well as the mantra for their musical process. “We want to have the
freedom to make the music and the artistic choices that we want. If we can’t
have that freedom, we’d rather not put anything out, which is the death of our
art,” says Fernandez, one half of the production and song-writing unit. Freedom
or Death’s sound is rooted in everything, acoustic folk, electronica,
traditional rock, hip-hop rhythms yet, is always anchored by their lyrics. “We
didn’t want to get pigeonholed,” notes Sway. “It’s our freedom, to make the
music however it comes out. We have two different sensibilities to making music
that clash, but it’s how we actually reconcile them that’s interesting.”
With the release of their self-titled EP in 2010, and EGO, their second EP due out on April 26, 2011, they’re creating and making music their way. The
two met while working at a major record label and have a solid understanding of
how the music industry works. “We know what sold, we know how to make it, but
we decided not to make it,” Sway says. “We decided we wanted to make music that
we would like to listen to, regardless if it gets played on the radio or not.”
Within three months, they had come up with an album’s worth of material and in
true, Freedom or Death fashion, assumed all creative control; every song was
written, produced, recorded and performed by the duo.
A gig at CMJ in New York City in October 2010 earned
Freedom or Death preview accolades from the Wall Street Journal’s Speakeasy section, claiming the band as
one of the top 12 ‘must see’ bands of the 1200 at the festival. At home, blogs
have buzzed with praise for early released tracks. Two Freedom or Death songs
in particular, “This Crowded Room” (earned a # 3 spot) and “Rule The World”
(took #1) – and was deemed a “wildly inventive homage” to the original
NAS/Lauryn Hill version, by noted music critic John Sakamoto on his Anti-Hit
List (a staple of The Toronto Star), in November.
Yet, while they have proven they’re inventive and
self-contained there is a strong desire to work with like-minded artists. “We
are more interested in working with a collective of artists, rather than being
a silo unto ourselves,” Fernandez says. “Our artwork is being done by artists
that inspire us, our videos are being shot by directors that we want to work
with.” Case in point, Fernandez and Sway, both fans of Spike Jonze’s work, felt
such a connection to some of his existing film footage, that “Lost In Dances”
was specifically written with the intent to marry the two. The resulting
music/video mash-up is so natural, magical (and chilling). It’s a similarly
clever dichotomy that seems to inhabit all of Freedom or Death’s work.
In December of 2010, Freedom Or Death opened a run of
Canadian dates for Beast. They will play back in the U.S. and at CMW in 2011
not only on a festival slot, but the band will be curating their own in-store
music events and showcases, hand-picking some like-minded artists to
collaborate with.
Fernandez, a classically trained as a pianist has been a DJ for over a decade,
while Sway has been a driving force as a vocalist and songwriter behind various
bands. Musically Freedom or Death’s sound is eclectic, yet their approach to
lyrics is clear; “We posed the question, are we going to write lyrics that
resonate with a mass amount of people or are we going to write music from our
heart?” Sway asks. “We decided to write things that had a truth to it. The
lyrics are a really huge part, they’re not always the last part, but for me if
there’s no lyrics for a song, the song stops.”
With a strong and steady creative process clearly working for them, stopping is
the last point on Freedom or Death’s agenda. The plan is to tour and continue
to expand the reach of their music. As long as the band’s art comes first and
commerce a back seat, they will continue to make the music they want to make,
for as long as they desire.
PRESS
QUOTES:
"There's a palpable ache at the heart
(of the) Toronto duo that'll be instantly recognizable to anyone who's ever
felt like they were moving in slow motion while a crush of strangers rushes
past you … they can make an electronic keyboard feel as organic as a plank of
oak."
- John Sakamoto, Toronto Star,
Anti Hit List, 2010
“Freedom or Death,
a Toronto-based duo, express warmth whether they’re playing quiet folk guitars
or electronic music under their engaging vocals. Wise is the executive who
signs and nurtures them.” – Wall Street Journal, 2010
“Earmilk said it best: ‘It’s like Bon
Iver car pooled with the Junior Boys on the way to the Massive Attack concert –
but they got snowed in.’” – Indie Music Filter, 2010
"A
Toronto based electro/soul duo made up of a couple of refugees from the music
industry. Watch these guys." - Alan
Cross "Explore Music”, 2010
" Like an acoustic dreampop band (from space), these brothers
grim lure you in with their harmonized vocals and chilly mystique. Their video
for This Crowded Room – off of their first EP - has wholesome
and ironic great white north flavour that tends to last." – Earmilk, 2010
"Freedom Or
Death is a mixing bowl of not just Toronto’s, but the world’s best, and they
come with their own manifesto! Pop sensibility, a couple acoustic
guitars, synths and drum machines, dancing shoes and some lyrical heart add up
to success for this Toronto duo. If you like everything, you’ll like
Freedom or Death – it’s a music lovers band." – Lithium Magazine, 2010
“That
said, there's no question that Fernandez and Sway comprise the creative core of
Toronto's Freedom Or Death - they both write the music and lyrics, 50/50 - who
are all square pegs and round holes when it comes to classification, employing
as they do hip-hop, electronic and acoustic folk as well as rock elements in
their seamless and soulful pop. It's a nifty trick - as evidenced on their
self-titled, five-song debut EP, released this past June – and it's catching
the ear of folks like the Wall Street Journal.” – Hour Montreal, 2010