Most people would consider eleven musicians on a stage to be a small orchestra, but for Austin reggae fusion band, The FreeFlow, putting eleven people under the stage lights is just another gig.
“[We] make a big wall of sound,” Brandon, the lead percussionist, told me. Also seated at the table were lead vocalist Travis, lead guitarist Tony, and bassist Kourosh.
“It’s hard with eleven people,” Kourosh added. “We’re still trying to work out the bugs, dynamically.”
Despite the downsides that come along with a large band, the upside of having that many talented musicians on a stage was too tempting a prospect to ignore. “We realized that we could have more players, and they’re all music majors, but how do you orchestrate that? How do you make them come together? We’ve been working it out,” Brandon continued. And the results have been promising. The FreeFlow’s sound is rich, layered, and energetic.
The FreeFlow started in San Antonio with just the four men seated at the table with me. But they got to Austin as quick as they could. And it was in Austin that their sound really matured.
“It was when we got to Austin, we realized that we could jam,” Brandon said. “At first I would say it had more of a rock and roll sound, and then we realized that we could play reggae music.”
“It just feels good,” Travis added.
“Progressive reggae is what I would call it,” Brandon continued. “It’s a band of drummers. We can play in odd time signatures and we can put in crazy accents and hits, but still be true to roots reggae and the good vibe and the easy listening.”
Austin suits The FreeFlow and their style of music well. “There’s definitely a different vibe here.” Travis said. “There’s a fire… I’ve never met club owners who were so involved with the music.”
“It’s the place to be,” Kourosh finished.
The FreeFlow drummer, Brandon, is a music major at Texas State University, but he didn’t always study music. He started out in the industrial engineering program. “I was getting geared up towards an internship and a job, and it was very safe, and it seemed pretty lucrative, but all of a sudden I realized that didn’t really matter … I realized that that really wasn’t what I was trying to do.” I asked him if changing majors halfway through his college career had set him back at all. He admitted it had pushed back his graduation by an extra semester. “But better late than becoming an engineer,” he added. Brandon’s life goals had changed, and the other members of the band reflected a similar attitude.
“I want to be able to support myself through music,” Tony said.
“It would be bad ass just to help other bands out that were in the same position later on,” Kourosh said.
“Being able to get to that position to be able to give back is just awesome,” Travis said.
The FreeFlow are releasing their first E.P. this Friday, May 6th at 8 P.M. at The Dirty Dog Bar on E. 6th. They’re playing with Axis Unity and High Times Doobie Award winners, The Contrabandits. The show is free if you’re over 21 and $5 if you’re not, which also happens to be the price of their six song E.P.