Freekbass, hailed by the legendary Bootsy Collins as “the new spiritual warrior for the funk,” is ready to serve up his new album All The Way This. All The Way That. on the exciting new Color Red imprint on May 31, 2019. The highly anticipated album embodies the past, present, and future of funk music from the creative minds of Freekbass and co-producers Itaal Shur and Color Red founder Eddie Roberts. The ten track album captures Freekbass’ sound and influences traversing funk from different locations and eras, but the result is 100% original Freekbass. All The Way This. All The Way That. has a warmth that hasn’t been captured until now. That’s because part of the record was recorded straight to a Tascam 388, an eight-track tape recorder with a cult following at Color Red studios, that showcases the infectious energy of a live Freekbass show.
Freekbass has cemented himself as a ground breaking bass player and funk guru. His innovative styling including his signature double thumb strumming technique has garnered critical acclaim and a cult fan following. With the new album, Freekbass has devoted his craft to push the funk forward by harnessing the Cincinnati sound and merging it with universal influences that bring the funk to the present with the spirit of the future. Freekbass enthusiastically adds, “this album could have been recorded in 1972 and some of it in 2072. The Funk is timeless to me, and that is what I always want to try to create, both live and in the studio. The combination of a producer like Eddie Roberts with his pedigree and Itaal Shur with his vision, makes for a very eclectic and hopefully, groundbreaking take on groove-based music.” And the Freekbass experience is rounded out by the powerful sounds of The Bump Assembly including all star players Rico Lewis on Drums (George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic), Sky White on Keys (Foxy Shazam), and Sammi Garett vocals (Turkuaz).
All The Way This. All The Way That. merges two sets and sides of a record, but together paint a complete picture of Freekbass. The All The Way That. side was recorded in Cincinnati, OH with GRAMMY award winning producer Itaal Shur (Santana, Maxwell, Jewel) and embodies the vibes and rich history of the Ohio funk sound both Freek and Shur grew up with. The All The Way This.side was recorded at the label’s Color Red Studios in Denver. It was a natural location, home base for co-producer Eddie Roberts, and it allowed the band to create, write, and play to maximum potential. Freekbass reflects, “recording half of the album in Cincinnati, OH and half of the album in Denver, CO was the perfect way to bridge the earth with the stars.”
The Color Red sessions really made an impact on the record as Freek explains, “A goal of mine has always been to capture the raw energy and soundwaves on how we produce live, while pushing the sonic boundaries in the studio. When we go to tape with a song, it would still have that organic excitement you have when playing, live,” Freekbass reflects, “For me, it represents all sides of me as both a bassist, songwriter and performer. I think we got great performances from new creative places, out of everyone involved in the making of this album.” With only a few rehearsal and writing sessions, the musician would lay down the tracks straight to tape in as few as three days. The end result captures the stunning warmth of analog production and a live feel with studio quality that will be released on vinyl with two distinct, yet cohesive sides.
All The Way This. All The Way That. is Freekbass’ seventh full length album and fans can expect a healthy dose of new content from him including ‘Freeky Friday’ track premieres, with a new song from the album dropping every Friday in May until release day. In the meantime, grab your pre-order here: https://www.color-red.co/product-page/all-the-way-this-all-the-way-that-freekbass-preorder.
Freekbass has graced the stage across the country and is a staple in the festival and touring circuit, including notable performances alongside Bernie Worrell, Umphrey’s McGee, Sammi Garett, Turkuaz, Dumpstaphunk, George Porter Jr., Buckethead, DJ Logic and Mike Gordon. Freekbass and The Bump Assembly will be touring nationally in support of the new album. Catch them at a city near you when full tour dates are announced.
Freekbass concludes, “I think folks who have never heard Freekbass before, as well as the folks who have known me for a long time, are going to be happily surprised with what we have come up with, here and the totality in sonics of the Funk!”
ALL THE WAY THIS. ALL THE WAY THAT.
Pre-order; https://www.color-red.co/product-page/all-the-way-this-all-the-way-that-freekbass-preorder
