Music

Free For Good EP   Year: 1999 | Run Time: 31:00

©1998 Meat Market Records / A Startled Chameleon. Produced by Bill Mallonee, David Pick and Jonathan Mark. All songs written by Bill Mallonee © cybrenjojosh BMI.

Track List

    1. Cloth of Life [3:30]
    2. In the Box [3:42]
    3. When You're Blinded by the Light [4:49] YouTube
    4. Go and Ask Her [4:26]
    5. Where My Seed Might Find Purchase [5:16]
    6. She Walks on Roses [3:40]
    7. Back To Its Source [3:23]
    8. She Walks on Roses [3:40]

    About Free For Good EP

    Released in July of 1999, 'Cross the Big Pond is the result of four productive days in the UK in late 1998, and it proves that the band continues to move forward regardless of the instablity of its surrounding superstructure and that the artistic success of larger, more polished albums like Audible Sigh has not made the band reluctant to release small, off-the-cuff projects. During a lull in their European tour schedule, they managed to get some studio time, learn some of Bill's newest songs, and record these seven raw tracks that feel like glimpses into VOL's creative process. Pieces of some of these songs-in-progress were reworked for Audible Sigh which was recorded a few months later, but this disk is remarkably clean and the songs engaging, even though some of them are first and second takes—or maybe because they are. The band is as tight as ever. This is a UK release. A slightly different US release of this EP is available under the title "'Cross The Big Pond," which has brown for the background color of the cover art, rather than white.

    Did you know?

    This EP was recorded at the Free For Good studios. The UK version was named after the studio (JJ's idea... not the band's). VoL went to the UK for a tour in August of 1998 and two of the shows were cancelled. So they set up camp in the upstairs loft apartment above the studio and began recording a few songs. Scott Klopfenstein was not with them as his wife fell ill, so Bill ended up playing drums on most of the tracks. They learned seven or eight songs over the course of three days. The US/UK versions only vary in their bonus track. The UK version ends with a faded out version of "She Walks on Roses," while the US version ends with "On To Bethlehem."

    Quotes from Bill Mallonee

    DATE UNKNOWN: We had four days off and John had a friend north of London who was willing to let us lay down some songs. I had been writing these kind of reflective songs like "Blinded By The Light," coming out of the "cutting bait with the superstructure" that we had just been shown the door from. A lot of the songs were a way of putting some perspective on what was going on within me personally. We just went in and knocked out about nine songs in four days. There was a day for mixing but we weren't there for that. I was basically teaching the songs to the band. I ended up playing drums on the record. Our drummer, Scott's, wife had come over to the UK but was sick in the hospital for a few days while we were recording so I got a chance to dust off my drum sticks and play.

    DATE UNKNOWN: It was really just a way to kill time more than anything else. Like I said, I was showing Jake and Kenny the songs for the first time. They were sort of sitting there on the couch listening while I'd go in and do accoustic guitar and drums and a scratch vocal and then they would work around it. They basically did their parts in like a day. I did my parts in two days and we ended up getting six or seven songs that we really liked.

    DATE UNKNOWN: The studio that we recorded in was a studio called Free For Good. John Mark wanted to call the record Free For Good and we didn't care for the title but the artwork wasn't able to be changed in time [for the UK version].

    May 12, 1999: We did it in four days. We had some time off, and we just threw it in the studio. I played drums. It feels very much like Killing Floor—swings a lot with mostly acoustic tracks. Definitely a cut above demo versions.

    Credits

    Bill Mallonee: Guitar, Vocals

    Kenny Hutson: Guitar, Mandolin

    Jacob Bradley: Bass

    Mike Simpson: Drums

    David Pick: Organ

    Produced by Bill Mallonee, David Pick and Jonathan Mark. All songs written by Bill Mallonee. All arrangements by VoL. All instruments by VoL except "roses" - drums/percussion by Mike Simpson, "seed" - organ arranged and played by David Pick. Recorded and mastered at David Picks' FFG Studios, Gloucestershire. Design and layout by Monty at The Happy House. Concept and photography by Jonathan Mark for A Startled Chameleon.

    Liner Notes

    With a few days to kill just into the UK tour, ffg played host to the Vigilantes of Love for a few days, and this was the result. Hidden away in Dave's converted barn near to the Cotswolds, VoL collectively breathed life into a few pages of Bill's songbook—a constant companion on the road. Rough & ready, often making it up as they went along, it was exciting to watch it all unfold before my eyes (and ears !!).

    Circumstances at the time of writing have meant that most of what happened in those 5 days will see the light, and deservedly so. It's been 9 months since then, with a few anxious moments (some will want to draw a parallel here—but I remain blissfully ignorant of what that parallel could be). Some of the songs have since grown up and will appear on a future recording (I'm sure you know which one), but I believe they all stand up here in their own right on this record. Hope you enjoy this as much as I have...

    ...and you find your dreams awakening. -JJ

    Our friend Jonathan ("JJ") Mark asked me to write some liner notes for this little collection of songs. We recorded these in England, summer of 1998 during a short break in the middle of a pub tour of Britain, Scotland, and Ireland.

    All this occurred after a long hard year of "band crammed in a van" touring of the U.S. in support of first indie record in 5 year "to the roof of the sky," having run a fowl of major label's corporate bottom lines and general incompetences. I suppose we gave each other a lot of "pep" talks in those days—a grassroots effort to reach a noble and supportive fan base (but very geographically spread out) without radio, print or audio media, and no formal distribution was the task before us—a daunting one, as it is for any band—it becomes usually, an exercise in survival which is fought on many fronts, emotional, physical and spiritual.

    We'd played a few festivals in Europe in previous years, but were never able to do a more extended set of dates. JJ got his feet more than wet (and his carpet more than sullied) as he took it upon himself to introduce the band to the U.K. He coordinated a great number of variables on our behalf and we are grateful. general booking and windows gave us about 4 days of nothing to do. Since our beer/fish and chips allowance was running a bit on the short side, JJ suggested we put some tracks down at a friend's farmhouse studio, north of Cheltenham. So in a picturesque, rural English countryside I taught Jake and Kenny some new tunes. On the first 2 days I laid down scratch guitars, drums and vocals; then I re-did the acoustics. Kenny and Jake dropped in bass, mandolins, and some guitar parts on day 3 and i did vocals and percussion on day 4—almost all of it is first takes but, at least on these 7, (I think we recorded 9 in all) there is some spirit there. We had no real plans to release any of it until we heard some mixes about 6 months later—and then suddenly the fun and relaxed atmosphere of it all flooded back in on us. Let's just say it has its moments.

    So (after some debate) we decided to let it fly. Our return to the States in September of '98 was heralded by the opportunity to make yet another record, this time with our dear friend and hero Buddy Miller. (At the writing of this we are currently seeking a label to release it—the company that signed us and recorded it having hit the rocks shortly after we finished the record). It's funny how certain themes reoccur in our lives. We hope you enjoy this little vacation here.

    - Bill

     

     

     

     

     

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