Over the course of his career, Tom Freund has created a wide variety of albums.
His first was a collaboration with Ben Harper and his last was a double disc live album.
In between, he’s made full lengths, EPs, a children’s CD and a Christmas album — but he’s never made an album like 2 Moons.
This self-produced disc, due out June 17 on Surf Road Records, finds the Los Angeles-based Freund in a contemplative yet confident mood, where swirls of nostalgia blend with sharp-eyed views of life today.
The album features guests such as Brett Dennen, Serena Ryder, Arthur Fonzarelli and Barbarella.
Freund delivers this CD’s main message in the track “Let Me Be Who I Wanna Be,” in which he declares: “I’m basically hooked on this life/it’s got a lot of problems/but it treats me real right/and you don’t have to agree with me/but let me fly my freak flag.”
2 Moons cover artwork:
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“Let Me Be” represents a different type of song for Freund. “I’d rather just be honest and say ‘take me as a I am’,” he reveals, adding, “I felt that I didn’t have to dress up songs with clever couplets all the time.”
This more emotionally raw and vulnerable songwriting surfaces throughout the album. The opening track “Angel Eyes,” which serves as Freund’s take on Randy Newman’s “I Love L.A.” motif, expresses his appreciation to his Southern California friends for always having his back.
Freund proudly notes that “Sugar Pie,” the sweet-sounding album closer, “doesn’t have one sarcastic line in the whole song.” Played simply and sung sincerely, it’s his most heartfelt love song, even though it concerns a relationship that has come to an end.
Freund funded 2 Moons through a successful Pledge Music campaign. Although admitting to having some trepidations about going the crowd-sourcing route, Freund wound up a believer. “I’m very endeared by the Pledge experience,” he confesses. “It showed me that people wanted to engage in it. That was moving for me and got me excited.”
Besides doing his traditional touring, including summer European festival appearances and shows in the States, he will be doing some special house concerts as part of this Pledge Music campaign.
Fans’ reactions resonate strongly with Freund: he feels that a job of a songwriter to help others access what they are feeling. “A real joy is when people come and tell me that a song or an album got them through something,” he says.
Acoustic Nation is written by Laura B. Whitmore, a music industry marketing veteran, music journalist and editor, who has contributed to Parade.com, Guitar World, and others. She has interviewed hundreds of musicians and hosts the She Rocks Podcast. As the founder of the Women’s International Music Network, she advocates for women in the music industry and produces the annual She Rocks Awards. She is the Senior Vice President of Marketing for Positive Grid, making the world safe for guitar exploration everywhere! A guitarist and singer/songwriter, Laura is currently co-writing an album of pop songs that empower and energize girls.
