Freelance Whales reveal second GLS single

Almost a week after releasing a video for "Enzymes", Freelance Whales' first single for Green Label Sound, the spunky quintet offers up a brand new song called "Day Off". Unlike their much darker sounding first single, "Day Off" is brighter and far more upbeat and yet still features the more nuanced sound developed since their album. And yet the dreamy aspects that made their album great are still there enhanced by a renewed clarity of ideas. The track, influenced by their experience as a touring band, is about "wanting to come home and reclaim your own possessions" according to lead singer Judah Dadone. Enjoy "Day Off" from Freelance Whales and if you like it, it's available for free download.

Freelance Whales reveal video for "Enzymes"

Months ago when Freelance Whales released "Enzymes" for Green Label Sound, they promised a video was soon to follow. Well today, the band made good on their promise. The video co-directed by Chunwoo Kae and Ryan Demler of Neue Films, follows in the footsteps of their video for "Hannah" with mangled faces, scenes of the band performing, and some artsy exploding flowers among other things. Enjoy the video for "Enzymes":

Freelance Whales release new track "Enzymes"

Queens indie pop quintet Freelance Whales recently released new track "Enzymes" for Green Label Sound. The track features heavier drums than anything Weathervanes listeners would have been exposed to and has these overlapping intertwining vocals while still using their typical build-up formula. Each instrument is clear and fits together to create this rather dark sounding contemplative gem. Give "Enzymes" a listen here.

Watch: Freelance Whales - "Hannah"

Only a couple months ago, Freelance Whales released their debut album Weathervanes, and a video for "Generator ^ 2nd Floor" was quick to follow. Now, the band is releasing a brand new video for "Hannah". In it, the band plays some sort of futuristic arcade game/musical composite of all their instruments while a ghostly faceless girl had a spooky encounter with a little boy. The girl remains elusive throughout while both motivating the boy to follow while also creepily stalking him. At the end, you find out the purpose of the the wacky multi-faceted machine was to enable the two to meet. The video is artsy, awesome, and even a little sweet. Enjoy the video for "Hannah":

Freelance Whales - Weathervanes (2010)

Queens natives Freelance Whales released their debut album Weathervanes and it's nothing short of exquisitive. Each track slowly unfurls like the start of nice spring day blending seemless together while still maintaining their standalone quality. Lead track "Generator ^ 1st Floor" provides the first taste of what you can expect from the rest of the album. Evolving at a not-too slow pace, each instrument makes its presence known one after another, layered with tender love and care. The song gets halfway through before Judah Dadone vocals float over the dreamy haze to deliver the first definitive lyrics. "Hannah" shows off some of Dadone's songwriting prowess with him somehow slipping in the lyric "Please don't call me a playerhater" that'll have you marveling at how it fits there without drawing more attention to itself, distracting you from the rest of the song and is delivered in all seriousness. Clap-happy "Kilojoules" mixes love with chemistry and contains one of my favorite lyrics of the album: "I've arranged for your phobias to be performed by a string quartet". I have no idea what it means but it's delightfully poetic and the song is quite catchy. I could sit here and break down every song on the album for you but it's simply not necessary. The album function marvelously as whole and several of the songs are catchy enough to be popular in their own right.

Freelance Whales are true artists painting hypnotic musical trapestries with banjo, guitar, bass, drums, synthesizer, glockenspiel, and whatever else they can probably get their hands on. Fans of well-crafted indie masterpieces shouldn't hesistate to add Weathervanes to their collections. It just might be the best decision you make all day.

Watch - Freelance Whales - "Generator 2nd Floor"

With an appearance at SXSW and an upcoming slot at Lollapalooza, it's pretty needless to say that Queens based Freelance Whales is an up and coming band to watch. About to release their debut album Weathervanes on April 13th, the band has recently uploaded their debut video on Myspace for the track "Generator Second Floor".

The video features the band members walking across a snowy wasteland dressed in Mexican skeleton masks, ponchos, and sombreros led by their lead singer/banjoist. The band encounters a girl lying on a blanket in a snowfree foresty area and awaken her by tying electical chords around her limbs and playing and in return she gives them a basket of apples and they proceed across the frozen landscape burying them in the snow followed by them turning into apple trees. It's very Johnny Appleseed meets Frankstein.

Watch it here:

Freelance Whales - Generator 2nd Floor

Freelance Whales | MySpace Music Videos

Pitstop: Freelance Whales

Meet Freelance Whales. The Queens five-piece crafts dreamy, sentimental pop rock with an interesting array of instruments like banjo, harmonium, glockspiel, and waterphone in addition to guitars, synths, and drums. Their songs are multi-layered, enchanting, and deeply evocative works. The band is a testament to the merits of when the musicians truly works as a cohesive unit weaving entrancing masterpieces that'll have you hanging on the edge of your seat. Freelance Whales' debut album, Weathervanes, is out April 13th and if the few songs I've heard are anything to go off, the album is bound to be a hit. Boldly individual, arresting, and brimming with raw barely subdued emotion. The band is one of the tons of bands playing at SXSW, one of the biggest music festivals, and is sure to amuse and delight those lucky enough to stumble upon their shows. Following the stop in Austin, the band is going on a US tour to promote their upcming album and if you have an opportunity to see them live, I'd certainly take it.

For those not lucky enough or in need of more convincing, see what the band sounds like live here:

Freelance Whales: Generator^Second Floor (Grand Street Studio Recording) from Ryan Mack on Vimeo.