The Freeways was formed by songwriting team Frank E. Butkus and Karen Zanes in 2005. Multi-instrumentalist, Mike Swidrak, entered the picture as the wild card; providing a three-point balance of ideas and focus. Their current setlist of garage psych pop emanates dreamy melodies and sweet harmonies laid over hypnotic, jangling riffs. Karen Zanes is a graduate of Emerson College. As a child she played both the clarinet and the guitar but abandoned music to focus on a career in the visual arts. After knowing Frank for a number of years he suggested they start a band together. It was then that her latent ability for singing and songwriting became apparent and her true passion for performing was discovered. For Karen, melodies and lyrics often spring to life from a state of semi-consciousness. She formerly sang backing vocals and played percussion in the ill-fated psychedelic outfit the Bullitts. Mike Swidrak's (Sweet Track) profound love of the stringed instrument dates back to the second grade. He took cello lessons in an attempt to spark healthy sibling competition with his sister, who played the violin. He subsequently received a guitar for chanukah/christmas in middle school and bought an electric bass in high school. Combined with his training in lcd projection in college, Mike was ready for a slot as "the bass player" in a local band. His audio-visual skills would land him in the same office as Frank, and the rest was inevitable. For Frankie Butkus (Desolation Bells), songs arrive in dreams, and he sends them back to the universe through the Freeways. Live shows are an avenue to follow songs to new places. He records endlessly and tries to simultaneously capture everything he sees in life onto film.
~ Band Members ~
Karen Zanes: Voice, Perc, some Guitar, Frank E. Butkus Jr: Guit, Keys, Bk vocals, Mike Swidrak: Bass, Guitar, Keys, Bk vocals, Doug Carson: Drums
~ Influences ~
Beatles, Stones, Velvet Underground, Bowie, Stooges, Sex Pistols, Ramones, X, Joy Division, New Order, Sonic Youth, Eno, Roxy Music, Modern Lovers, Yo La Tengo, Morphine, The Warlocks, Black Angels, BJM, The Raveonettes, Chopin, Chambers Bros, Motown, Black Lips, Dirtbombs, Lyres, Real Kids, Lemon Pipers, Neil Young, Guided by Voices, Psychedelic Furs
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