"THE FREEZE are a band who,quite simply,deserve your attention.They are David Clancy (guitar),Keith Grant (bass),Graeme Radin (drums),Gordon Sharp (vocals) and,added recently,Tony Wallis (guitar,saxophone and clarinet).
Coming from Linlithgow near Edinburgh,they've worked very hard for the last two years,gigging constantly around Scotland.During this time they've supported a wide range of acts,from Sham 69 to Echo and the Bunnymen,and have progressed from being fairly ordinary to perhaps the most impostant band in Scotland today.They currently possess a set packed with numbers which grab your attention and don't let go.The main indication of their strength is the fact that their best songs are so diverse,making them extremely difficult to categorise and impossible to associate with any of the current muisc-paper invented fads.Unfortunately,this had repercussions,namely very little coverage in the music press.
They've released two singles,the "In Colour" EP of last year and the recent "Celebration" both on their own A1 label.
Although these singles are both excellent,most of their best songs are as yet unrecorded-the new "Perfect Call" with its speedy,hypnotic riff (it would make a great single),the disciplined power of "Lullaby in Black",the rampaging "Closed Circuit" and a great version of Eno's "Baby's on Fire".
The first topic discussed when I spoke to Gordon and Graeme recently was "Celebration".
Gordon:"It's about a silent film star called Louise Brooks who had her peak period from 1927-1929.She was supposed to be an excellent actress,she probably surpassed Dietrich and Garbo,she got some good parts in films but the trouble was that she wouldn't toe the line with the directors and producers and therefore her talent was spoiled by the fact that eventually they'd begin to lose interest in her because she wouldn't do what they told her.She wanted to do her own thing,that's really the basis of her story.
An unusual subject for a song as I am sure you'll agree.The other side of the single is "Crossover",a quiet,delicate piece which seems to be more of an atmosphere than anything else.Gordon agrees.
"It is meant to be very atmospheric,"Crossover" is very much about mood music,it's not really meant to be a definite song,it's a piece of music with vocals on it,in fact at one point,I would have preferred there had been no vocals on it".
This is not to say that the lyrics are meaningless.Apparently they are based around the idea of reincarnation.We talk about how sound is better on "Celebration" than it was on "In Colour",the band seem to view work in the studio as a process of trial and error.How happy are they with "Celebration" compared to the first single?
Gordon:"Much happier than the first one,not 100% obviously,when you get to the stage of being 100% what have you got to work for?I'll never be happy with our sound".
Next up is the question of success,something that The Freeze haven't found easy to locate,although as Gordon says they have been succesful in their own way in that they've pleased a lot of people and sold 3 or 4,000 copies of "In Colour".
I wonder to what extent they desire commercial success?
Gordon:"I'm not really sure if I want to get the same success as The Police,to name a band.I'm not sure if I really want that because every single they release sounds exactly the same.They started off as a good band and they're still a good band but they don't do much..."
Unfortunately,there is one major hurdle to be overcome before The Freeze can ever be commercially succesful.The fact is that most people have never heard their music.Their singles have not exactly exploded onto the Radio 1 playlist and they've had little or no advertising.This leaves the alternative of live gigs which is virtually impossible outside Scotland.
Gordon:"We'd love to go to London to do gigs,to try to break through there but it's very difficult getting in there,it's a vicious circle.The promoters say "we like your records,come down and we'll see you" and we can't get down till they book us and they won't book us until they've seen us,so we're stuck.You've got to know somebody,it's who you know that counts".
One controversial aspect of The Freeze is Gordon's image.It has always been very direct and has led many people to mistake his confidence on stage for arrogance and big headeness and subsequently to dislike the band.Gordon sees his image as being quite natural.
"My image is really feminine at the moment.When I say "at the moment" I don't mean that's just a phase I'm going through but I'm doing that just now.I've been doing that for a long time,I even did that two years ago although it wasn't as outward as it is now.The image is just an extension of what I am as a person.It's not even an image.It's just me.It's not contrived,just what I feel like".
In the future,The Freeze just want to continue making music that they themselves like and that makes people think.They are not a "political" band,their songs do not contain banal slogans.On the other hand,they are not a disposable pop band.If there is an overall message it is don't sell yourself and remain an individual.They are not against compromise,they will listen to suggestions but will not follow orders from anyone.
I suggest that you listen to The Freeze soon.It would be a tragedy if a band this good was ignored.
Zig Zag magazine,September 1980
Article by Andy Crabb,pic by Hilary Kerr
