Today we’d like to introduce you to Phil Thomas.
Hi Phil, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My name is Phil and I’m the lead singer of Fair Weather Freedom. Like my band members, I’ve been playing music nearly my entire life. I didn’t start performing in front of people until 2020, which is when I met my lead guitarist, Donny Sill.
Donny is better known as Dedbugz because of his profession as an exterminator, though I call him Donny Skillz because I’ve never seen him pick up an instrument he didn’t shred on. We bonded over the Beatles, Eagles, and John Mayer while playing the Abbey Road open mic in Cary shortly before COVID hit.
Once the world started returning to normal, Donny and I set off to find a rhythm section to complete our band.
While hanging out at Bond Brothers Eastside we found our drummer, Skylar Buttecali. Skylar was hungry, and outgoing, and introduced us to our Bassist Matt Holt; a classically trained Cellist and teacher at Durham School of the Arts.
From then on, we started writing songs and booking gigs with our shared vision for the band. To date, FWF has ten original songs and will have a live EP outfall of 2022.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Our greatest struggles have been with a few members going in and out of the band.
Finding a new band member is similar to looking for a girlfriend: You could have a ton of fun doing certain things, and playing music in this scenario, but the hard part is finding one you can spend time with and get along with for years to come.
We aspire to be a fixture in the local scene and tour around the state playing our music, and we haven’t let a few setbacks stop that.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Fair Weather Freedom is known for its variety in the rock space. We blend pure classic rock with pop punk, groove rock, and soul to create our unique yet revivalist sound.
Songs such as Kazoo Song, Take it All, and Forgiveness exemplify the way we take the tones and timbres of artists that came before us to build our own new niche.
How do you define success?
Success for us revolves around our experiences. We aren’t wholly driven by money and are much more interested in becoming the best musicians we can be.
The best way to do that is to play as many shows as possible, and we intend to do so while still holding stable day jobs. Being a touring full-time musician is many people’s dream, but if we can scratch that itch without needing to worry about putting food on the table we’d love that.
It’s really about having a band that’s viable enough to allow us all to be as creative and expressive as possible.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @Fairweatherfreedom
Image Credits
Roth Gray
