South Farwell
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South Farwell

Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States
Band Rock Singer/Songwriter

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This band has not uploaded any videos

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"LISTEN: South Farwell"

http://volumeone.org/magazine/articles/646/LISTEN_South_Farwell.html

June 25, 2009 Issue
LISTEN: South Farwell
local jammers embark on a recording adventure
words by Ian Jacoby

South Farwell is a band almost too earnest for its own good. “Just make me sound witty and charming,” laughs lead singer, Bill Boles over the phone. It comes at the end of an interview that has seen Boles dish out plenty of both aforementioned qualities, but perhaps even more pervasive than wit or charm is the feeling of earnestness that Boles emanates. He believes in his band, he believes in his songs, and (most refreshingly) he believes in the pure and simple beauty of a life restarted.

Boles is perhaps best known as an integral cog in the local “porch-rock” band Easychair. Boles joined the group in 2001 at the tender age of 21, and continued until they started to wave in 2007. The years since the band broke up have seen Boles grow as a singer-songwriter, opening up for local acts at venues across the Chippewa Valley. As Boles says, South Farwell was a natural progression from where he was as a songwriter.

“With Easychair it was a great guitar-driven rock sound, but as I’ve gotten older I’ve found that I’m much more into people like Patty Griffin and Ray Lamontagne. Really personal singer/songwriters.”

The result is the beautiful Tear Everything Down, coming out July 10. Boles, along with Tim Coughlin, Phil Juodis, and Cory Dahl evoke the spirit of early Springsteen, Ray Lamontagne, and even local favorites DeYarmond Edison.

“It’s weird,” says Dahl. “We originally started three years ago, then had to stop (for various reasons) ... we restarted last year with some of the same material, but completely revised it.”

The new direction saw the influence of local producer Mike Vlahakis. “He brought a more polished sound to what we do; we always envisioned having (different instruments) on the album, but Mike really brought them to life,” says Dahl.

And it is true. Tear Everything Down is awash in chops of B3 organ, in shimmering horn lines, and in plenty of rollicking piano, but the biggest asset to the band is still its pure and simple earnestness. Dahls’ drums thump with a weight that works its way into your very bones, Coughlin and Juodis lay down severely solid sonic foundations, and on top of all of this is Boles’ voice, ringing and clear. It’s deceptively simple, and beautifully executed.

It may be simplistic to think that a band can change your worldview, that something as trivial as music can change the very foundation of the world we live in. But just maybe, there is something to the idea that music can transcend the fear that exists in perpetuity in these United States. If that is the case, South Farwell may stand for something that exists beyond danceabillity or hipness. South Farwell may, in fact, stand for hope.

South Farwell CD Release Show (with Excellent Adventure + Jim Pullman Band) • Friday, July 10 • House of Rock, 422 Water St., Eau Claire • 10pm • FREE • ages 21+ • www.house-of-rock.com
- Volume One Magazine


"Chippewa Valley Best New Band 2009 V1 Readers Poll"

BEST NEW BAND
1st Place: South Farwell
2nd Place: New North String Band
3rd Place: Duncan Ninja

If the one ring to rule them all was forged in Mt. Doom, then South Farwell must have been forged by local rock gods somewhere near Mt. Simon. That is to say that the local supergroup comprised of Tim Coughlin, Phil Joadis, Cory Dahl, and Bill Boles (former members of Easychair, Half Life, or Mojo Lemon) is the new band to rule them all and they’ve been turning heads since the release of their debut album in July. In New North String Band’s first year they’ve already gained regional notoriety as one of the best bluegrass bands in the Midwest, getting invited to all kinds of festivals and jamborees and hootenannies, and are definitely one of the best dressed five-piece bands to release an album in May. And that’s saying a lot. Playing nearly every weekend at some venue or another, Duncan Ninja is picking up speed with their pulsing funk melodies vocalized by Adrian Klenz (Eau Claire Blues All-Stars) and drummed by Dave Power (Meridene). – Trevor Kupfer
- Volume One


Discography

"Tear Everything Down" : Release 7-10-2009

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Bio

With ideas for another album already in the works before the release of their first album, its unfortunate this project has taken a couple of years to really hit the ground running like it is now...

Success of the former project, Easychair (that well-received country-rock collaboration touring the Midwest from 2001-2006), has led this group to where it is today, as 2 of the original members of this band remain - including the gravely vocals of the lead singer, Boles & the solid bass work of Juodis.

With the expiration of EasyChair, Boles, at the base of a new project fastened himself to current members Coughlin (Guitar) & Dahl (Drums) upon realizing not only their incredibly versatile, yet smooth ability, but their passion for the art of music as well.

These four members who remain situationally focused on the success of their first album have created the type of fluidity as a band that can turn a short afternoon into a polished set. South Farwell will compose an evening of songs ranging from moody to funky, all wound up to create a refined 'super-cool' vibe like that of the band's influences. Their sound is just purely music, and the years of experience on top of their extensive natural talent shows exactly that.