SANFRED's Escape

When it comes to music, every individual has their own journey and their own story. Some are raised by musician parents; some begin learning music from a young age. But for some, like SANFRED, his drive to become a musician didn’t begin until he was a teenager. “I was 15 when I picked up the guitar and started to play it for the first time.” SANFRED had always loved listening to music, but it wasn’t until he heard Blink 182’s self-titled album that he became inspired to pick up a guitar and start learning. He began to play the guitar in punk and metal bands. Within the last two years, he decided to venture into the solo acoustic space, playing both guitar and signing his original content.

Songwriting

Song writing was something that always appealed to SANFRED, long before he was ever playing and writing his own music. “For as long as I can remember, I have written down my thoughts and jotted down little poems. In 2016, I decided to try my hand at writing my own tunes,” he says. Like with most creatives, SANFRED gets inspiration from real-life. “I tend to write from the heart based on things happening in my life at the time which makes my songs quite personal”.

When it comes to writing songs, he generally will start with the basic guitar riff, chord progression or a melody line. Often, he will have some rough lyrics written so he can get a feel for what the song might sound like. He will then write the lyrics and fit it into the melody line. “I might record a demo on my phone so I can play it back and tweak things,” SANFRED says. Sometimes, the songs are written within a short time span of a few days. “Other times, songs take months before they evolve into something that feels right,” he says.

SANFRED has progressively introduced his music to audiences by performing a series of original gigs. While a lot of musicians can struggle to play original shows, having to settle for cover gigs instead, SANFRED has been fortunate enough to play his original material. He gigs up and down the east coast, performing at a variety of venues.

SANFRED records his debut album

This year, SANFRED released his first album My Escape which was written during 2017 and 2018. He had previously released a self-titled EP. “I decided to quit my fulltime job to record and play as much music as I could,” he says. He flew to the UK in September 2018 and spent 6 weeks at Song Mason Studio in Leeds with the producer of the album Ben Matravas. “This album is very much my story over the last few years and it’s the most personal music I’ve done”.

Recording the album was one of the best experiences of his life. “Ben let me live in his studio while he worked on the album, 5 days a week,” SANFRED says. He took a large amount of demo songs and ideas over to the U.K with him. He and Ben went through a process of elimination to choose the songs that would be recorded and featured on the album. “We chose songs we both vibed on. It was such a smooth process and I even wrote an extra two songs while I was over there. I was lucky enough to meet some amazing artists while I was in the UK and even played a handful of shows”.

Thoughts on the album

My Escape is a rhythmic, guitar-driven 10 track album where SANFRED wears his heart on his sleeve. There are songs about love, break-ups, struggles in life and things that have inspired him along the way.  He draws inspiration from artists such as The Beatles, Ed Sheeran and James Bay with both his sound and style.

The lead single off the album Cloud, released in June, was a sample of what we could expect from the album. The acoustic riff at the beginning draws the listener in, giving them a chance to sit back and enjoy the music presented to them. SANFRES's gravely voice cuts through above the acoustic instruments, something which is heard throughout the album. The personal lyrics tell a story of SANFRED's independence and making things up as he goes along as if he were living on a cloud.

Other stand-out tracks on the album that are well worth listening to are Shake Again, Wasting Away and My Escape which all showcase SANFRED’s talent as a songwriter, guitarist and performer.

Future Plans

For the rest of 2019 and during 2020, Sandy hopes to continue writing and get back in the studio to record some new material. He also has some shows booked along with an exciting new project. On January 4^th next year, he will play an original show at Central Coast Leagues Club.

My Escape by SANFRED is available now to purchase and stream.

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