We make music.  We make art.  We do what we do.  If we make an impact- love it or hate it- we’ve done our job.

That’s what Lang Freeman wants you to know about Austin-based alternative rockers Sounds Under Radio. Think you may have heard of them?  That’s because they aren’t new.

In 2007, Sounds Under Radio found themselves as the only unsigned band on the Spiderman 3 soundtrack with Portrait of a Summer Thief: a mainstream-sounding anthem that caught the attention of Sony/Epic, if only for a short time.  Ever a hard-working group of guys,  they signed a deal under a philosophy of indie-do-it-yourself freedom, only to find themselves shelved by label politics.  They quickly bought back the rights to their album, Cinematica, which was released in October, 2008.

Using Cinematica as a womb where bandmates Lang Freeman (vocals, guitar), Bradley Oliver (bass, keyboard), Doug Wilson (guitar), and Sonny Sanchez (drums) could develop their sound and identity as a band, they bred an album rich with poetic, abstract lyrics and smart melodies.

Nobodysomeone opens the album with Freeman’s soaring vocals contrasting against the simplistic rage of the lyrics: I know about the things you said/but hold on to this and bring back the love/I should have known way down.  It closes with a quiet solemnity which builds into a passionate explosion of music that envelopes the listener and causes his heart to share the rhythm of the song in Perfect Machine.  Sounds Under Radio’s live performances only seem to eclipse the brilliance of the debut effort.

Often drawing from fringe artists such as Bjork and Spinnerette, as well as mainstream, well-known musicians such as Radiohead or Coldplay, it isn’t all too surprising to find Sounds Under Radio labeled as “emo,” and that’s not something from which they hide.  Heavy doses of emotion drive their creative process and when their not yet titled sophomore album releases in February 2010, Freeman says that we can expect a darker, angrier, and heavier Sounds Under Radio, where beautiful melodies will collide violently with bigger, more grandiose strokes of that emotion.

Sounds Under Radio will be returning to the stage after some much-needed time off on September 25 in San Antonio.  Later in 2009, be on the look out for early releases from their new album.  Until then, you can find their music in any of the usual places: iTunes, eMusic, Amazon, etc.

Music Video for Sell Out from Cinematica

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