ABOUT
Farewell Friend’s music is first and foremost an exploration of poetry, narrative, and storytelling. Their sound is a delicate avalanche of sonic texture - a presentation of recognizable and distorted folk and Americana forms. Farewell Friend is a folk rock band based in Greensboro, North Carolina and is made up of frontman Tom Troyer (guitar, vocals, songwriter, engineer), Mark Byerly (electric guitar, resonator, pedal steel, drums), Evan Campfield (upright bass).
Their latest album "[SAMSON]" is an autobiographical exploration of Troyer's childhood growing up as the son of a small town preacher in rural Indiana, feelings of being an outsider in the South, and the lonely disappointments of his twenties. Examining the political moment of the last 5 years by deploying the stories of Old Testament tragic heroes and the fragmented American masculine identity. The album is cathartic shadow work explored through up front vocals and acoustic instruments while introducing raw electric textures, modern synth, and minimal percussion. If the Samson of the Old Testament is a cautionary tale, this album is a knowing nod at the hazard lights and an echo of the fog horn before the hurricane.
The release of their sophomore album in the Summer of 2019 "Glenwood and Gomorrah," Troyer established himself as producer and audio engineer mixing and mastering the entire album in a small bedroom in his former home in the Glenwood neighborhood. This album is both a question and a prayer for the neighborhood he grew up in, cataloging his personal relationships with neighbors during a time of swift gentrification.
The three part conceptual debut album "Lineage" traverses the generational story of a family whose history is wrought with struggle, challenge, success, and tragedy. The musical territory covered in this project is diverse as an extended family reunion and divergent as the American landscape.
PRESS
This week, hosts Courtney Lynn & Quinn welcome the front man of the band Farewell Friend, Tom Troyer. He shares about playing flute and trumpet as a kid, how is early writing was influenced by the King James Bible, his wide range of skills as a songwriter, producer and instrumentalist. He also break down the inspiration & creation behind his band's song, "Birds in Flight."
Album Premiere W/Interview: Farewell Friend “Samson”
This album is some unquestionably quality songwriting, sometimes with an easy country groove, and sometimes with darker folk and even punk style inflections. “Chasing the Glow” is a little bit eclectic folk and a little bit groovy and “Birds in Flight” is a country folk number. “Dying at the Hands of Love” is shines a light on the cruel banalities of being just a number in society. Taken all together, the album is at the heart of contemporary Americana music. [READ MORE]
"Farewell Friend is not a group to overlook, their work is absolutely stunning and evokes elements of love, despair, religion, comfort and creativity. Father & Son brings to life some of the best parts of North Carolina, this group is a product of true grassroots talent."
-Reviewed by local Greensboro writer Rebecca Harrelson
Farewell Friend's Samson: A Welcome Howl
Some music fans, when they imagine Samson, might see a Biblical strongman with long hair who, in both the Bible and a legendary blues song by the Reverend Gary Davis, was bedeviled by a temptress named Delilah. But in their gorgeous new album, Samson, Farewell Friend invites listeners into a new vision of this myth. Rather than lean on the misogynistic tropes that have so often translated Samson’s story into popular culture, singer-songwriter Tom Troyer reimagines the tale of the boy who became the man that defeated “the Philistines,” a derogatory term people often deploy to describe the anti-intellectual or those without taste. Troyer is himself an anti-Philistine insofar as he pushes his audience to tear down the walls of contemporary music, poetry, and storytelling. [READ MORE]
With so many ways to communicate at our disposal, we must not forget the transformative power of a live music experience and genuine human exchange. — Jon Batiste
Now that live musical performances are returning to the Gate City in a big way, we could almost rename this town Gig City. Not only can you catch live music at the usual suspects — Flat Iron, Oden Brewing Company, White Oak Amphitheatre and The Blind Tiger — but also at Center City Park and LeBauer Park, both of which hosted amazing local performers all summer.
BOOKING/MANAGEMENT
Laura Jane Vincent- ljvmusic@gmail.com