Thrown To The Wolves

An off-the-beaten-path Concord restaurant and taproom is doing all it can to keep original music alive in New Hampshire. Area 23 was among the first venues in the state to revive live entertainment when the lockdown was lifted last spring. Owner Kirk McNeil continues in these cold months, lately offering Saturday night “swap sets” that hive two local artists an opportunity to showcase their talents.



“We all have something to say about out experiences in the world; we’ve all been touched be a certain song or songs in our lives,” McNeil said recently, when asked to explain his commitment to the regional music scene. “Supporting local music helps those fresh voices and experiences come into the world and reach more ears.”



Many of the acts appearing at Area 23 began at the midweek open mic, including Littleton-based Thrown To The Wolves, which will celebrate it’s first full length CD with a release part on Feb. 26. The rootsy duo consists of Higher Frequency - who answers to Freak while declining to reveal his birth name - and fiddler JD Nadeau.



Freak is an amalgamation of a high-country Tom Waits and the illustrated Man. Ink covers much of his body and all of his face. The habit began as a fascination with his father’s tattoos, and eventually he became an artist. He said in a recent phone interview the he first thought of facial tattooing as a seven-year-old.



“Doing it for the first time was revelatory,” he said. “I wasn’t really comfortable with me until I started… When I first looked in my mirror after I had my first session on my face, I said ‘Ohm there you are!’”



Musically, Freak’s moaning, growling songs are filled with images of hellhounds, fire and fury; mostly, his unbridled singing is about rejecting all of that.



“I don’t need to believe one way or another to be a good human being,” he said.



“Just love your fellow man and cherish your own soul,” sings the minister’s son on the lead track to the forthcoming Right Side Of Wrong, Wrong Side Of Good. “I don’t need your Heaven, and I sure don’t need your Hell - to be a better man, I just found myself.”



Freak is self-taught; he picked up the guitar a few years back.



“As soon as I could put three chords together I wrote my first song,” he said.



The woman he wrote it for was not as enamored of his foray into music.



“The more I wrote, the more she hated it, and the more in love with it I became,” he said.



Nadeau’s galloping fiddle adds a wealth of spice to their tunes; it’s hard to think of them without the texture he provides. When they met at an open mic in Newport Center, Vermont a couple of years back, Freak thought he only played guitar. They did a dozen songs together that night and met up a few weeks later at Nadeau’s apartment.



“Our styles weren’t fitting,” Freak said, noting that when Nadeau mentioned his other instrument, “I was like, ‘You play fiddle? Why didn’t you bring that up before?”



The spark thus lit, the two would play their first gig at a festival in upstate New York originally booked for another band that, in Freak’s words, “went south.” He didn’t want to give up the slot, and meeting Nadeau made it an easier choice. A line from a song in progress gave the duo an appropriate name; that was over two years ago.

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In mid-2019 a friend in the Concord band The Rhythm Upstairs invited him to Area 23’s Wednesday open mic. He and Nadeau got up and played a few songs. Soon after, they were offered a gig.



“First time I met him I was not expecting his music to be what it was,” McNeil said. “But I was in no way disappointed.”



Given its interesting beginnings, his growing audience is a pleasant surprise, Freak said.



“I never expected when I picked up the guitar that I would play in a band, or that people would like my music,” he said. “It even took me a few years to be like, ‘OK, there’s not that many people lying to me.’ So I just kind of rolled with it. Everything that I’m doing now is like a bonus… because it was never expected when I started this.” - The Hippo Press

A short band profile that tells the story of Thrown To The Wolves, an acoustic duo based in New Hampshire owned and operated by Freak Kempton and John "JD" Nadeau. - 832 Studios

Having a hard time describing the music they create, JD and Freak (the duo behind “Thrown To The Wolves”) write: Most of our songs tell stories, and the sound changes depending on the story being told. Their new album, “Right Side of Wrong, Wrong Side of Good,” is something close to a novel as each track (story) interwinds into one significant and complex picture.​

“I’m No Jonah” perfectly illustrates the raw feelings pumped throughout the album. The track talks about being raised to unreachable standards and never feeling good enough. Freak further explains by saying, “being the preacher’s son, I took to the biblical story of Jonah (who ended up living in the belly of a whale for some time for not doing as he was told by God) for this song. It was kind of my declaration of my own sovereignty as a human being, and that regardless of what I choose I won’t be swallowed up by any whales. I don’t have to hold a title of importance, none of that means anything to me- It’s experiences and just some dirt on my ol’ feet to tell you where I’ve been.” ​

The lyrics read, “And when I’m gone just don’t you weep/ I freed my own mind from my demon’s own lies that speak/ So sink the ships and burn the sails/ I ain’t spending my life in the belly of no whale.” ​

Musically, the track is flawless. Freak’s rich vocals wrap up the piece, and JD (on violin) adds a warm feeling to it. “I’m No Jonah” is one of those songs you get lost in due to the musicality. However, as it goes on, you sink further, understanding and connecting with the lyrics. As they were telling me, they nicely achieve a “raw, gritty, acoustic sound” even though they’re plugged in. ​

JD plays a 100-year-old German Guarneri Model violin throughout the album, feeding to rockabilly feel. Overall their sheer talent blends perfectly with their remarkable songwriting ability. “I wrote some music, and years later I found myself on stage at an open mic with no intention of going anywhere beyond that,” remarks Freak, “I’m honestly surprised I was even there.”​

Following “I’m No Jonah” is “Girl Like That,” an acoustic masterpiece. I truly loved this song; there was a technicality that was beyond brilliant. ​

Tracks like “So I Can Go” and “Ain’t Felt Right” blew me away. “So I Can Go” speaks on the uncertainty of the future as well as feeling the most challenging bits of life have passed. Appearing almost rugged with Freak’s low-toned vocals, JD sort of wraps in innocence and beauty to every piece with the violin. It’s a power-duo that you need to be on the lookout for. High-energy closer, “Ain’t Felt Right,” makes you want to thump your heel against the ground along with the rhythm. ​

“A picture is worth a thousand words,” says Freak (guitarist and vocalist), “but with a thousand words I can paint you a picture.” They did just about that and more with “Right Side of Wrong, Wrong Side of Good.” ​

I am thrilled to see what comes of their upcoming album! coming album! - Adiah Michelle

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