The Fretboard Journal Guitar Podcast · The Fretboard Journal

Free Range

·1 hr 11 min·5 clips

Sophia Jensen reveals how a remote Texas studio and producer Tommy Reed transformed Free Range's new record in just 10 days.

Sophia Wolfson hosts this episode, continuing her series on emerging guitar-driven artists. She interviews Sophia Jensen, the 21-year-old frontperson of the band Free Range, whose new album *Lost and Found* is out now. Jensen recounts seeing Wilco at Chicago's Hideout block party as a child, a memory that came full circle when they later recorded a live EP at the Wilco Loft. They started on piano but switched to guitar in middle school, learning through School of Rock and using a capo for the first time to play Vance Joy's "Riptide." The band Free Range formed when Jensen was 15, with their first show at a DIY venue called CT House. The debut album *Practice* was recorded over three years, starting in a studio called Rax Tracks and finishing in a basement, with producers Jack and Bailey joining the project. For the new album, the band traveled to Silsby, Texas, to record at Tommy Reed's Lazy Bones studio over ten days. The process was collaborative, with Reed and Eric Adams co-producing, and the band living in an on-site cabin. A surprising moment was the origin of the song "Big Star," which began as a joke about mispronouncing "Pirouline" cookies and evolved into a dark narrative about a character named Luann. Jensen initially struggled to take the song seriously but ultimately included it on the record after a collaborative rewrite. The band found playing the new material live so exciting that they drastically reduced older songs in their setlists on a tour opening for Slow Pulp. The tone is conversational and friendly, reflecting the host's personal connection with the guest. The style is educational, delving into artistic development and the technical aspects of recording. Fans of indie rock, guitar craftsmanship, and stories about young artists' creative journeys will love this episode. Listeners seeking highly produced interviews or debates on music theory might want to skip it.

As heard by us

A warm portrait of a young guitar band sounding developed and electric.

Free Range's Lost and Found comes across as a record with a real backstory: a young, guitar-forward band, a host who discovered the music online during the pandemic, and a conversation that stays close to melody, lyric writing, and the appeal of a group already sounding formed.

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Why you'd press play

Hear how Free Range kept Lost and Found fresh in the studio.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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