Columbus’ Own: Farseek masters the power of one

Cameron Carr
Thu, 01 Dec 2016 04:17:29 +0000
Arts & Life, Music, News, cameron harrison, columbus music, columbus' own, emo, farseek, music, pop-punk, power pop

Cameron Harrison records all the instruments and makes all the artwork for local band Farseek. Credit: Courtesy of Anna Brady

When Cameron Harrison began playing music under the name Farseek, he was a student at Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida.

Though Harrison has since graduated and moved from the Southeast to the Midwest, memories of his formative years and home state influence his music. On Farseek’s first full-length album, “Fear of Missing Out,” Harrison looks at how distance has changed his relationships.

“This is my first time ever living super far away from home,” Harrison said. “There’s a lot going on that I’m inherently going to miss out on.”

The 12-track album, due out on Dec. 16, sees Harrison looking back, but also moving forward.

Farseek initially began as an outlet for Harrison to work on songs on his own rather than with a band. All of his recordings feature Harrison performing guitar, bass, drums and vocals to create emo-tinged power pop, while his early live shows were solo performances on acoustic guitar.

Though he still plays all instruments on the recordings, Harrison is now joined on stage by bassist Gage Volbert and drummer Mitch Rossiter.

“It is almost entirely he is the leader,” Volbert said. “He’s talented in that his brain thinks in every layer of the recording.”

Harrison said working with a band helps to flesh out ideas and make some adjustments, but otherwise he works alone.

“I’m trying to play with people that challenge me a little bit, even though it’s my project,” Harrison said.

Working on songs without other musicians, Harrison said, allowed him to write more complex music and invest more time without the constraints of other members’ schedules or skillsets.

“I like having a lot of the freedom to do whatever I want with it,” he said. “Ultimately, I care more about this than I think a lot of other people would just because it’s like my baby.”

Harrison not only writes and records all of the music, but also handles other aspects of Farseek. Harrison studied fine art at Flagler and designs the artwork and CD packaging along with printing T-shirts.

While he appreciates the control, Harrison said the amount of work can make the process a little slow at times.

“If I found somebody who was wanting to help out, I’d be more than happy to have them help out,” he said. “But this works. I’ve finally got it sounding the way I want it to sound and things to look the way I want them to look so I don’t think it’s entirely necessary.”

Volbert said being a supporting member to Harrison’s holistic vision isn’t a problem for him.

“I have no issues being a backing band,” he said. “(Harrison) has a very distinctive voice and a very distinctive sound that he goes for, and I really like being a part of that instead of bringing my own influences into it.”

Farseek will play an album release show on Dec. 14 at Cafe Bourbon Street with Ghost Teeth, The Roof Dogs and Bastard Waiting for Nothing. Tickets can be purchased for $5 at the door.