Freight Street uses music to bring the community together

October 5, 2022

Freight Street performing.

Freight Street is a local Indie band that has built its reputation on heartfelt lyrics, moving stories and an authentic sound that is hard to replicate.

These multi-talented artists have been working hard to bring communities together with their music, as COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted and stage performances have returned.

There are five musicians that make up the band. JP Stebal is on drums, Kathleen Schnerer plays the violin, Devonte Stovall works with bass and cello, Tom Vasey- referred to in his solo acts as Boo Lee Crosser- plays guitar, mandolin and mandocello along with vocals and songwriting, and Flannery Murnin covers vocals, songwriting and guitar.

The band stems from Bowling Green State University, and continues to perform in the area as often as they are able. Stebal recalls the moment when everyone was brought together.

“Our close friend Mike Bryce started a student organization called Roots Music Club, where I met Tom and Flann. I had known Kathleen and Devonte since freshman year. Kathleen and D had been string buddies back in high school with Toledo Symphony Youth Orchestra,” Stebal said.

The band released a self-titled album in 2020 along with multiple singles, their most recent ones being “Longshot” and “Drivin’.” Their sound is defined as an accumulation of blues, rock, folk, classical and more, depending on the desired tone of a song and the kind of story that it tells.

For Murnin, writing songs can be a powerful and healing experience. They have found poetry and storytelling to be the perfect way to work through their feelings and to be a voice for the LGBTQ+ community.

“It’s important to me that my audience really sees my heart when I perform my own lyrics because it comes from a queer and trans experience. My identities are spiritual to me—I feel deeply connected to my predecessors by being my truest self despite being born in a society that often doesn’t see me as I see myself,” Murnin said.

Freight Street brings many instrumental elements to their performances that solidify the emotions behind the lyrics, through a variety of different sounds. As a result, performing as a band can be a very emotional experience for both the musicians and the audience. Stovall has found this aspect of music to be incredibly rewarding.

“For me, music is the closest thing we have to touch the human soul. It is a calming, fulfilling experience that I believe can connect us all. I also enjoy the camaraderie and collaboration; Each individual member brings so much to the group in terms of sound, influence, experience and skill that performing with each other is always a beautiful adventure, with no clear destination except for what we feel in the moment” Stovall said.

There are exciting things in store for Freight Street, as they have just released a music video for their new single “Longshot”. They also have two new singles that will be announced soon and have a host of upcoming shows within the area.