The Rock Tribune

Vevo is premiering “Drown,” the companion video to Carolina Liar’s brand-new single.“Drown” is the lead track from Carolina Liar’s highly anticipated new album, WILD BLESSED FREEDOM, in stores September 27th. The disc was recorded with producers Max Martin (Katy Perry, Avril Lavigne, Pink), Shellback (Usher, Ke$ha) and Tobias Karlsson at Maratone Studios in Stockholm and Thunderhoney Studios in Los Angeles.

About the album, vocalist/guitarist Chad Wolf says, “”It sounds bigger, and it feels bigger. I wouldn’t say that this is a concept album, but there’s a sense of freedom that runs through this group of songs: the idea of having the faith to let yourself go and do something crazy.”

Wolf’s no stranger to rolling the dice. A few years back, he was so fed up with playing covers at hole-in-the-wall gigs down South, that he grabbed his guitar, boarded a plane for the first time in his life and headed west in search of greener pastures. “Didn’t really have a plan,” he laughs. “But I was drowning in coffeehouse gigs and knew I needed a change of scenery if I was gonna make something happen. LA seemed like a good place to begin.”

He worked a series of odd jobs to make ends meet, including a gig as an extra on a Celine Dion video shoot and cleaning toilets in exchange for studio time, before landing an internship with renowned songwriter Diane Warren, whom he credits with helping to sharpen his songwriting skills. But it was a chance gig house-sitting for famed Swedish producer Max Martin that completely changed his game. “Max and I became buddies through a mutual friend, but I never wanted to bring up music around him,” he recalls. “I guess I didn’t want to put him on the spot.” But after hearing one of Wolf’s songs, the producer phoned from Stockholm and said “if you can write three more as good as this one, maybe we can work something out.” “It was crazy,” laughs Wolf. “I had literally just quit my day job and was trying to figure out my next move. It turned out to be a trip to Sweden.”

While living in Stockholm, Wolf met guitarist Rickard Göransson, bassist/keyboardistJohan Carlsson and drummer Peter Karlsson through mutual friends of Martin. The four quickly bonded over common tastes in music and they agreed to play on Wolf’s tracks. “We hit it off pretty quickly,” says vocalist. “They’re amazing musicians and good people and it was during the recording process that we really became a band. And after finishing the record, they came back to the States with me and we got a place together while shopping the album.”

That record became Coming to Terms, which Rolling Stone hailed for “fusing the anthemic elements of U2 and the Killers with the electro production of Swedish pop maestro Max Martin.”  Fueled by the hit singles “I’m Not Over” and “Show Me What I’m Looking For,” the disc became one of 2008’s most acclaimed debut releases, with the band’s songs generating nationwide airplay on modern rock and alternative stations, and appearing in such TV shows as The Vampire Diaries, American Idol, Gossip Girl and The Hills.  Spotlighted as an iTunes Single of the Week, “Show Me What I’m Looking For” logged more than 600,000 downloads, and “I’m Not Over” shot to No. 3 on Billboard’s Modern Rock Chart.

The band toured extensively in support of the first album, sharing stages with the likes ofOne Republic, Rob Thomas and The Academy Is…  They also performed on Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Ellen Degeneres Show, played themselves in an episode of 90210, were spotlighted as a Rolling Stone “Breaking” artist, and were featured in both MTV’s “Discover & Download” and VH1’s “You Oughta Know” programs.

“It was a good start,” muses Wolf. “But we want more.”

Pre-Order Wild Blessed Freedom   | Get New Single  “Drown”