One of the primary incentives for becoming an artist, and making a living from your art, is the relative freedom it affords. Of course, it isn¡¯t always that simple. A successful artist can be as tied down to schedules and fixed relationships as any company employee, but freedom from those obligations seems more possible.
Liam O Maonlai, the leader of Irish rock band Hothouse Flowers, talks about freedom a lot, and it becomes apparent that he¡¯s freer now as an artist than he was when his band was at its commercial peak in the late 1980s and early ¡®90s. In fact, the desire for freedom was the reason the band broke up in 1994.
¡°That¡¯s the thing,¡± he says. ¡°We did that for seven years, and now we don¡¯t any more. Even if we¡¯re playing a big show, we stay away from set lists. People can be very obedient to certain forms, and it shouldn¡¯t be that way with rock ¡®n¡¯ roll, you know?¡±
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