A onetime core member of noise pop group Beverly, singer/guitarist Drew Citron was active with post-punk descendants Public Practice when she presented her full-length solo debut, Free Now. Dipping into both noise and dreamy atmospheres, the more personal, self-produced album arrived in October 2020.

After growing up in San Francisco, Citron established herself in the Brooklyn indie scene in the early 2010s as a member of Avan Lava and as a touring member for acts including Frankie Rose and the Pains of Being Pure at Heart. She co-founded Beverly in late 2013 with Rose. Their first appearance was on the Kanine Records' 2014 Record Store Day compilation Non Violent Femmes with the song "Honey Do." Their debut album, Careers, also on Kanine, followed that July. After its release, Rose left the band to return to solo work, and Citron enlisted Scott Rosenthal (Class Actress, the Beets) for the project's second album. Produced and played by Citron and Rosenthal, The Blue Swell arrived on Kanine in May 2016. Along the way, Beverly toured with the likes of the Drums and We Are Scientists.

Citron and Rosenthal went on to play post-punk-inspired music at shows around New York City as Public Practice with leader singer Samantha York and guitarist Vince McClelland, both formerly of WALL. After releasing a demo and the 2018 EP Distance Is a Mirror, Public Practice issued their first long-player, Gentle Grip, on Wharf Cat Records in June 2020.

Though it took Citron much of the prior decade to work up the courage to record her own music, she drew on memories of long walks with her Discman as an adolescent listening to beloved bands including the Smiths. Also informed by a breakup with Rosenthal, her solo debut, Free Now, was recorded at various studios with Sam Owens (Sam Evian, Celestial Shore), Tim Wheeler (Ash), John Agnello (engineer for Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr.), and Transmitter Park Studio's Danny Taylor, though Citron performed, engineered, mixed, and produced most of the album herself. The finished Free Now was released by Park the Van in October 2020. ~ Marcy Donelson, Rovi