PART 1 - THE
'INTERVIEW'
1 - What was your
first musical memory and what pushed you towards pursuing a career in the
record industry?
“My first musical
memory is either my mother playing Spanish folk songs to me or listening to
Hank Williams and Willie Nelson on the radio with my father while he worked on
our home. I'm not sure which one was
earlier, but both influenced me a great deal when I was young. While I've been
playing music my whole life (keys at six, cello at seven, etc.), I never actually
thought about a career in the record industry.
I picked up the guitar at age twenty-four after several years of dancing in the
mud at hippie festivals in the Rocky Mountains and elsewhere, and once I didn't
sound like the worst guitar player in the world, I started dreaming of playing
live. Several years later, my reality
caught up to my dreams. Sometime after that, reluctantly, I started making
records.”
2 - Had you been
involved with any other bands prior to becoming a solo artist as The Barefoot
Band?
“I was in a
blues/funk duo that later morphed into a pseudo-band, The Blue Routes, with a
very talented guitarist that few outside Wyoming have heard of, Jascha
Herdt. Jascha is currently the drummer
for a great Americana act from Centennial, Wyoming, J Shogren & the Shanghai'd. I was also
the rhythm guitarist and vocalist for a Celtic-style band in Sheridan, Wyoming named
Celtic Sage. The Blue Routes disbanded
prior to my becoming a solo artist, when I moved from Laramie, Wyoming to Sheridan,
Wyoming, but I played in Celtic Sage simultaneously.
I'm also currently a guitarist in a bluegrass trio called Shot in the
Foot. I recently relocated to Seattle, Washington, however, and although I'm writing
bluegrass with Shot in the Foot, we may not be able to perform as regularly as
we'd like. Therefore, The Barefoot Band
is at the forefront.”
3 - Why did you
choose to become a solo artists instead of forming a band?
“When I moved away
from Laramie, The Blue Routes tried to stay together, but 300 miles separated
us from one another. Despite the
internet and our desires, Wyoming just refused to get any smaller. When I moved to Sheridan, all the decent
musicians without steady jobs or too much family were already in several
bands. Blindly and stupidly determined,
I struck out on my own. I've found that I'm both in love with and hating being
a solo act, after two and a half years of doing it. It's wonderful to be able to book virtually
anything and not have to worry about other people's schedules, but at the same
time, it gets old to hear from venues, over and over, "Meh....we just
don't book solo acts." But trust me, I'm not whining. I love being what I am.”
4 - How would you
describe the sound of The Barefoot Band?
“Dancey, joyous, and
raucously dark, all at the same time.”
5 - Where did the
name The Barefoot Band come from?
“Well at one point, I
began playing without any shoes on so that I could unfetter my toes (they are
key in keeping rhythm...) After a
number of shows, I took a look down in the middle of a song I'd written that
involved a loop pedal (so I sounded like three or four instruments at once) and
thought, 'wow, a barefoot
band'.”
6 - Why do you go under
the name The Barefoot Band instead of your own name?
“Somewhat for
childish reasons, I guess. When I first
started this, I'd wanted for so long to be in a working band that I figured I'd
name it "band" even if it was just me. Technology like loop pedals and my own
beatboxing skills really do make it possible to be a band by oneself. The other reason was to stand out in a field
of solo performers. I'm still happy I did it. I also regret the decision. Typical
Libra.”
7 - Your song
"Shine" is a groovy folk song. What is this song about and what
influenced this sound?
“Thanks! I wrote this song on my first
independently-booked tour after spending weeks on the road in amongst
skyscrapers and hipsters (neither of which I was truly familiar with, living as
I did in backwoods Wyoming). In general,
I have nothing against hipsters or skyscrapers, but the song was a reaction to
coming back to my home after all the noise and being able to shout my songs
from the woods to no one in particular.”
8 - Any new songs in
the pipeline?
“Constantly. This winter I'm working on some indie
pop-influenced folk material and composing several house/trance style loops for
live performance.”
9 - Do you have any
'rituals' before going on stage?
“I often am left
doing my own PA setup and lights setup for gigs, and I often hit the stage
after a full day's work or after a day's travel, so it's rare that I actually
get any time for rituals. I do take the
time before going on, though, for five minutes of silence and stretching my
fret board hand. Sometimes, when I'm
immersed in silence, I whisper zen things to myself like, 'what if I threw
a show and no one came'?”
10 - Any live dates
coming up?
“In October, I'm
embarking on "The Comedy and Blues Tour" with my dear friend Josia
Elliott from Los Angeles. We're playing 8-12 dates (some still to be confirmed) in
Wyoming and Montana. After the tour,
however, I'm going to be facing the uphill battle of getting booked in Seattle
and surrounding environments.”
11 - When can fans
expect the next official release?
“In October, as
well! I record with an independent label
in Missoula and finished a full album this summer. I have to raise my own funds for
production/merchandise, so it's taken awhile to get the label guy the money for
copyright and for the pressing of CDs.
These are the realities of self-doing, though. Therefore the release date for "Broken
Things" will be sometime between October 1st and October 31st, 2013.”
12 - Who would be
your dream collaboration?
“Leo Kottke, without
a doubt. I'd love to sing with him while
his fingers made mincemeat of a fretboard.
The other person I'd love to play with at some point in time is Ani DiFranco.”
13 - Who would be in
your dream supergroup?
“Keller Williams,
Phil Lesh, Steve Kimock, and Tony Williams, I suppose. We'd play hours of nonsense jams.”
PART 2 - "THE QUICKFIRE ROUND"
1 - Favourite Beatle?
“John.”
2 - Favourite band?
“Of all time - Bela
Fleck and the Flecktones.”
3 - Fabourite new
band?
“Wilco.”
4 - Favourite song?
“Love Bizarre -
Prince & Sheena E.”
5 - Favourite album?
“American Beauty -
The Grateful Dead.”
6 - Vinyl, CD or
download?
“CD, but who even
owns those, anymore?”
7 - Style icon?
“Whoever came up with
the thrift store line of clothing.”
8 - Favourite
clothing brand?
“I'm not a brand
person.”
9 - Favourite film?
“Children of Men.”
10 - Favourite TV
show?
“NOVA on PBS.”
11 - Who would play
you in a film of your life?
“Seth Rogen.”
12 - Favourite food?
“Anything curry.”
13 - Football team?
“Manchester United
(if we're talking real football - if we're talking American football, I
don't watch that schlock.)”
Hope you enjoyed this feature on The Barefoot Band! Check out our previous feature on LowLife!
Check out The Barefoot Band here - http://www.thebarefootband.com/the_barefoot_band.html
Check out J Shogren & the Shanghai'd here - http://www.jshogren.com/
Check out Josia Elliott here - http://josiaelliott.com/
You can also like our Facebook page to keep up to date with all future interviews at the following link - https://www.facebook.com/aldorabritainrecords
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