Foto-@ Stereo Sanctity

Liebe auf den ersten Song – das gibt es bei uns immer wieder! Man hört einen Song und ist direkt Feuer und Flamme, man kann teils gar nicht definieren, woran es liegt – die Stimme, die Melodien, der Sound, die Instrumentierung, das gesamte Paket? Egal warum, bei Barrie ging uns das zuletzt mit jeder Single genau so. Der verträumt-eingängige Indie-Pop Entwurf der Band um Frontfrau und Namensgeberin Barrie Lindsay, die sich aus allen Himmelsrichtungen (Baltimore, Boston, São Paulo, London und New York) in Brooklyn zusammengefunden haben, hat uns komplett verzaubert und begleitet uns seitdem durchgängig auf heavy Rotation! Umso schöner, dass die Band zur Album Veröffentlichung in Europa auf Tour verweilte und wir sie bei ihrem Abstecher nach Darmstadt auch gleich zum Interview verhaftet haben – hier das Ergebnis: Barrie im Interview!

Hey guys! Happy to meet you – with every single from you we fell a bit more in love with your music, but of course with a debut record we would like to introduce you first a little bit. So: How did the project start, when did you first met and when did you decide to form a band?
Barrie Lindsay: We met in March 2017. My manager at the time introduced me (Barrie) to Spurge and Noah, and said we should make a band together. Dom was another mutual friend of Noah and the manager, and we found Sabine on Tinder.

The band name Barrie is both band name, plus the name of mastermind Barrie Lindsay – how/when was it decided to call the band Barrie and what was the idea behind it?
The manager I mentioned actually was the one who first suggested it. That was before I had met everyone, and instead of trying to come up with something new and forced, we just used what was there.

You are often called dream-pop or compared to a Fleetwood Mac- sound – how do you feel about it, what did you want Barrie to sound like when starting to work on the music together and how would you describe it now?
I feel great about being compared to Fleetwood Mac — I think there’s a timelessness to their music that I’d like to think applies to our sound too. Dream pop feels more tied to a certain era and certain bands, but I like those bands so I’m not mad about that either.

The record was then produced by Jake Aron – how did you met, which influence did he have on the record and how does he work?
We met him through our label and knew his work with Snail Mail, Grizzly Bear, Solange, Chairlift. He had a great influence on the album, from bass playing and coming up with interesting new timbres, and helping us incorporate our ideas in a cohesive way. Also he’s a fantastic mixer. He’s talented and creative but makes sure that you feel it stays true to you.

We love the song Darjeeling – could you tell us a bit what it is about, if there is a story behind it and how it came into life?
It’s mostly about moving to New York. The seed of it was the melody at the start of Fur Elise. It sounds kind of like Baba O’Riley, which wasn’t conscious, but probably part of why I liked the riff to begin with. I really like that song.

You are now living in Brooklyn together, while you are all not originally from there, right? Was this also the reason why you crew together that quick, as you were all new in the city and were exploring the new neighborhood together?
Right, none of us are from Brooklyn. Spurge and Noah had already formed a community largely through the Lot Radio by the time I got there, and they introduced me to a lot of friends and musicians. It’s a really lovely community there.

Also it feels like a very quick and easy process from moving to New York, to forming a band, to finding a label – at least in your bio. How did this process feel for you and was it really that easy?
We’ve always been confident that this project would do well. I think in some ways you have to be kind of blindly optimistic to succeed in music. There’s too much rejection that’ll stop you if you aren’t. But a ton of work has gone into it going this well. We’ve all been at this for a long time, separately and together, and we’ve tried to be smart about every move we’ve made. And worked like crazy.

How did you end up with Winspear as a label and for which reasons did you choose them?
I emailed them about opening for a band they managed, and included some demos. They happened to be in town, so we met up and clicked. They’re smart, they’re excited, and they care about music and the people they work with.

You are also soon coming to Europe on your first tour – what are you looking forward the most on this run?
I’m really excited to go to Scandinavia for the first time!

What are you doing when you’re not doing music?
I love walking around Manhattan all day, I’ve been here two years but I’m still in awe of this city.

Which song makes you dance every time?
I Want You Back by Jackson 5