Name: Barbaro
Members: Kyle Shelstad (Vocals, Guitar), Rachel Calvert (Vocals, Violin), Jason Wells (Bass, Piano)
Nationality: American
Current release: Barbaro's About the Winter is out via StorySound.
Recommendations: Kyle: Jon Hopkins – Music for Psychedelic Therapy; Dijon - Absolutely
Jason: "La Cathédrale Engloutie" by Claude Debussy played by Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli; Elgar Cello Concerto played by Jacqueline du Pré (the video of this in particular is incredible)
Rachel: Simulacra and Simulation by Jean Beadrillard

If you enjoyed this Barbaro interview and would like to stay up to date with the band and their music, visit their official website. They are also on Instagram,  and Facebook.



When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you're listening? Do you listen with your eyes open or closed?

Jason: What happens in my body really depends on what the music is that I listen to. If it’s something with a heavy groove to it, I move, I dance. If it’s something slow and serene, I close my eyes and get swept away in the sounds. If it’s something cinematic I paint a picture of what the music sounds like.

That’s really the magic of music. It’s always different.

What were your very first steps in music like and how would you rate the gains made through experience - can one train/learn being an artist?

Kyle: I got my first guitar when I was 10 or 11 and the first thing I did with it was write a song. I found it to be very cathartic and knew it was a great way to sort through whatever thoughts that were running swimming in my noggin.

After that I started listening to music with more intent, studying the songs I heard and trying to figure out what makes them work. I think anyone can learn to be an artist through practice.
 
According to scientific studies, we make our deepest and most incisive musical experiences between the ages of 13-16. What did music mean to you at that age and what’s changed since then?

Jason: Music was very serious to me at that age. That’s where I really developed my musical ambition I would say. I was playing in the Detroit Youth Symphonies at that time and attending music camps over the summer.

By 16 I had made the decision to go to a boarding arts high school which was pivotal for me and my development. That time really cemented music as my career path.

What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music and what motivates you to create?

Kyle: Experience motivates me to create. Whether that be relationships with friends and family or some time spent out on a lake.

I try to write from experience and our main goal is to create some sort of emotional response in the listener. I think we all feel something when we play this music and it’s important for us to try to convey those emotions through our instruments when we play live.   

To quote a question by the great Bruce Duffie: When you come up with a musical idea, have you created the idea or have you discovered the idea?

Kyle: Definitely discovered. Everything I write is ultimately based on experiences and with western music consisting of only 12 notes, it seems impossible to create an idea.

Many ideas come from music I admire and enjoy, but I really enjoy finding inspiration in random pieces of daily life – the setting I’m in, the people I meet, conversations I’ve had, the tempo my blinker sets.

Paul Simon said “the way that I listen to my own records is not for the chords or the lyrics - my first impression is of the overall sound.” What's your own take on that and how would you define your personal sound?

Rachel: My personal sound is very emotive and driven by things I find to be beautiful. That doesn’t it mean it can’t be abrasive or contain friction - that can be beautiful too!

Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you've had with these non-human-made sounds? In how far would you describe them as “musical”?

Rachel: Nothing beats listening to wind wave through trees or waves beat on the shore. That said, I do believe that “music” is simply sound that someone organizes and decides to categorize as “music.”

For example, Cage’s "4’33" is considered music, but the melodic chanting of the Koran is not. It’s kind of an arbitrary category - but it’s one I’m fond of nonetheless!



From very deep/high/loud/quiet sounds to very long/short/simple/complex compositions - are there extremes in music you feel drawn to and what response do they elicit?

Rachel: I’m fascinated by extremes in music. Going down the rabbit hole of scandinavian black metal is one of my favorite little tunnels of extreme music. It’s interesting when art really pushes around the limits of what we are capable of expressing - even if it’s not really in my personal tastes!

I also love the extremes found in the classical canon. Beethoven’s 3rd symphony is one of the most anguished, beautiful, experimental pieces ever. It makes me cry!!!



Could you describe your creative process on the basis of one of your pieces, live performances or albums that's particularly dear to you, please?

Kyle: I am proud of the song “Apples to Apples” on this album. This song, in many ways, sets the tone for what we wanted to create on this new album. We wanted to focus on the song and how our instruments can support the story being told. In many ways, this brought a larger focus to texture and harmony, playing more as an ensemble than a band supporting soloists.



This song showed us how we can depart from flashy instrumental performances, which can be found on our first album, and focus more on creating a sonic environment that fully envelops your ear in the song.

We like to think this approach brought about more intention in our playing and songwriting, and "Apples to Apples" is a glimpse into what we are all proud to share with you on this album.

Do you conduct “experiments” or make use of scientific insights when you're making music?

Kyle: A lot of the experiments we’ve made on this album involved manipulating the tones of our instruments to help express what we are trying to convey during a song.

Much of this was led by our producer and engineer, Brian Joseph. Brian and I have a very similar ear and he has the creative mind and technical abilities to articulate these ideas quickly. Simple things like changing the tone of the guitar for a few bars to support a delicate phrase in the song or manipulating the vocal track to add some more tension to certain lyrics.

How does the way you make music reflect the way you live your life? Can we learn lessons about life by understanding music on a deeper level?

Kyle: Just like any thing in life, making music can take time. In order to make something you are proud of it requires listening, reflection, editing, addition, rewrites, space, and trust.

These things also apply to how I try to live my life and approach relationships.

Do you feel as though writing or performing a piece of music is inherently different from something like making a great cup of coffee? What do you express through music that you couldn't or wouldn't in more 'mundane' tasks?

Kyle: I don’t think it is inherently different. Just like writing or performing, making a great cup of coffee is a skill that takes passion and practice.

Sipping on a wonderfully brewed shot of espresso can mean many things to me depending on the place and time I’m drinking it. Sometimes it brings me comfort and joy. Other times it brings me anxiety and makes me long for home. I find similar experiences when performing or listening to music. Both elicit an emotional response and I think this would be true to anything someone finds passion in, no matter how mundane.

I don’t particularly care about growing and cutting grass in my yard because it doesn’t provide me with any feeling except maybe anger every time I have to cut it. On the other hand I know some people that are very passionate about their lawn and spend lots of time caring for and growing it. In order to spend all that time with their yard I’m assuming it has to elicit some sort of positive emotional response in them.

Every time I listen to "Albedo 0.39" by Vangelis, I choke up. But the lyrics are made up of nothing but numbers and values. Do you, too, have a song or piece of music that affects you in a way that you can't explain?

Kyle: The first song that came to my mind is Monica Martin’s “Cruel.” Her voice is captivating and her ability to convey an idea through phrasing and tone gets me all up in my feels.



I love this song because its brutally honest and her confidence in being vulnerable is something I admire.

If you could make a wish for the future – what are developments in music you would like to see and hear?

Jason: I’d like to see music recording in general move more towards being “off the grid”. A lot of tracks I hear now sound like they’re played to a click track which produces this stiff, cookiecutter-like pocket that doesn’t get you moving. That mixed with the overcorrecting of vocals using autotune really takes a lot of the character out of the music.

I grew up on 70s and 80s R'n'B and one of the things that made those songs so memorable were the slight inaccuracies and overall “rawness” to the sound of those records. Artists didn’t have the time or the technical means to fix all the little mistakes that happened in the studio and I think that may be one of the reasons those records sound so good.