Progressing from an indie label to the majors often means concessions on the part of the artists, especially when it comes to their direct involvement in the process of putting out a record. Luckily, that hasn’t been the case for Toronto singer-songwriter Matthew Barber, who recently made a smooth transition from well-regarded local indie Paper Bag Records to the Warner Music behemoth.
Barber, whose new record Sweet Nothing hit the shelves last week, has heard all the horror stories about fledgling artists being lost in the shuffle in the big leagues, but insists his experience has been a positive one.
“The one thing I can say about my situation, even though I signed to a major label, is that I’ve never compromised any artistic decision at all along the way,” he offers during a recent chat at a café in his Queen West neighbourhood.
“I basically just established that before I signed my contract. I said, ‘I want to have complete creative control over everything,’ and they went along with it. They trusted me, I guess.”
Barber’s leap to Warner hasn’t made him feel completely removed from the indie scene, however. He knows that he and his band, the Union Dues, still have many arduous days ahead of them if they want their music to reach the mainstream.
“I still feel kind of like an indie artist on a major label,” Barber notes. “I still play clubs and I still don’t sell that many albums, and I still feel like not that many people know who I am, really. It’s growing, but my fan base is kind of indie-level in a way, even though I’ve got a song on the radio.
“I’m still treating it like I’ve got to get in a van and drive across the country and make no money and try to win people over one person at a time. That’s still my attitude toward it. I just have the good fortune of having a major record company that’s supporting me to do that,” he says.
As many fans of his music know, Matthew isn’t the only one carrying the Barber name in the often daunting music biz. His equally talented sister, Jill, is a rising singer and songwriter in her own right, and Barber doesn’t shy away from speaking highly of his younger sibling and frequent collaborator.
“I think we’re going to do a whole album together at some point. Right now it’s just not a high priority, but in the next couple years I think we will. We both want to do it, but Jill’s working on getting songs together for her next solo album, and I’ve got this [album], so we’re going to be pretty busy with our own individual projects for the next year at least, if not longer,” he explains.
With a new record comes a hectic schedule, and for Barber that means an extensive fall tour spanning the entire country, including several stops at home in Ontario this month. While some artists would be dreading the prospect of hitting the road for such a long stretch, Barber’s excited about playing his songs for new audiences.
“I’m looking forward to the tour in general,” Barber enthuses. “Just playing every night is really fun. I don’t get to do it as much as I would like. That’s the best part about being a musician, to me-going on tour and feeling your band getting better. When you’re playing every night, it just sort of becomes like a job-in a good way-and things become more effortless.”
You can catch Matthew Barber and his band, the Union Dues, at the CD release for their new record Sweet Nothing at the Horseshoe (370 Queen W.) tomorrow night (Oct. 4). [Bonus: It’s a free show!]
