The lovely, hopeless romantic that is Jill Barber is returning to the Maritimes for a show at the Fredericton Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival on Saturday September 19, where she is slated for two performances with Michael Kaeshammer at The Playhouse on Queen Street.
Barber’s latest album Chances was released in October 2008 and saw the artist step away from the folk-inspired themes of her previous record For All Time.
Chances featured Barber pursuing a genuine 1950s orchestral/jazz vibe, a genre of music that fits her smoky-voice extremely well.
The past year has been a busy one for Barber. This past summer has seen her travel throughout the country, playing a number of music festivals including the Montreal Jazz Festival and the Ottawa Blues Fest.
Those key dates follow up some select American dates as well as a five week tour of Australia that Barber undertook.
“Our first tour of Australia was really great,” Barber says from British Columbia. “We are actually going back for another month-long tour in October. It is a territory which we are building a following in.
“For all intents and purposes though, I am a brand new artist to audiences in Australia. In one way it’s fun because I have a blank slate but the other side of the coin is that I really am starting at square one all over again,” she says.
Barber confirms for [here] that she is in the process of writing material for her next record but that a specific direction hasn’t quite been determined as of yet.
“I’m not entirely sure how my new record will shape up just yet,” Barber admits. “I know for sure that I really enjoy playing with this band so I can see it being a full band record as opposed to me and an acoustic guitar.
“My Chances record tapped into a style of music that I do well. I’ve often heard from people that they think my voice sounds as though it’s from another era.
“Personally, I love the quality of old music and I like to think that I am doing my part to try to bring back that sound where people record with a 10-piece orchestra.
“Recording is much easier these days but it can mean you have to be fairly minimalist. So when I’m given the opportunity to record with a 10-piece orchestra behind me, you can be sure I’m going to take it!”
Be sure to get out and see Jill Barber perform during the hectic weekend of the Fredericton Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival.
Her vocal prowess and fantastic songs guarantee you will walk away a fan.