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OUT now: Barbaro’s Spellbinding New Album About the Winter, Co-Produced by Brian Joseph
Barbaro releases About the Winter, their debut album for StorySound Records. Comprised of Kyle Shelstad (vocals and guitar), Rachel Calvert (vocals and fiddle), and Jason Wells (vocals and bass), the Minneapolis-based trio presents a diverse and captivating reinterpretation of roots music orthodoxy. Listen to About the Winter Here
As the band explains, About the Winter reveals “the sacred transfiguration of our many personal and musical influences into something greater than the sum of its parts.” Barbaro's compositions prioritize texture and expression over technical virtuosity. The band collaboratively crafts unforgettable experiences, whether they be emotional powerhouses, instances of profound clarity, or surrendering to beauty in the midst of daunting challenges.
An expansive vision of pastoral Americana comes into focus across About the Winter,beginning with lead single “Gardens,” which pairs Shelstad’s vulnerable and urgent vocal with the refined, slow-blooming instrumental interplay of his bandmates. Atwood called it “a spellbinding moment of raw emotion and wonder.” Exploring themes of uncertainty and desire, album opener “Apples to Apples” reflects on love and longing, offering a deeper insight into the simmering, ethereal textures that awaits listeners across the LP.
Barbaro Debuts “Apples to Apples,” The Enveloping Overture & Ethereal Final Preview of Forthcoming Album
Today, Minneapolis-based roots group Barbaro unveils their third and final single “Apples to Apples” ahead of their upcoming album, About the Winter, out October 20th via StorySound Records. Exploring themes of uncertainty and desire, the track is a reflection of love and longing that offers a deeper glimpse into the simmering, ethereal textures that await listeners across the LP. Harmonious vocals by Kyle Shelstad and Rachel Calvert are gracefully complemented by the serene instrumentation of Jason Wells, all of which is brought to life in a music video that combines intimate film footage with extreme elements of nature.
Listen to “Apple to Apples,” and watch the music video – directed by Elena Stanton and Jeremy Ylvisake
As Shelstad explains: “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.”
“Apples to Apples” follows recent single “Gardens,” a song that pairs Shelstad’s vulnerable and urgent vocal with the refined, slow-blooming interplay of his bandmates. Atwood hailed it as “a spellbinding moment of raw emotion and wonder.” Watch the official “Gardens” music video here, as well as the captivating “One x One,” showcasing more of the group’s atmospheric reimagining of string music traditions.
Barbaro’s “One x One” Is An Aching Blues - The Latest From New Album About the Winter
Today, the rising Minneapolis-based roots group Barbaro has released their second single, “One x One,” the latest release from About the Winter, a new album out October 20 via StorySound Record. The song exemplifies the album’s expansive, atmospheric take on roots music: From a cavernous and minimalistic soundscape, fiddler Rachel Calvert’s ringing voice emerges with a deliberate performance of vulnerability and power. Meanwhile, her bandmates — songwriter Kyle Shelstad on guitar and Jason Wells bass — ground the otherworldly sounds to a warmly strummed acoustic bedding.
As Shelstad explains:
When we first started working on "One x One," we immediately all agreed that Rachel should perform the lead vocals. Her voice fits the tune nicely and her delicate delivery of the lyrics brought a new dynamic to their meaning. The original lyrics of the song were improvised by Rachel as a satire, cracking jokes about the weird things people pay money for. While we really enjoyed the laughs, we all agreed this first iteration of the lyrics didn't fit the overall theme of the album. So a day or so before heading into the studio I wrote some new words for it.
For me “One x One” boils down to the unspoken expectation of oneself to be perceived by others as strong and confident, unweathered by storms and always forging ahead–something I have always personally struggled with. I hope listeners are left with a sense of contentment after listening to this song. While it comes across as a sad tune, its intent is to be one of vulnerability, reflection, comfort, and clarity.
This release comes after the release of their lead single “Gardens” a song that pairs Shelstad’s vulnerable and urgent vocal with the refined, slow-blooming instrumental interplay of his bandmates. Atwood called it “a spellbinding moment of raw emotion and wonder.”
Adventurous + Expansive Vision Of Pastoral Americana Comes Into Focus On New Album About the Winter
Barbaro — the burgeoning Minneapolis-based roots group who have become “one of the Midwest’s most in-demand acoustic acts” (Bluegrass Situation) — announces the October 20 release of About the Winter, their debut album for StorySound Records. About The Winter is a beautiful introduction to Barbaro, comprised of Kyle Shelstad (vocals and guitar), Rachel Calvert (vocals and fiddle), and Jason Wells (vocals and bass).
As the band explains, About the Winter reveals “the sacred transfiguration of our many personal and musical influences into something greater than the sum of its parts” and provides a confident expression of Barbaro’s musical evolution. Its pastoral Americana sound feels both traditional and progressive — though they incorporate roots instrumentation, Barbaro’s compositions value texture and gesture over technical prowess. The band works in concert to deliver indelible moments: emotional gut-punches, moments of clarity, and submissions to beauty in the face of overwhelming odds.
Barbaro — named after the beloved, tragically euthanized Kentucky Derby champion horse — recorded About the Winter during the winter of 2022 with Brian Joseph (Bon Iver, Sufjan Stevens, yMusic) at his The Hive studio, a refurbished barn outside of Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Joseph played a pivotal role in the album, engineering, mixing, and co-producing the album with Shelstad. Josephs helped the band craft a distinctive, enveloping sonic landscape that combined their acoustic instruments with a rich bed of synthetic sound — they cite electronic musician Jon Hopkins as a particular influence.
The songs on About The Winter alternate between Shelstad and Calvert on vocals, which lends Barbaro the ability to inhabit different characters whose ongoing dialogue propels the album forward with natural, almost play-like progression. From the shimmering album overture “Apples To Apples” on through the ghostly bluegrass throwdown “Ike’s Farewell,” Barbaro conjures up a varied and engaging inversion of roots music orthodoxy.
Shelstad founded Babaro as a duo in 2017 alongside Isaac Sammis, who, before departing the band after the birth of his second child, played on the sessions for About The Winter. Calvert joined at the end of 2017, and after some shuffling of musicians, Wells arrived in early 2019. Although coming from an almost exclusively classical music background, Wells was intrigued by what he heard in Barbaro, and was sold immediately after his first gig with them. Calvert, who also comes from a classical background, likens the band’s approach, through the song dynamics and their musical interactions, to playing in a classical quartet.
“Gardens” - Out now on storysound records
Alongside the album announcement, Barbaro shares “Gardens,” a song that pairs Shelstad’s vulnerable and urgent vocal with the refined, slow-blooming instrumental interplay of his bandmates. Shelstad says: “This tune is one of those that was written quite easily in one sitting, but took the band a while to finalize it. Looking back at voice memos, we started working on this one about three years ago. There was a clear vision for the composition, but took us a little to realize how each instrument can be used to accomplish it. The goal for the song was to be a long crescendo from start to finish. It starts with just guitar, then adds bass, then adds a simple counter melody on the banjo, then fiddle, etc. We like to think of it like building with Lego blocks, every six bars you add a new piece, a new color, until a nice little mosaic presents itself.” With his band gathering momentum amid a steady lead instrumental melody, Shelstad takes aim at the powers that reinforce an acquisition-centric, colonial mindset: “The empire is seen, edge of their lawns / hoping all their gardens grow."
The music video for “Gardens” was created by Lewis Klahr, a Los Angeles-based collage artist who uses found images and sound to explore the intersection of memory and history. Watch the official “Gardens” music video below.
