Barish - Rework Taylor Swift 8th June

When did your journey as a duo begin? 

We started playing and jamming together nearly three years ago when we met through the Norwich music scene but only really became Barish in November of 2023, which is when we began composing as a duo.

How would you describe your music (would you say elements of it have been influenced by Taylor)? 

Singer/songwriter soft-rock is probably the closest we can get to defining our genre. We’re both guitarists so we have an acoustic sound, but Jake’s production allows us to explore different styles. Jeanie started listening to Taylor in her Fearless era, and her songs were some of the first covers they performed as a budding musician.

Where do you look for inspiration for your music? 

Anywhere and everywhere. In terms of our tastes, we listen to a range of artists together from Sondheim to Kendrick Lamar, and discussion often follows a good old belting-out sesh in Jake’s car. One of our songs, Peace of Glass, was inspired by an incident involving Jake smashing the glass lid of a saucepan. Another of our songs grapples with the grief of heartbreak, so nothing’s off the table.

Describe your creative process! 

Generally, we sit in Jake’s room with our guitars and fiddle around with chords and melodies until something clicks. We fall into a routine involving kimchi flavoured noodles, rounds of tea and coffee, taking periodic trips to Big Tesco, eating vinegared chips for dinner and using episodes of The Mighty Boosh as rewards for our compositional achievements.

What inspired you both to get involved with ‘ReWork’? 

One night, the yeti of Tombland was chasing us through the backstreets of St Stephen’s trying to get our vinegary chips. As the yeti ravaged our helpless bodies, Jake cried out for help, but onlookers simply laughed and took their phones out to film it. From the January mist emerged Kitty Perrin wearing a superhero costume with the initials RW on her cape. “However can we repay you?” we gushed after she was finished slaying the beast. “Be in ReWork – but the Paul Simon one has a full lineup. Do you want to do Taylor Swift?” she replied, wiping yeti blood (which is purple) off her sparkly boots with the chip paper.

Why do you believe Taylor has become an icon in the music industry? 

Her ability to churn out album after album can’t be understated. Her work ethic leaves little to be desired, and she’s capitalised off drawing a distinction between her ‘Eras’. Jeanie thinks her more feminist content has also garnered a great deal of traction for the benefit of the movement. 

How are you planning on putting your own spin on the hits of Taylor? 

By slowing things down and darkening the feel of our chosen songs, extracting some of the more neurotic elements and distilling them into a gothic Barish treacle.

What importance do events like ‘ReWork’ have on the local music scene/ community of Norwich?

Since COVID, the music scene has struggled through challenges that threatened the livelihoods of local artists. For many Norwich musicians and residents, live music is a haven and a valuable source of community. We’re excited about ReWork because it’s a unique example of grassroots music events, encouraging appreciation for influential historic artists and giving a platform to emerging creatives. The biggest importance, however, is that it brings people together because when people come together it’s much harder for the yeti to pick us off individually.

What advice would you give to any aspiring musicians? 

Record yourself playing around on voice memos on your phone, even and especially when you don’t think what you’re coming up with is any good. If you want to start a band or work with other musicians, attend open mics and seek out someone whose sound or style you truly admire. Try not to think – just DO. We were talking the other day about how annoying and tragic it would have been if we’d given up years ago before we really started to improve. We’re thankful that we didn’t, so you shouldn’t either!

Have you got any more plans for 2024? 

We’re playing at the Norfolk & Norwich Festival, we’re exploring the possibility of collaborating with another Norwich band we’re into for a gig, and when Jake gets his act together we’re going to release our EP Lacuna, which Ariana Grande ripped our concept for. We’ve been sending non-stop emails to Universal but as of today, May 7th 2024, we’ve not had any response. Rest assured we’ve filed the necessary paperwork with the small claims court, so we’re confident we will see justice delivered.