These reviews often end up touching on how the
materials available affect the impression of the performer. There are so many
different ways of presenting yourself, and so many bands who are unsigned and
in charge of their own image, that there's a lot of room for variation.
In the case of Phil Barnes, there are many videos,
but only one is a traditional music video. Otherwise there are question and
answer sessions and time with friends. For music, there are more live
recordings (primarily Live From the Culture Room, which incorporates at
lot of partial covers) and remixes than traditional recorded tracks.
Putting that together, it feels more like Barnes is
that guy you know who plays gigs than that musician you have been hearing. There's
not necessarily anything wrong with that, but it can be hard to market.
This may not be an issue as he seems to get a fair
amount of work opening for other acts. There are not currently any dates
listed, but his bio shows over 900 shows since 2010, which doesn't seem bad.
The songs are pleasant, and you can easily hum or
sing along, but things stay pretty mellow. This is not unusual for solo
acoustic performances, but one reason I would be interested in more studio
recordings is to see if there are different moods in his repertoire.
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