Today we’d like to introduce you to Barry Fontenot.
Barry, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
I initially came to Chicago for Law School. I was planning to go to the University of Richmond, or somewhere low-key on the East Coast, but, at the last minute, I was offered a full ride at Chicago-Kent, which decided the matter for me; there’s no price quite as alluring as “free.”
I arrived in Chicago a relatively experienced performer, but the cities I’d lived in, welcoming though the music scenes were, didn’t have much of an appetite for local acts, so I didn’t get very far, except in the sense that I was able to write a lot of material and hone my craft.
Anyhow, I got here in August of 2017, and the first thing I did on the night I arrived was visit the Wednesday open mic at Gallery Cabaret, in Bucktown. I remember it was Wednesday, because the hostess, the incomparable Violet of local favorite “Doctor Death Crush,” performed a miniature set on piano before the open-mic itself began, and just blew my mind. That experience really gave me a feel for the talent-density in Chicago. Over the following six months, while attending school, I visited open mics across town and met a bunch of other talented musicians; fortunately for me, some of them really vibed with my original material! and a loose collective formed, eventually becoming The Fountains!
We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
I’m a singer-songwriter, in principle. Genre-wise, things have always been a bit slapdash; I don’t know how to read music, and, while I’ve listened to quite a bit of it, I don’t have the technical vocabulary to articulate the essence of any one genre with much fidelity. I guess if I had to call it something, I’d go with “Alternative Soul.”
I’ve always been obsessed with language. My songs tend to be driven by their lyrics, though I tend to write groove-first. I start with myself—my life, my experiences, my self-concept—and look for a sentiment; something about the world at large, about love, or just about my successes and failures and how I’ve come to process them.
Then, I meditate on that sentiment while playing my guitar, and I find a chord progression and rhythm that feel “true.” Once I have that, I just let myself loose; I vocally solo over the progression until I find the right melody. By the time I have the melody, progression, rhythm and cadence, the lyrical possibilities have already been narrowed to such a point that it’s generally pretty easy to tell what scans and what doesn’t; I’ve had time to come to a mature understanding of the context of what I’m trying to say— at that point, it practically says itself.
I don’t know if I’d say my songs have a consistent message, at least in terms of content; they’re generally about a specific event or feeling. If there’s a thematic connection, however, I suppose all my songs are rooted in a sense of ambition born from a feeling of incompletion; I guess “human irredentism” is the message.
My PURSUIT of music, however, does have a specific purpose; I want to use it to bring attention to my advocacy. As I briefly mentioned earlier, I’m in Law School at the moment; my focus is on immigration law, and my goal is to make myself useful to the vulnerable and marginalized communities whose lack of citizenship, along with its accompanying rights and protections, make them easy prey for the more pitiless and cruel elements of society. In large part, I’m pursuing music to give myself another way to engage with the people I’m trying to persuade. I find that people will open their minds to a lot more than one would think, provided they like the speaker; entertaining people is a good way to make them like you, basically.
The sterotype of a starving artist scares away many potentially talented artists from pursuing art – any advice or thoughts about how to deal with the financial concerns an aspiring artist might be concerned about?
There’s no silver bullet for financial hardship, and the exact method of escape from one’s exact situation is, by its nature, context-dependent, but the way I make it through the rough patches, be they financial or otherwise, is by focusing on the fact that, for a creative soul, creative expression is a need, not a want. You wouldn’t willingly give up food or water due to financial difficulties; you’d do whatever was necessary to get your hands on them. If art is THE thing you have to do, then you should be desperate in your passion for it.
Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
Barry and The Fountains are all over Chicago, these days! If you’re interested in checking us out, we have a weekly residency at @North Bar, a happening spot at the intersection of North and Ashland, where we play sets with a variable lineup of local musicians we admire. Like our Facebook page and follow us on Instagram at @barryandthefountains, if you’d like updates on shows, and contact us at barryandthefountains@gmail.com
for bookings and other inquiries!
Contact Info:
- Phone: 2252769506
- Email: barryandthefountains@gmail.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/barryandthefountains
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/voxkakumeika
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/voxkakumeika
Image Credit:
Julia Sky
Jaret Ferratusco
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