Laura Barrett Sees Spreadsheets In Her Future

Laura Barrett's success can be attributed to a number of factors. She's a classically trained pianist. Her degree in linguistics gives her an uncommon edge in lyric writing. In recent years, she's become a full-time member of Toronto favourites the Hidden Cameras and Henri Faberge And The Adorables. It was an off-the-cuff cover song, however, that got the ball rolling on her solo career.

"There was a Weird Al tribute night happening," Barrett explains. "My debut as a kalimba player, in front of people, was playing 'Smells Like Nirvana.'"

Whether fate or luck are to thank, it was a fluke that brought Barrett to the kalimba — a thumb piano of African origin that she now flaunts as her signature sound. She was trolling eBay for electronic equipment and the tiny instrument suddenly appeared in her search results.

"I got one in an online auction, played around with it, and then started writing my own songs for it," Barrett recalls. "It's portable and it doesn't need any extra equipment to be heard. It's got a beautiful sound that I love, and I've changed my voice in response to it and its voice."

Popularity came quickly for Barrett and her kalimba. She soon found herself on a bill with Final Fantasy — what she calls her "first real show" — but had no merchandise to sell to potential fans. With little time to waste, Barrett stepped into a studio and in six days recorded her kalimba debut, Earth Sciences (which included the aforementioned Weird Al cover).

That disc will be re-released by her new label, Paper Bag Records, on Feb. 26. But Barrett's attention is currently focused on her debut full-length.

"I'm aiming to finish it by the end of March, so it'll be out three to four months after that," she says. "I'm not sure what the delay is all about, but I'm aware that there is a delay… I think it involves spreadsheets."

While Barrett waits for her disc to hit the streets, she plans to hit the road to show off her new songs. Nothing's been cemented yet, but she's hoping for trips across Canada and into the U.S.

"The majority of my set is performed solo, but my boyfriend has recently started accompanying me on glockenspiel and banjo," says Barrett. "Even though he's not a musician by trade, we've come up with something that works, and I have a set of bass pedals to replace my original band member [Richard Carnegie], who is now in the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra as their principle bass."

Here's where you can catch Barrett in the near future:

Feb. 4 Toronto, ON @ The Gladstone (Eyes On Toronto)
Feb. 5 Toronto, ON @ Silver Dollar (Beach Boys tribute)
March 1 Peterborough, ON @ The Underdog w/The Superfantastics
March 2 Hamilton, ON @ The Casbah w/The Superfantastics
March 3 Guelph, ON @ Salsateria w/The Superfantastics
March 4 Waterloo, ON @ Trepid House w/The Superfantastics
March 5 London, ON @ The Alex P Keaton w/The Superfantastics
March 9 Montreal, QC @ Casa Del Popolo