Whitehorse musician Jona Barr shares some of his latest musical finds
Barr's eclectic playlist these days includes Childish Gambino, Necking and Shintaro Sakamoto
Jona Barr has been involved in just about every part of the Yukon's music scene.
From his work as a musician with a number of acts, including his own project Old Cabin, to producing shows for the Splintered Craft Artspace, to organizing an upcoming music festival called Wonderhorse, Barr has seen, and heard, a lot of music.
So when we tapped him for this edition of Music That Matters, he wanted to talk about some of his latest finds.
"The last month I've been listening to [Seattle listener-supported station] KEXP every day," he said.
"It's so nice to get back into radio ... I listened to a lot of radio, as a kid I would say that's where the love music came from, making mixed tapes, waiting for the next song to come up. That was my passion."
Barr's first choice was from the British band Squid and their song The Cleaner.
"It's kind of like this weird Talking Heads, weirdo rock .. it's really fun. It's takes you a lot of different places."
Barr has been organizing a new music festival for Whitehorse, but the COVID-19 pandemic has already forced him to delay Wonderhorse until the fall. Vancouver punk band Necking will be on the list, whenever the festival happens.
"They just have a lot of energy, it's a young band, they're all young women," he said.
"They're heavy players, they play really well and the songs have some really good funny commentary on life today, being a young person, being anybody really."
Suddenly, by the American band Drugdealer, was Barr's third selection. Barr says the band's Michael Collins is a "dirtbag skateboarder from L.A. who plays piano really well and just writes great songs.
"This song is just a fun, head-bobbing dance tune," he added.
Barr's fourth pick was 12.38 from Childish Gambino.
"I didn't listen to a lot of hip hop until I started to do all those shows with the youth in Whitehorse [at Splintered Craft]," he said. "This song has lots of cool changes and lots of really cool sounds."
Barr's final selection comes from Japanese artist Shintaro Sakamoto.
"There's some weird, weird stuff," he said. "But it's got a lot of cool percussion and I think people will like it."