Barnaby Weir releases solo album

The musical heartbeat of The Black Seeds and Fly My Pretties has struck out on his own with a new album, and the style may surprise a few people, writes Mike Dinsdale.
Barnaby Weir's on a bit of a mission.
After more than a decade at the helm of iconic Kiwi roots act The Black Seeds - and looking after the weird world that is Fly My Pretties - Weir's taken a big step sideways and has released his first solo album.
But fans of the smooth grooves of The Black Seeds or the chaotic beauty of Fly My Pretties, may be in for a bit of a surprise: Tarot Card Rock is 12 slabs of stonking country rock, a sort of alt-country for the modern man (or woman).
It's quite a departure from what he produces with those other acts, but it's something Barnaby's been hoping to do for years and part of his mission now is to get people to listen to the album in its entirety to fully appreciate it. That though, he accepts, may be a bit of a problem, what with many people loading music into iTunes or similar and listening to the tracks on random. It used to be that when an album was first bought it was heard from start to finish, several times over, to get a true feel and understanding for it. The artists themselves carefully constructed an album so that it made sense, taking on a form of its own and becoming a single beast where every part fits in perfectly with the previous and next, all culminating in a mighty crescendo that makes you want to press the play button again.
At least that's what a good album should do.
And Tarot Card Rock is a pretty good album that perfectly displays many of Weir's influences and continues New Zealand's love affair for things a little bit country and a little bit rock 'n' roll.
So why now? "It's been a long time coming to be honest. Black Seeds are not just a reggae band and we play very eclectic music that I don't think can really be categorised," he says.
"And I've always been into rock music and country so thought now was right. I'm not quitting Black Seeds or anything.
But I'm 32 and thought it was time I did this." The album is shaped by Weir's travels and influences and there's a clear Kiwi tinge, despite the heavy leaning on American roots.
It was written by Weir and longtime friend and sparring partner Craig Terris (of slow-burning, alt-country band Cassette) with another two songs written with veteran Dutch country outfit Rootsclub and one Fly My Pretties song Old Friend that also fitted the album.
And like all good music it captures and evokes a number of moods perfectly - you can almost feel yourself walking beside Weir as he goes on his journey. "I wanted to tell some stories with Tarot Card Rock and I think people will be pretty receptive to this sort of music. This is sort of my 101 of music, getting to show my influences and things I've picked up on my travels," he says.
"Hopefully it doesn't scare people off, but people are smart and prepared to listen to different kinds of music, even if they didn't expect it. And I hope it gets people to explore some of those earlier influences.
"It's not trying to reinvent music, that's not my role or aim. My aim is to make songs and music I like that fit together as an album."
And he's done that well, with the 12 tracks running smoothly from opener Tarot Card Rock to closer I'm Coming Home. I've tried listening to it in bits, a track or two here and there, but it does make far more sense from start to finish.
"I've tried to make an album that the whole family can listen to. I'm looking at different ways of exploring music and hopefully people will be interested in exploring what I'm doing rather than turning off."
So would he be surprised if people switched off because it was not what they were expecting.
"People tend to make their minds up pretty quickly. If people like The Black Seeds I'd ask them to fully listen to the album, they'll find things in there that they may not expect, but will like," Weir says.
"This is just the beginning of the next stage of the journey for me. I've always been into music like this, so it's not a surprise for me or those that know me well.
"Being able to start afresh like this is very refreshing and rewarding. I've got a two-album deal with EMI so you'll have to wait and see what comes next."
For now though, give Tarot Card Rock a good listen, or even three, in its entirety and I'm sure you won't be disappointed.
Tarot Card Rock was released nationally on Monday.
For more check out http://www.myspace.com/barnabyweir.