Michael Barrow & The Tourists is an indie rock band from Provo, UT that blends elements of folk with vintage soul. Their songs have generated millions of streams on Spotify, and they’ve opened for artists like Ben Rector, The National Parks, and Sub-Radio. The band consists of Michael Barrow (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Mac Wright (lead guitar), Reed Perkins (drums, percussion), Alessandro Improta (bass), and Zach Collier (keys). Check out the exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you all come from and how it all got started?
Zach Collier: Back in 2016, Michael and I had just completed a songwriting class at BYU in Provo, UT. He and I were in different class periods, but we had a mutual friend in common named Grant who loved Michael’s music and booked some time in a local recording studio for him to record his first song. Michael didn’t have a band at the time, so Grant reached out to me to get a group together to support Michael in the studio. We showed up, met Michael for the first time, and got to work. We just clicked. After the recording session, we looked at each other and were like, “So… how about we make this a permanent group?” And so Michael Barrow & The Tourists was born.
2. Did you guys have any formal training or are you self-taught?
Zach Collier: It’s a mix. Our bassist, Sandro, is actually self-taught. Michael has formal training… but as a drummer. He was in marching band in high school. Reed drummed all growing up and was in some prestigious drumlines in college, and Mac is actually adjunct faculty at Brigham Young University as a guitar teacher. My mom was a piano and voice teacher. I think out of all of us, Mac and I have “the most” formal training – we both graduated from BYU with Commercial Music degrees. But Michael is self taught on guitar and voice, and he’s incredible. And I’m arguably the worst musician in the band. So it goes to show that formal training only means so much. [Laughs]
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘Michael Barrow & The Tourists’?
Zach Collier: Oh, man. We’re all big John Mayer fans. Aside from that, we also really like Donovan Woods, Theo Katzman, The Paper Kites, and so many others.
Michael Barrow: As for our name… the summer after we recorded together for the first time, I moved to Alaska to drive tour buses. That’s where I wrote most of our first record, Juneau.
Zach Collier: Michael would play songs for his passengers, and I remember him showing us a selfie he took at the front of the bus with all these tourists behind him smiling and waving. Michael’s really the driving force behind this group, and we’re all happy to be along for the ride. So the name is kind of symbolic in that way.
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
Zach Collier: I think the band sits squarely in between blues, folk, and pop rock. At its core though, our music is really built around Michael and his authenticity. He doesn’t sing anything unless he feels it. Michael’s lyrics and vocals are so earnest, and that makes us as musicians want to perform the same way. A lot of people say they love Michael’s voice, his lyrics, and our guitar solos. Mac Wright is our third lead guitarist, but each one has done a really good job at pouring their hearts out into their performances to match the intensity of Michael’s storytelling.
Michael Barrow: That “emulating others” bit is so, so true. I have distinct memories of learning songs by Jason Mraz or John Mayer and trying to match their vocal tones. I would hold on to the ‘n’ sound at the end of words for too long like Jason, or get all breathy like John. I think what really helped me find my own voice was writing my own songs. I suddenly didn’t have the luxury of copying someone else, so I had to figure out how I wanted my own material to sound.
6. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative and entertainment?
Michael Barrow: Music, in my opinion, is the most powerful medium on earth. Even instrumental pieces with no overt lyrical message have the power to influence our emotions. Because of that, I always try to be careful with what I convey. I don’t personally feel qualified to influence others politically or socially, so I tend to avoid those topics in my music. Instead, I try to write songs that communicate emotions in the most honest way possible. I write songs to provide a space in which people can feel emotionally heard, understood, and related to.
7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it, or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
Michael Barrow: I mean, I wouldn’t be upset with a slightly bigger paycheck! But it’s been an incredibly rewarding experience up to this point. We’ve received countless messages from friends and fans around the world telling us how much our music means to them. People sing along at shows – how crazy is that?! The fact that something I created means enough to someone for them to spend time to learn it is immensely fulfilling.
8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do you usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?
Zach Collier: Our songwriting process has evolved over the years. Our first record was primarily written by Michael and then arranged by The Tourists. He came to us with these acoustic tunes, and we built everything around them. Our next full band effort, an EP called Something New, was more collaborative – but mostly in songwriting pairs. Band members would share ideas with each other, flesh out an idea, and then present it to the full band for feedback and tweaks. Clover, our second full length, was really the first record where songs were written all together in a room with every member contributing all at once. Most songs were still written in songwriting pairs – and some, like “6,023,” were written by Michael and arranged by the band. But there are a lot of songs like “Tell Me How To Get To You” and “Clover” that were highly collaborative.
9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
Michael Barrow: Well, if you’ve listened to a few of our songs, you may have noticed that there’s a running theme of being terrible at relationships. Love has always been a difficult thing for me (wow, I’m so unique), so that’s naturally been a topic I’ve explored quite a lot through songwriting. One person, in particular, has been at the center of most of my songs. That journey, those highs, and lows, has been emotionally exhausting. But it’s also been the driving force for some pretty good music, in my opinion.
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
Michael Barrow: That gal most of my songs are about? I proposed to her yesterday. She said yes! So THAT’S pretty huge. I’m going to need to learn how to write happy songs! Apart from that, it’s just a joy to be in a band with my best friends. We’ve reached thousands of people around the globe, we’ve traveled to new places, we’ve touched a lot of lives – I just feel really blessed.
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