
First and foremost, Happy New Year! I hope everyone is doing wonderful. Personally, 2011 was pretty amazing. I hope the same goes for 2012, for myself, my loved ones and all of you.
My new album "40 Miler" is nearly complete. This past weekend I got on freight trains alone to review the new recordings. I needed to hear the songs and sequence and the albums over all feel from a different perspective. Rolling through Southside Virginia riding loaded coal, an empty boxcar and even my first ride in a caboose, I finally decided on the songs that will make the record. Tracking is complete. Sequence is complete. The art work is nearly complete. Now it's time to mix and master. There is still no release date, however, a date will be announced very soon.
Of course, once the album comes out I'll be back on the road. Lots and lots of planning is in the works so I'll be seeing many of you sooner than later, and I'm looking real forward to it.
Check back in for tour dates and the album release date. Until then, thank you.
Tim Barry
January 9, 2012
Richmond, Virginia
"Amen", from the new album 40 Miler due out early 2012 on Chunksaah Records. Hope ya'll enjoy!
Just a quick update here.
Other than a handful of one off shows, I've been laying low at home in Richmond, Virginia most of the summer. This coming Sunday (August 21) I play SOUNDFEST in Seattle. Then in late September I'll be heading over to Europe for a short tour, mainly playing Germany and the UK. At the end of October I'll be down in Gainesville playing the FEST, and that should conclude my shows for the year.
My main focus recently has been writing a new record. And it is finally falling into place. In fact, I've never been this excited about music. And much of that excitement is due to the energy that local musicians and collaborators like Julie Karr, Josh Small and Andrew Alli have brought to the project. I can not wait to record these new songs with Lance Koehler at Minimum Wage Studio here in Richmond. There has yet to be a release date, or even a recording schedule. I hate to rush creativity. But I should have some news about all of that in the near future.
Oh, and Ross Trimmer designed a new shirt/hoodie for me. It's available exclusively through my store, which can be accessed from my site. Here's the design:
Thanks!
Tim Barry
Richmond, VA
August 2011
"I'll tell you what's so good about it. For the first time ever, all 6 of Tim Barry's Chunksaah re-presses (including the fancy embossed and colored vinyl) will be available at the show, 8pm Friday 4/22, The Asbury Lanes! We will be giving away one full set of CDs (3) and one full set of vinyl (3) as door prizes. The Pete will be The DJ! There will be cake! Get there!" -Chunksaah
Chunksaah Records is proud to announce the re-release of TIM BARRY’s “28th & Stonewall,” “Manchester” and “Rivanna Junction” albums in all formats (CD, LP and Digital) - May 10, 2011. The CD versions will all be re-issued as digipacks and the LP versions will be on embossed reverse-board with colored vinyl (translation: fancy!!!)
Here’s what Chunksaah Records had to say about the re-issues: “Tim Barry has long been a member of our family and we are excited to expand the ways in which we are spreading the good word of music and family worldwide! We will be officially celebrating on Good Friday (aka Friday April 22nd, 2011) at the Asbury Lanes, in our fair city-by-the-sea - Asbury Park, NJ. Who knew that Tim would turn Yankee? haha.”
I hope everyone is doing well! There will be a lot to announce soon for 2011. But first I'd like to extend a heartfelt "thank you" to Travis Stom for re-doing my entire website. If you have visited this site in the past, you know that it was becoming outdated. And if you tried visiting from your phone, then you know it wouldn't load at all. Travis spent months between his day job working out all the kinks, and I can not thank him enough. So here it is, new and improved. There is an ONLINE STORE now, more videos, pictures and so on. And we will continue to improve upon it! Thank you Travis!
Here's what's up. I have tons of US SHOWS coming up. They will be announced sporadically, so keep checking the "TOUR" section of the site for updates. There are a bunch announced already. As of today I am officially announcing an AUSTRALIA TOUR IN APRIL! I'm also playing NEW ZEALAND for the first time on the run. I'm stoked to head back to one of my favorite places in the world, and feel lucky to be able to. There will be more updates coming soon. Just keep checking back in.
Also, folks have been asking, and the answer is "yes." I am working on a new album. However I feel no need to rush creativity. I've been home in Virginia demoing songs for awhile. But as of now, there is no timeline for recording or release determined. I'll keep y'all posted.
Take care for now. I'll give you guys a heads up on more plans soon. Thank you as always for you support. It means the world to me.
Tim Barry
Richmond, VA
January 12, 2011
That’s it for the year. I’m just home from a short string of dates up in Eastern Canada. Another amazing adventure with a great group of people - The Cavaliers! and Northcote. I’ll play one more show, a benefit here in Richmond, VA for a radical lending library called The Flying Brick (Dec. 4, 2010). After that it’s time to lay real low. It will be a nice change to NOT live out of my back pack after eleven months of doing so. So for the time being it’s back to work at the Richmond Ballet and time to sort through the 25 some odd songs I’ve begun to write while on the road this year. And time to think about what’s next.
I’ll see you guys down the road. And thank you for the one you’ve given me thus far…
TIM BARRY
November 29, 2010
Richmond, VA
It’s been a one hell of a year so far. I know I’m lucky.
I’ve been home a few days and can’t help but reflect. Since January I’ve toured with nearly all of my favorites; Chuck Ragan, Ben Nichols, Frank Turner, Against Me! Todd Beene, The Gaslight Anthem, Ninja Gun, Possessed by Paul James, Canada’s The Cavaliers!, Jon Gaunt, Red Clay River out of Roanoke, Va and more. I’ve clocked more miles than possible to track and played more shows than I can count. And none of it would be worth it if it weren’t for the hospitality, encouragement and support of both my road families and my loved one’s back home in Virginia. Thank you. That’s all I got. A simple thank you.
In the short term, I’m keeping it semi - low key for a couple months. August and September I will only be doing a few regional shows and a couple fly in dates (TBA). I’ll also begin the long process of sorting through all of the new songs I’ve been writing. Although there is no date set, I do look forward to getting back in the studio. But it will be a good amount of time before recording kicks back in.
Come October the pace will pick back up with specific US dates. And to my Northern Neighbors, please keep your ear to the ground for some rumblings. I’ll be doing a proper tour up your way that has yet to be announced. Dates will follow.
All that aside, I’ve gotten a lot of correspondence in regards to a show that will be played in a parking lot near 15th & Broad Street here in Richmond, Virginia. The concept is direct action to increase pressure on the city and Virginia Commonwealth University to acknowledge and memorialize what lays below it - a slave burial ground. The event, we hope will bring more outside attention to the idiocy the city has perpetuated by not embracing true respect of those who built our city. Please stay in touch with me regarding this action. The planning phase has just begun. There is much to be discussed and coordinated. I will keep all of those interested up to speed on this protest. NO DATES HAVE BEEN SET AS OF THIS UPDATE.
All my love.
Tim Barry
Richmond, VA
August, 2010
Hello from home, I hope everyone is doing wonderful.
A friend of mine from Kansas City sent me this quote by Robert Lewis Stevenson.
"I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move."
To me, that quote makes sense. And it helps me make sense of these circles I've been driving (and riding) around the country for all these years. This past tour has been long. Long and amazing. It started in Canada on January 27th and ended here in Richmond, VA on April 10. I've played more shows than I can count. And I've played with some of the best folks I have ever known. Bands like Against Me! Chuck Ragan, Red Clay River, Possessed by Paul James, Ninja Gun and so many more.
And when the odds were stacked against us we still made every show. When the transmission busted in my van, Matt Gere (my Tour Manager) stayed with it back in Indiana to get fixed while Red Clay River squeezed me, my dog Emma and my guitar into their van so I could make the shows. Meanwhile Matt limped my van back to Richmond running on 7 cylinders and faulty breaks, where Sarah Kiesler lent us her little Honda Civic so we could get to all the East Coast dates. Then up in Brooklyn, Red Clay River got their van with all their gear in it stolen, with only two more shows to play. A few weeks earlier, Konrad of Possessed by Paul James and Vanessa Jean (of Lubrication Zine fame) had a bad accident on MLK in Oakland, putting a incredible damper on even the idea of getting on stage. But the shows were still played. The shows were played with broken gear, broken hands and with out voice. But they were played. Often with the help of friends and strangers. I think at this point, it's all we know how to do. To KEEP GOING. To keep moving. To ask for help when in need and to make it to our destinations no matter how hard. And then go again.
You know what this is leading up to. It's a simple thank you. It's a huge THANK YOU to everyone who has helped me and my people along the way. For coming to the shows, for putting them on, for putting us up, for putting up with us, for breakfast at dinner time and beers at breakfast.
This life is short and this world small. I'm thankful for it.
ONWARD TO AUSTRALIA! STOKED!
All my love,
Tim Barry
Richmond, VA
April 2010
Tim Barry’s been kicking around the musical underground for nearly 20 years, first as the front man for Virginia punk heroes Avail, and more recently as a singer-songwriter with a penchant for constructing beautiful folk and country tunes. Dude’s been particularly busy the past few years, gigging relentlessly, including a couple months on the inaugural Revival Tour with fellow travelers Chuck Ragan, Ben Nichols, and Tom Gabel, and generating a steady stream of recordings.
In late 2009 he released a split 7” EP with pal Frank Turner (a co-release by Epitaph and Suburban Home), while 2010 saw the arrival of 28th and Stonewall, Barry’s third full length recording, a masterful collection of heartsick dirges, wry commentary, and upbeat stomp-alongs (Suburban Home). The summer and fall of 2010 brought in a slew of shows to Australia (with the Revival Tour), a nationwide tour with The Gaslight Anthem, and a handful of shows in Canada with some dear friends.

With this barrage of new music on the way, he wanted to give listeners a little more insight into his life and craft. Consider the following text an alternative to the standard Wikipedia-style bio.
The most recent album, 28th and Stonewall, was recorded at Minimum Wage studio with longtime collaborator and co-producer Lance Koehler. It was released in January 2010 on Suburban Home Records.
Released in 2008 on Suburban Home records, Tim enlisted the help of Buz Blurr who describes himself as "a retired railroad man who indulged in the folk art tradition of making chalk drawings on the railcars as an announcement of presence, and diversion from boredom. Although against the rules of the railroad, it was a common enough practice by the employees and hobos, by ignoring enforcement it was de facto tacit approval, for I dispatched drawings for 32 years of my 41 years of employment without interference." Buz resides in Arkansas (which he colorfully describes as 'Surrealville') and is well known for his postage stamp and train art. Ryan Patterson of Coliseum put the entire package together.
Barry says his storytelling approach is simple: live, experience, and write about it. "I always say, 'If you don't live or you don't do nothing, you'll have nothing to write about.' That may be a Woody Gutherie ripoff, but it's true," he explains.
Like Woody Guthrie, Tim Barry says he simply writes about what he knows, and what he knows is the American south, in particular, his hometown of Richmond, Virginia, a blue collar NASCAR city rapidly going upscale. As a solo songwriter Tim Barry's becoming more of a storyteller, describing the lives and deaths of people on the margins. The characters in Tim Barry's songs are, for the most part, beset by bad luck. They're ex-con drifters dwelling in vans; working folks struggling to live from paycheck to paycheck; hobos riding the rails with no particular destination in mind; people asking for answers in the wake of tragedy. In the spirit of Bruce Springsteen, Tim Barry relates their tales without whitewashing their flaws or descending into rhetoric - and that, arguably, is Laurel Street's greatest triumph.
Suburban Home Records in conjunction with Epitaph Records are excited to announce the split 7" between Richmond, Virginia's Tim Barry and London, England's Frank Turner. Tim Barry contributes "Thing of the Past" and Frank Turner contributes an acoustic version of "Try This At Home". The 7" comes with an mp3 download coupon.
Performed and recorded on June 10, 2008 at Ms. Kieslers 2nd Grade Class.
Chunksaah Records is the brainchild of The Bouncing Souls, who rather than give up on their dream decided on the "d.i.y." approach to the record industry. It quickly became a family affair; symbolically named in 1993 after its benefactor Timmy Chunks (notorious for his Queens-aah accentahh).
Mutiny isn't just the name of this company, it's also a fitting descriptor of the way its partners have dismissed the typical public relations business model and set their own course in the creative arts field.
"Red Clay River is keeping the sounds of ghosts riding through the holler on their four-board pine coffins. And they're comin for you boy, they're comin for you."
"From poignant political jabs from a self-proclaimed “rube” to songs about escaping the fate of life growing up in the only town you know. Keeping faith in something: be it love, hard times, family, friends or good tunes played from the heart on the front porch. “Restless Rubes” allows you to feel the plight of the Southern small town working class band."
"Ragan knows a thing or two about paying his dues: since the early nineties he’s co-fronted the legendary punk act Hot Water Music and over the past few years he’s released a string of well-received solo acoustic efforts in the spirit of fellow folk troubadours like Steve Earle and Pete Seeger."
When he's not on stage supporting Tim, Josh is out kicking it on his own and releasing amazing records like "Juke" on Suburban Home Records. Buy the deluxe set here!
Founded in 1992, Eastman Guitars makes hand-crafted guitars and mandolins for such artists as Tim Barry, Chuck Ragan, and some guy named Jimmy Buffet.
The Revival Tour is an acousitc collaborative event featuring artists such as Frank Turner, Chuck Ragan, Ben Nichols, Tim Barry, and many others. This year the tour will be heading to the UK and Europe in the Fall of 2011 with Brian Fallon of Gaslight Anthem, Chuck Ragan, and many more!
Nicole Kibert is a freelance photographer based in Tampa, FL working under the moniker of elawgrrl. Nicole specializes in live music photography and enjoys capturing the essence and movement of live music performances. Nicole’s photos have appeared in gallery exhibits, records and CDs, music publications, websites, blogs, and of course, Facebook and Tumblr.
Formed in 2007, Kitchen Table Legs is a small RVA based screen printing and graphic design shop. They specialize in printing t-shirts, sweatshirts, and most other apparel, along with any kind of paper/flatstock printing.
Part owned by a native VA girl, this steel town print shop can put ink on damn near anything you can hold still. Their work and support can be seen all over RVA - bands, businesses, etc. They work hard and take much pride in what they do and who they do it for.
Staying busy and making quality tattoos daily, Ross Trimmer is a local artist working at True Tattoo in Richmond, Virginia.