EDMONTON -- An iconic Canadian band is giving fans a chance to see them stripped down every week.
Barenaked Ladies have started an online concert series called “Selfie Cam Jam” where the members play songs from their own homes. Or a park. Or a lake.
“There’s nothing to it,” says singer Ed Robertson. “There’s no other layers to it. It’s us playing, flaws and all, and we just throw it together and put it out there and it’s the immediacy and rawness of it that people are really responding to.”
The four members have been self-isolating for more than a month. Robertson says it’s the longest amount of time they’ve been off the road since the group formed more than 30 years ago.
“You’d think we’d be like, 'Great I don’t have to go to the UK and tour, good I can use the break.' But it was heartbreaking.”
He says it’s been a difficult adjustment to play songs virtually with the band instead of standing on stage together.
“There’s not a lot of people who can relate to being in a band for 32 years. It’s weird. It’s a job but also a marriage and this creative outlet and you have this support network and all of these inside jokes with these people. It’s such an amazing and intimate and strange thing.”
He says the “Selfie Cam Jam” is helping the band still do what they love and help others.
Each session, the band performs one of their classic songs and directs viewers to different charities. Barenaked Ladies were also part of the Stronger Together concert which raised over $6 million for Canadian food banks. Robertson says the first show the band ever played was for the Toronto food bank.
“The fact that we can do it in a weird time like this and make people feel a little more connected, make them feel a little bit of hope and point to charities where people can help out, I just feel I’m in a real fortunate position," he says.
Robertson says he hopes things get back to normal and the band can hit the road again. But with a library of 12 albums and another record in the making, the band isn’t going to run out of songs to jam out on their selfie cams.
“We’re good. We’ve got lots of material,“ laughs Robertson.
