Taking a break from catering back home in Oxford, Mississippi, Jim Barrett and Ben Yarbrough have been recording their light-hearted jams under the name Young Buffalo. Just a few years and two EPs has been more than enough to pull them from their home into a national tour. Tomorrow night, Young Buffalo will be playing at The Frequency along with their touring partner Blessed Feathers.
The young duo has caught the ear of critics with their bright sound and instrumentalism that far surpasses the expectations for a pair of just-over-20-somethings. Their latest self-titled EP has exposed the group’s ability to draw on a healthy range of styles, from the classic psychedelic elements on “Baby Demons” to the relaxed pop of “Upstairs”.
Though the duo as Young Buffalo has only released two EPs, the Jim and Ben have played together on and off since 2005 when the two were starting high school. When asked about how things have developed since then, Jim tells Jonk Music, “I think we’ve both grown a lot. We were pretty dumb when we both started writing. Our song titles have definitely improved.”
Song titles aside, their years of collaboration show. Young Buffalo’s first EP, Young von Prettylips, is a fast and loose collection of youthful, high-energy tracks as embodied in “Catapilah” and “Full Metal Whacket”. The subsequent EP Young Buffalo tones it down just enough to usher in a new, more intricate and thoughtful sound.
“We’re really proud of the whole thing,” Jim says. “It’s kind of weird that I still like listening to most of the songs on the EP. That normally doesn’t happen.” When pushed to take favorites, Jim reports, “If I had to pick a few that I think really progressed from their initial versions, I’d have to say ‘Baby Demons’ and ‘Nature Boy’.”
The boys have come a long way from playing around in Oxford. Their music has brought them a record contract, a national tour (international if you count Canada), and an excuse not to cater full-time. I asked Jim about highlights and lowlights from their recent touring, and he took a moment to reflect. “We haven’t been touring recently,” he replied. “I guess we did some dates in September, but that seems like a long time ago. … A major highlight was doing some dates with the Arctic Monkeys. Biggest lowlight was driving back home from touring in Seattle. That sucked.”
With a new tour underway, Jim and Ben are eager to be back on the road, guitars in hand. Stop in and kick back at The Frequency this Friday night for a double duo show from Young Buffalo and Blessed Feathers.