Review Fix Exclusive: Barton Stanley David Talks Crest And More

Review Fix chats with singer/songwriter Barton Stanley David, who discusses his new album, Crest.

Review Fix: How did you originally get involved in music?

Barton Stanley David: I’ve been playing music one way or another all my life. As a kid I played piano by ear and eventually taught myself guitar as a teenager. I started writing songs around that time. 

Review Fix: How does being from Texas make you a better musician?

David: I think music is in the water in Texas. I was born at Baylor Hospital, right next to Deep Ellum, which has such deep musical history. Growing up I was surrounded by Texas music, whether it was Willis Alan Ramsey or The Toadies or Lyle Lovett or Erikah Badyu. There are so many extremely talented artists in Texas. 

Review Fix: What were the biggest challenges on this album?

David: The biggest challenge on Crest was scheduling all the great people who worked on it. Engineers, players, producers etc were overwhelmed coming out of the pandemic. Some were working on huge projects at the time, others left for big tours that had been delayed. My co-producer Jeff Saenz had a tragic accident midway through the album, which was an extreme challenge. Luckly, the smoothest part of the process was the music itself. 

Review Fix: How do you feel now that it’s complete?

David: I’m so proud of the album and excited to get these songs on stage. Making the record was an all-consuming process for me the past 18 months, so it’s definitely a relief to finally have it out in the world. 

Review Fix: What does Cicada do that the other tracks don’t?

David: Cicada has the most Texas flavor to it, and is one we probably spent the most time on in terms of trying to create a certain atmosphere. It has a real sense of place.

I wrote Cicada when my wife and I were first seeing one another and were living in different cities. The lyrics are a snapshot of that time, and definitely set the stage.

Review Fix: How important are the lyrics to that track?

David: The line “The city is made of promises, but I’m too old to wait” is the one that stands out for me. New York can keep hooked on the promise of a certain kind of life. You can see it and even get close to it, but you can’t quite have it. For me, after ten years, it was time to let that go and move forward. 

Review Fix: What lessons do you want to teach people through this track?

David: I think the lesson there, if there is one, is that perspectives and priorities change as you get older, and that’s natural. 

Review Fix: What other songs stand out the most to ya here?

David: “All Ways” is probably the one that we all were most excited about in the studio. There’s a hopefulness and an energy there that inspired us and will hopefully connect with people. 

Review Fix: How does your sound differ live, from the studio?

David: My sound live is pretty close to what you hear on the record. I play with a full band whenever possible, but solo shows are a little more intimate and present the songs in more of a storytelling way. 

Review Fix: What have your band mates added to your sound you didn’t have before?

David: My bandmates bring their own flavor and personality to the music, which is what’s great about collaborating. I’m usually very specific on the parts I map out for them, but I love it when they surprise me. 

Review Fix: What was it like working with David Schiffman and Shane Stein?

Dave worked on some of my favorite records from Tom Petty to the Jayhawks to Audioslave. We were very much on the same page, and he really elevated the songs to the next level.

Shane is a brilliant guy in addition to being a long time friend, and he has great musical instincts. He was involved in every aspect of the album, and I was thankful to have him.

Review Fix: What’s next for you?

Next up is getting a tour together and getting these songs out on the road. I’m very much looking forward to that.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14230 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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