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Even though their singer quit last year, Barenaked Ladies still rock BNL 2.0
By JOHN BENSON
When news spread last year that singer Steven Page was leaving the Barenaked Ladies (BNL), fans wondered whether the alternative pop-rock Canadian act would continue. Quickly, the remaining band members vowed to go on as a quartet, with the first step being this spring’s new release “All in Good Time.” Now comes the supporting tour, which features new tunes and old favorites. BNL plays Cleveland on Wednesday at the Nautica Pavilion.
Even though it’s BNL 2.0, singer-guitarist Ed Robertson says at times he feels like he has to re-introduce the band to its cult following.
“Honestly, I felt it before the record came out,” said Robertson, calling from outside Dallas. “It was a real relief for me to put the record out and get out on the road and do shows. Before the record came out, people were asking, ‘What are you guys going to do?,’ ‘Can you do it?’ and ‘What will it be like?’ So now the record is out, I don’t have to sell it, I just have to be it. I just have to do what I do, and people will either get it or not. And that’s good.”
You know, it’s not like Robertson was Phil Collins jumping from out behind the drum kit to the microphone stand. So did he have to explain to those people that he sang and played guitar?
“And have for 20 years,” Robertson laughed, “I sang a bunch of our songs that were featured on the radio for a number of years. Some of them were big hits, rising to places such as No. 1.”
To be fair, it has been a decade since BNL released a top 20 American hit. What the band lacked in new-millennium commercial success it had in spades the previous decade with hit albums (1996’s “Born on a Pirate Ship” and 1998’s “Stunt”), popular radio singles (“The Old Apartment,” “One Week,” “It’s All Been Done”) and an incessant touring schedule.
In looking back, it’s the latter that truly helped BNL pack arenas and gain legions of fans. Though the music industry had a post-grunge hangover, these young guys were presenting catchy songs in an energetic, funny, irreverent and unpredictable manner. On stage, you could sense a peaceful camaraderie akin to high school friends (who once were, say, all in the marching band together) done well. Or at least it seemed.
The notion that one day Page, the powerful voice and an integral member of BNL, would leave the fold never seemed possible to fans. The news of his leaving the group was tantamount to learning your parents were getting divorced and family dinners would never be the same.
“That comparison is very apt,” Robertson said. “But I think it’s a relationship that seems great from the outside. The parents have the choice to stay together and be miserable for the kids, or they can make a change that makes them both happy and continue to prosper. And that was our goal, to enjoy what we do. And we weren’t anymore, so we had to go our separate ways. But we did so with a lot of respect for each other and a lot of care for each other and ultimately if the band were to continue, the change had to come.”
But fans never expected things to sound so “Mommie Dearest.”
“Not at all; we did a ton of great stuff together, and I’m really proud of all that, but it was time to move on and time for a change,” Robertson said. “We didn’t want anybody to see anything other than the glossy exterior, and I think it’s sort of our fault that people were so shocked, but it’s not dark or weird.”
He added, “We’re happier than we’ve been in 10 years, and we’re really proud of the record we made. The shows are all going great. I think people are responding to the change that we made, and we are as well. So it’s a good time for us right now.”