For our penultimate Treefort interview/artist profile, we sat down with Winnipeg-born and raised singer-songwriter, Field Guide! After his solo set at Mother Earth Brewing – his second of two sets at Treefort 2024 – we sat down to discuss his recently announced upcoming album, Rootin’ For Ya, his upbringing in the Winnipeg community, and inspirations new and old. As we still deal with the ever-present COVID-19 pandemic, Field Guide is hoping Rootin’ For Ya can help himself and others strengthen all of our relationships.
Rootin’ For Ya is about having someone’s back and sticking up for someone, and… the record talks a lot about different relationships, friendships and romantic relationships, and I think – I hate to use the P-word, but coming out of the pandemic, a lot of relationships and mental health were hurting in a lot of ways, and I feel like this record is sort of me putting effort into strengthening relationships of all kinds. – Field Guide
When recording the album, Field Guide wanted to do things a bit differently. Though his previous album, Field Guide, had been recorded across each section of Canada (Vancouver in the West, Winnipeg in the Center, Montreal in the East), most of Rootin’ For Ya was worked through in Winnipeg. Field Guide decided to split the process up differently for Rootin’ For Ya.
Well, I made the record in a way that’s a little different. I’ve always recorded a good chunk of the records on my own, but this record was split up in a different way. Instead of me recording a good portion of each song alone, a few of the songs I recorded completely by myself in my house, which I think made for a bit of a different vibe, giving more of a casual nature to them. I was sort of just walking upstairs and, in an evening, maybe having a few bourbons and a spliff deep, and I’m really proud of that. I’ve been working up my chops as an engineer, and I’m excited about how those sound. And then I actually made the whole record like that, and then I decided… “Hey, I’ve done this, and this is really cool, and some of these tunes are perfect this way, but some of them would be better with other people involved,” so I went and cut the other half of the record with some friends who have been constant collaborators. So it’s just been a different process in that way, and I guess on the side of making stuff on my own, it’s just been a little bit more created all together at once, like a lot of the artists that I like, whether it’s Tame Impala or Andy Shauf, people who are kind of recording and writing at the same time, and then about half the record is written on guitar, brought to a band, and played all together. – Field Guide
When asked about how Winnipeg’s culture and scenery shaped his sound, Field Guide focused more on the culture that surrounds the cold of Manitoba. Where Meltt, whom we interviewed last year, had more natural landscapes to draw from and more outdoors to explore, Field Guide noticed the focus that the Winnipeg cold brought to musicians in the area. In his own words, “Winnipeg is cold as hell, and there’s a lot that comes with that. There’s a lot of good musicianship that comes from that. I think Winnipeg has been a scene where it’s had really good players for a long time and it’s now switching over to being great songwriters. Not that we haven’t had great songwriters in the past, we’ve had The Weakerthans and Bros. Landreth among others, but in my experience, it’s been very player-heavy. Great players who play in other people’s bands, and now it’s switching to a lot of songwriters, but then also the player thing is still there. So now there’s a lot of really hot musicians and now a lot of good songwriters, so I definitely think that has been an influence.”
Field Guide was also quick to mention all of his collaborators. Whether it’s Kris Ulrich, Julian Psihogios, or one of his old bandmates, Field Guide wants you to know that even when his writing process is focused on solitude, he appreciates his past, present, and future collaborators. Even though the overly nice Canadian nature has become cliche at this point, when he speaks about his friends and collaborators, Field Guide’s genuine admiration and gratitude surpass that stereotype.
A.G.: What is your… I guess just give me your musical journey, for lack of a better phrase. Is there a moment or song or even that really clicked in your head at some point that made you realize music was an art form you wanted to pursue?
F.G.: Yeah, I did that band [from high school] for a long time, and then it was sort of a funny project of three people, myself and two others, who have gone on to all do our own projects in a pretty full-on way, and they’re all so different. My friend Roman makes incredible R&B music, sings like Stevie Wonder, plays drums and sings like Anderson .Paak –
A.G.: I’m interested.
F.G.: He is truly one of the best musicians in the world, and of course I’m biased, but truly. And then my friend Liam makes alt-country, which is awesome. He has kind of an MJ Lenderman vibe, and it’s incredible. He’s just got a number-one hit in Canada that’s super cool. We made it together when we were roommates in Toronto in the pandemic. And then I make this sort of indie-rock, indie-folk, so I think when the band folded, we kind of realized… Oh, that’s why. [laughs] That’s why it wasn’t really working. And we were all too nice to… I think we were all too quick to sort of just meet in the middle.
A.G.: Concede, kind of.
F.G.: Yeah, totally, so we… I think the music was cool in a way, but was also just … When that band folded, there was no doubt that I was going to keep playing music, and I really hadn’t written tons on my own at that point, but I went to this music festival, and it was sort of at the same time that I was getting into some great Canadian singer-songwriters like Andy Shauf and Leif Vollebekk, but I hung out with this guy – he’s Canadian, but he lives in New York now – his name is Taylor Ashton. He’s not super super well-known, but he’s an amazing songwriter, and I just heard him play songs on guitar, and that was that moment for me. I was like, “That’s what I want to do.” I got really into his record and YouTube videos of him playing songs and stuff, and it kinda went from there, I guess.
So where does Wilco line up with all of this? Why would I bring up Wilco in the title and intro paragraph of this profile? Because of Jeffy Tweedy’s songwriting philosophy. Despite Rootin’ For Ya being released soon, Field Guide doesn’t want to fall into any sort of songwriting funk or lull, and he is basing this mindset on Jeff Tweedy and Wilco.
F.G.: I think what I’m trying to find is just this sort of Wilco mentality of just putting in the time and writing songs and trying not to overthink cause I’m a chronic overthinker. I think the ones that have come out recently that are the best are the ones where I’m not… I’m just really letting it come out, and I’m really not thinking too much about it.
A.G.: Wilco mentality, I actually – funnily enough, as someone who grew up in Chicago, am just really starting to fully dive into their catalog.
F.G.: That’s fair, I’m right there with you. I’m not super familiar. I read some of Jeff Tweedy’s books, but I really could only name you a few songs. I think my time will come, but it feels sort of like Neil Young or Bob Dylan in the sense that it’s so deep that it’s been intimidating.
A.G.: I completely agree. Also, shoutout Jeff Tweedy as a writer, I’m subscribed to his Substack and it’s beautiful, but have you gotten to Sky Blue Sky yet?
F.G.: Not yet, no. Do you think that’s maybe a place to start?
A.G.: So… I don’t necessarily wanna tell you where to start because I’ve only listened to like… four at this point, I think, and one of them was a really weird one to listen to cause it was Star Wars, and I only listened to it first because it was free on iTunes when I was like sixteen.
F.G.: That’s awesome.
A.G.: It made me say “Ok, I’ll listen to Wilco now because my friend’s been telling me to since I was twelve,” and I listened and just went, “What the **** is this?” Cause I was, you know, sixteen. But Sky Blue Sky is one of those where… when I hear what you’ve put out so far, I’m thinking you should definitely dive into Yankee Hotel Foxtrot first. But if you’re thinking of just seeing where that spirit takes you, Sky Blue Sky is a pretty good one to watch that with.
F.G.: I’m happy to get a recommendation that isn’t just the one that a lot of people tell you to get down.
A.G.: I don’t even know how to describe it. The first Wilco song I ever heard was “Side With The Seeds,” and that’s because one of my best friends to this day, we met in sixth grade, but he showed me that when we were in seventh grade, and it’s just insane. Lyrically, it’s not necessarily the most dramatic or over-the-top, but the way that they just piece everything in makes it flow so perfectly, and it doesn’t even really resolve. It hits the end and you’re like, “Oh, that’s it, it’s done. Whoa.”
F.G.: Shoutout to your friend having that taste in grade seven, too. That’s wild.
At the end of the day, Field Guide just wants you to remember that word of mouth is the best way to spread music. Tell a friend who might like something so that they can check it out and form their own opinion. And most importantly, he’s rootin’ for ya.
If you’re interested in checking out Field Guide’s music, we’ve linked his self-titled album below! Rootin’ For Ya is due out on May 24th. Follow Field Guide on Instagram for more tunes and good times!
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