Along with his older brother, Logan, Baren was an obsessive fan of the British Invasion sound of the 1960s, which he channeled into the band the brothers formed while students at Deerfield High School. Jordan Kozer, the band’s first drummer, recounted how the brothers studied Beatles albums like holy scripture; Justin would record rehearsals and require the others to spend hours listening to their mistakes to get their parts right the next time.
“He didn’t know anything else. He didn’t try anything else. Deerfield was pushing people to go to college. He and Logan didn’t care anything at all about that. They were laser focused on making this happen. There was no backup plan,” Kozer said.
The perseverance worked. On the same day of their high school graduation, the band was in Los Angeles signing a contract with Capitol Records, the U.S. label of the Beatles. Two years later, the Redwalls opened shows for Oasis in U.K. soccer stadiums…
“From a very early age, we knew the kids in high school weren’t going to be our scene,” Justin told this writer in 2005. “We wanted to get into the real music scene and not be limited by what other kids were saying or doing. We wanted to be Downtown where it was happening.”…
Despite their age, their hard work, sophisticated musical sensibilities, confidence and charisma impressed the network of music professionals in the city. The Redwalls, which included guitarist Andrew Langer, solicited the help of Mitch Marlow, then the talent buyer for a music club in Evanston, by blindly handing him a cassette tape of their music. “What nerve, they put Beatles outtakes on a cassette and are saying it’s their band,” Marlow first thought, until realizing days later the recordings were contemporary…
Marlow ended up managing the group. He booked headlining shows for them at Double Door, the Hideout and Metro. He recorded them, encouraged them to keep writing original songs and introduced them to Bob Andrews, co-founder of Champaign indie label Undertow Music, a collaboration that resulted in “Universal Blues,” the band’s 2003 debut. They were high school seniors.
To become a professional in many fields requires focus and practice. To do this by the end of high school is impressive.
It is interesting to hear that Baren and the band did this while pushing against what was expected of them in their suburban high school. Deerfield High School is a highly rated institution and like many such schools encourages students to go to college. What would parents say to students in similar schools who say they want to pursue music rather than going to college? How many high school musicians are able to secure a record deal and open for a major rock group? Is this a good life path?
And then the path toward music success moved away from their suburban community to Chicago. They played in music venues utilized by numerous music groups, small and big. They got into the music networks of promoters and venues and labels that are based in big cities.
Was there anything in their music or performances that would belie their suburban roots? Maybe not. But the story of suburban high school to major record label is rare even as there must be plenty of suburbanites among successful music artists in the United States.
Legally Sociable 