Local singer-songwriter Ali Thibodeau, who performs as Deau Eyes, released a new album earlier this month thanks to support from a crowdfunding campaign. (Photo by Joel Arbaje)
Back in March, the local artist known as Deau Eyes, aka Ali Thibodeau, had returned from a successful tour of the Midwest and was set to make her debut at the celebrated South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas. As one might guess, things didn’t quite go as planned. With the coronavirus pandemic beginning to spread, the festival was canceled. Since then Thibodeau has been preparing for the release of “Let It Leave” (Egghunt Records), a blend of high-energy rock, punk and blues with a smattering of heart-wrenching balladry. She’s also been producing music videos for every song on her new project, which includes the songs “Some Do” and “Autonomy.” The 28-year-old singer-songwriter and Richmond native discusses her new music, working as a dancing elf and life during quarantine.
Richmond magazine: The last time we talked, you were bound for South by Southwest and promoting the new record. How are you handling everything?
Ali Thibodeau: It is so insane. I found out that South By was canceled and just started trying to figure out how to get this album out. I bought my tour van, and two days later our tour was canceled. And then my grandmother died. They say terrible things come in threes.The third being the coronavirus.
RM: What have you been up to?
Thibodeau: The day of my grandmother’s funeral, my brother Michael and I were drinking margaritas out in the backyard, and it hit me: I’m gonna make a visual album. I don’t know anything about video, but we made something that both of us are so proud of, and it’s exactly what I was seeing in my head when I wrote these songs. We just brainstormed on a bunch of wild ideas and executed it. That’s what I’ve been doing for a month straight.
RM: “Let It Leave” was funded by a Kickstarter campaign. Tell me about it.
Thibodeau: I went to Nashville independently and recorded the whole thing in just two days, which is insane, but we were on a budget. I started to realize there are [only] so many hours in the day I can work to fund the record, so I decided to do a Kickstarter. I was extremely overwhelmed and I am so grateful for the support from the huge community of people spanning from New York to Richmond. All these people had my back. I can’t wait to make these songs your songs. And to not be harboring them anymore.
RM: You have a lot to say in every tune on “Let It Leave.” Tell me about “Autonomy.”
Thibodeau: That song is such a piece of comfort food. I really needed to write it and put it out in my sets every night to say I am OK on my own, and that we are all OK on our own. It’s a confessional piece, saying that I did beg, I did plead. I did want this to work with all my heart, but it didn’t, and it’s horrible. But I am going to be OK and better than ever. We all are going to be because we are autonomous beings and we are so powerful in our own right. It’s kind of a celebration of self-love and independence.
RM: That’s eerily relevant to what’s going on right now.
Thibodeau: Exactly. I feel like it’s very oddly right and aligned that this new record is coming out right now when all this is happening. We all have to pick ourselves up and reinvent ourselves. We are gonna be OK. This is the weirdest time anyone has ever seen, but we are so resilient, and that’s what this whole record is about.
RM: Your bio lists numerous jobs you’ve had over the years. Baker, nanny and construction worker, to name a few. Dancing elf? Please tell me about this.
Thibodeau: For this record, I’m paying for vinyl, paying for gas, touring expenses, and I need money. I asked a friend at Swift Creek Mill Theatre if I could run sound for the children’s production of “Drifty the Snowman.” He said, "We don’t need a sound person, but we do need a dancing elf." So, I played an elf. And she tap-danced! I mean, she had magic tap-dancing shoes.
RM: How is the Richmond music community doing? How do musicians feel about getting back out there?
Thibodeau: I think we’re all in mourning. It varies from person to person. I am dreaming for the day I get to go out there and have another show, but at the same time I’m in no rush to get back into those big crowds. Most of all, this is a time for creativity. It’s a quiet time. It’s a time to learn a new instrument or focus on self-care. I think everybody has to go through their own path of grieving to figure out what they have to do next.
