Skip to main content

BLÒM - Issue One Full Interview

1. How did you meet each other and what's the story behind your band name?


L: I've known Hells for years now! We met through a love of beer and music (we were also in a band before Blóm called Tough Tits haha). I met Eri through work! And we've known each other for years now too.


2. Which artists inspire you?


L: G.L.O.S.S, Lightning Bolt, Melt Banana, Surf Bort, Amyl & The Sniffers, Super Unison, Gouge Away, Cerce, Downtown Boys, War on Women.

H: Poly Styrene, Cosey Fanni Tutti, Betty Davis, Patti Smith, Cher, Viv Albertine, Freddie Mercury.


3. I know you have a heavy focus on reimagining the music landscape to be more inclusive - how do you try to do this within your music?


L: I think it's probably quite organic and as we all have a mutual moral standing. 

H: I think it's first and foremost, a cathartic outlet for us all, but yes, I would like to see more diversity within the music industry, on stage and off. I hope the acceptance of Blóm is based on the music we make, but I also hope our presence is a conversation starter - I would like people to start asking themselves; Who makes the music I listen to? Can I diversify the artists I am listening to? Are these spaces I got to inclusive? Why would a gig space feel unsafe or uncomfortable for some people? How can I help? 


4. How has your experience been as a band of female, transgender and non-binary members in a male-dominanted industry?


L: Mostly pretty good. Better than the last band me and Hells were in. But there have been a few downfalls here and there. On a whole it seems to be getting better. And writing pronouns on tech specs tends to help. 

H: Yeah, things are a lot better now than when me and Liz first started playing gigs; I don't know if that is because we have grown in confidence and are better communicators now, or because the 'industry' has changed? We try to assert from the off what everyone's pronouns are (from liaising in the advancing stages). If anyone was being made to feel uncomfortable, we're there for eachother.


5. Do you think there has been a gender imbalance in the music scene? And if so, what can we do to reduce that imbalance?


L: There's a pretty big imbalance in the scene we play most of our shows in. A lot of cis men - the women and gender non-conforming people in the scene tend to be big personalities though. You kind of have to be.

H: Undeniably, but I often think that the majority of white cis men dominating spaces, and working behind the scenes, don't recognise there is a systematic problem.  Why would you see any problems if it's all you've known, and you've never experienced resistance? Loads of social spaces (and work spaces) are gendered. If people don't feel alienated by their surroundings, they won't question it, until they start paying attention to what's happening outside their own bubble. To reduce the imbalance people need to look beyond themselves, and past their own privilege. 


6. Are there any local creatives (musicians/artists/filmmakers) you urge us to check out?


L: Pigsx7, Competition, Nathalie Stern, Dextro, Ten Sticks, The Dawdler, Fast Blood.

H: We're very lucky up here, too much to pick from! I'll add Mariam Rezaei, Richard Dawson, Edmondson, Faxmachine, Bert Verso, Georgia May, Yeah You, Archipelago, Benjamin Fitzgerald, Squarms and Unit Ama to the Liz list!


Some North East based creative collectives to check out...Curious Arts, The Old Policehouse, Gem Arts, Little Buildings, Nami Up North, The Real Sesh, New Bridge Project, B&D Studios. 


Questions by Emily Duff


Comments

Most Popular

‘Make Tattooing Safe Again’: Sheffield Based Tattoo Artist Exposed for Indecent Behaviour

 by Emily Fletcher TW: SA, Animal Abuse, Transphobia Photo Credit: @ meiko_akiz uki Recently, an  Instagram account  has been created to provide a  ‘space to safely give a voice to those who want to speak out about the behaviour of one, Sheffield based tattoo artist’. A  total of 40+ posts have been made by the above social media account regarding  one of Sheffield's most popular tattoo artists .  Thankfully, all posts are prefaced with a Content Warning prior to sharing screenshots of the messages that have been sent anonymously to the page. The majority of Content Warnings refer to sexual behaviour, abuse, and sexual assault. It is clear that there is a reoccurring theme within each submission, as many clients appear to have had the same experiences with the tattoo artist. Women, mostly, are being made to feel uncomfortable while being tattooed. One of the most vulnerable positions anyone can be in, tattoo artists should make their clients feel comfortable and safe during the pro

Eurydice’s Last Words

by Kate Bradley I do not want to return To sit in the stalls, Of an empty black box Strewn with petals Leave the ghost light on, Let it shine like a call home, But I will not come back To turn it off alone. I learn this as we walk Our ever so solemn path Our thudding funeral march, You think we’re going back. As I trace my old steps, I fear of the day When the symphony swells, And I land my gaze On you, yet you will be Enraptured by the sound, If you did twist To turn around, You would not see me. So I am not sorry, I speak out into the empty air And I am not sorry. “Turn Around.” You do, you look You think  I fall But I run on, Arms wide open To fall in love With it all “Perhaps she was the one who said, ‘Turn around.” On the X45 bus, back from the Tyneside Cinema, I wrote a poem entitled “Eurydice’s Final Words”, after having seen “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”.  That poem was terrible, so I wrote a new one, as my response to the beautifully poignant film.  In one scene, Héloïse, an 18

Single Review: ‘Tell Me’ - Jay Moussa-Mann

by Ilana Hawdon The feeling of pure betrayal and heartbreak is perfectly captured in Jay Moussa-Mann’s latest single, ‘Tell Me’. Jay Moussa-Mann is the folk dream we have been waiting for. A favourite on BBC Introducing, Radio 6 and BBC Radio Tees, Jay ’s sound is easy on the ears but delightfully addictive. With a background in writing and film, she began her solo musical venture when she released her debut album, ‘Little Deaths’ in late-2019, and since then, Moussa-Mann has defined herself as an artist with unbelievable range and promise.    ‘Tell Me’ is completely timeless; with notes of Carole King and Joni Mitchell, Moussa-Mann creates a folk-inspired track which is simultaneously heart wrenching and strangely empowering. Beginning as a simple guitar tune, ‘Tell Me’ builds with layers of luscious strings and twinkling piano, tied together with Jay ’s vocal line which is equal parts melancholic and divine. The song feels unwaveringly intimate; the lyrics ask, ‘what was I worth?’