The BLSSM on Touring with Role Model, Playing Outside Lands Festival, and Influences Behind Their EP, PURE ENERGY
Photo by Rebecca Bloch
[UNPUBLISHED:] How does it feel to be playing Outside Lands?
[THE BLSSM:] It’s great! This is my first time playing and coming to this festival. My best friend, who is from San Francisco, says it’s her favorite festival so I’m really excited to play for her. The park is beautiful. It’s really chill and has such a nice vibe.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Do you have a song you’re most excited to perform?
[THE BLSSM:] I always love doing “HARDCORE HAPPY” because it’s the one the crowd knows the most and is most excited for. It’s also the one we play at the end so the band gets to let loose and just have fun.
[UNPUBLISHED:] How was your set?
[THE BLSSM:] It was great! We played a lot from 97 BLOSSOM and the newest EP, PURE ENERGY so it was a mixed bag. I just got off tour with Role Model and we were out for seven weeks so we are a well-oiled machine.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What was your tour with Role Model like? Do you think you learned anything from performing on tour?
[THE BLSSM:] I learned that he’s a really cool and nice guy. We had a lot of fun and his band is awesome. It’s really cool to be on tour with a like-minded artist who has really good energy and just loves what they do.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Are you going to go see his set?
[THE BLSSM:] Yes, of course! They’re the homies so we are definitely going to go.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Any memorable moments?
[THE BLSSM:] All of the really great conversations we had with the band during those 10-15 hour drives. My band and I just chatted for hours and this brought us all closer. It’s hard being on the road for that long and it’s not glamorous at all but you really get to know each other. You learn to love the different nuances of every person which brings you closer together.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Do you have any favorite cities you played in?
[THE BLSSM:] Other than New York, Los Angeles, and Miami, I loved Atlanta. Houston was fun too.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Since you were away for so long, what made you feel close to home while you were on the road?
[THE BLSSM:] All the FaceTimes I had with friends and family. I would have like 3-4 hour FaceTimes with my boyfriend, brother, and parents because you just want to stay close to everyone. That made me feel at home. I also brought a little rice cooker and pan on tour so I could cook my own meals.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What was your go-to meal?
[THE BLSSM:] Being Asian, I had to have rice because that is what I grew up on. It’s my form of bread. I would have rice every day with an egg, seaweed, sesame seeds, and tuna. I would make veggie kimchi bowls.
[UNPUBLISHED:] You also just released your EP, PURE ENERGY earlier this year, what were the influences behind the record?
[THE BLSSM:] PURE ENERGY was influenced a lot by Rock and Alternative music. It was influenced by a lot of the Punk and Rock singer-songerwirters I grew up loving. I’m also influenced by a lot of Rap music but it was recontextualized in a Pop space. With some of the songs, it might not sound like a rap song but it’ll hit like a rap song. I recontextualized what Pop-Rock means to me and put it into the same approach as when I’m listening to rap music. I love having high energy and putting that energy into a song.
[UNPUBLISHED:] If you could describe your EP in three words what would it be?
[THE BLSSM:] I would say visceral, hopeful, and energetic.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Do you think you’ll be doing more experimental music / trying out different genres in your future projects?
[THE BLSSM:] I already have my sound palette that I already go for. I already have my BLSSM-sounding drums or BLSSM-sounding guitar. For me, it’s more about continuing to recontextualize my influences and leveling up. As of right now, I’m doing a lot of Country writing but then taking the songs that sound like a country song and putting them in a new environment with other things I’m influenced by.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Do you have any artists that you look up to musically?
[THE BLSSM:] Post Malone because he always executes all of his inspirations and influences in one Pop genre. He does everything and he does it so well. I really respect and look up to that. I love that he’s able to make everything he is influenced by into one thing that’s just him.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What do you like to do outside of making music, how do you get your inspiration?
[THE BLSSM:] I’m into anything visual. I love anything that is a creative language. I love a lot of art and I go to a lot of different art shows. I really love diving into mediums that are not just music because it’s all symbiotic to me.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Whose set are you most excited to see at Outside Lands?
[THE BLSSM:] I’m excited to see Lil Uzi Vert because I’m a huge Uzi fan. His sets are so fun and have tons of personality. I’m also excited to see SZA.
Photo by Rebecca Bloch