Before she takes the stage this Thursday and releases her much-anticipated EP on Friday, Vera Bloom gives us an intimate glimpse into her musical journey and inspirations.
Growing up in Kingston, WA, how did the lush forestry and inlets influence your musical style and artistic expression?
This might sound dark, but there is a strong sense of melancholy and mystery where I’m from. It could be the misty mornings or deep hues of evergreens and cold waters, but I think it’s the mixture of everything and the wild nature of the land. There’s gigantic movement happening everywhere but at microscopic levels. Yeah, that sounds a bit out there. But, it leaves you feeling like you’re going to get stretch marks from the energy that needs to burst out of you. Does that make sense? I don’t find a bunch of calmness from the Pacific Northwest. I find a lot of beautiful tension. I think I carry that energy inside of me and it comes through in my songwriting and performance. The calmness is definitely there, but it also turns into frigid waves crashing against massive boulders and tall quiet trees that are observing it all and keeping secrets.
Your father played guitar and wrote songs; can you share a cherished memory or a lesson he imparted that stayed with you?
Yes, definitely. I think my biggest two lessons I learned from him were 1. that the art of songwriting exists and 2. that music doesn’t have to be perfect. We would “jam” the blues a lot together on guitars and sometimes I’d take a solo and criticize myself afterwards, but he’d laugh and say something like “it’s the Kingston slop.” Like it was an intended style. That really stuck with me.
How did your classical piano training play into the grunge, punk, and alternative sound you produce now?
Honestly, I think it was mostly and directly impactful because I eventually rebelled against it and picked up the guitar! I wasn’t the best at breaking away from the structure of classical training on the piano, but with a guitar I could make stuff up and be more fluid creatively. The guitar was an exciting freedom because I didn’t have any rules or training to follow that would get in the way of the song.
With inspirations ranging from Pink Floyd to Joan Jett, can you name a song or album by each that had the most profound effect on you?
I love contrast in a song, like the most beautiful melody you’ve ever heard in a verse or intro and then the chorus hits and it flips a 180 into hard distortion or something a bit disturbing. I also love versatility in an artist. Pink Floyd has these qualities. They’re also moody and I’m moody haha. It’s hard to pin down favorites for me with Pink Floyd so I’ll do my favorite album and my top 3 favorite songs by them. Dark Side of the Moon is my favorite album, I think because it was how I was introduced to Floyd. But, it’s also a beautiful record that you can get lost in thought in. My favorite songs are “Comfortably Numb,” “Fat Old Sun,” and “Coming Back to Life” from The Division Bell. As for Joan Jett, she is an idol to me. Her spirit, drive and dedication to being a musician and performer inspires me like no other. I love “Bad Reputation” because it’s an anthem, but most recently I’ve been really into her song “Do You Wanna Touch.”
How does the spirit of Seattle’s grunge era influence your current sound?
Similar to the overly poetic answer I gave to the first question, I think there’s a special energy about that area of the Pacific Northwest. The spirit of Seattle’s grunge era gives me solace and a connection to home. There’s a sense of melancholy and rage. A bursting energy that falls and rises over and over again. The most beautiful melodies followed by the grittiest distortion. I love it.
You’ve been compared to the likes of Courtney Love, Nirvana, and The Donnas. How do you feel about these comparisons, and do you think they accurately represent your music?
I think people compare me to Courtney because I’m a blonde woman with some fierce energy on stage and I like to scream in my songs. I respect her for paving the way for women artists like me, but I don’t love her music or Hole all that much, if I’m honest! So, musically I don’t think it’s a great comparison but to get a sliver of an image or idea about me, I think there’s some truth to it. I think if you take Nirvana on its own and The Donnas on their own, you don’t get an accurate representation of me, but with a combination of the two, you get closer. It makes sense, too, because I don’t stick to one rock genre. Nirvana covers the grunge part, The Donnas cover the punk. I’m always intrigued by people’s comparisons and they’re usually all different because my sound varies so much under the rock umbrella.
The theme of the Phoenix is evident in “It’s Me.” Can you dive deeper into the process of your songs “dying” and then gaining a new life among listeners?
I write most of my songs from personal experiences and my feelings so they are really an avenue to help myself heal and grow. Healing through my songwriting might not be the best or recommended therapy but it’s what I do haha. So, that being said, I write the songs to help me get through something or over someone and once I’m through it, the song is still there but it doesn’t exist for me anymore. That’s the main idea behind the concept of the Phoenix. These songs are born to serve a purpose, then they die once that purpose is fulfilled, but they get reborn again when they become someone else’s purpose.
“Eyes On You” shows a range of emotions and themes, from possessiveness in love to the desire to be seen. Can you talk about the evolution of this song from its inception to the final product?
I remember beginning to write “Eyes On You” and I wanted to reflect on how a relationship starts to settle in and become mundane. How it loses its spark. I also wanted the song to be “sexy” and I wanted the song to be a type of “spark” which would contrast the subject matter. This was the beginning intention for the song. Then, the song started to shape itself. I love when they do that – it’s the “channeling of creative energy.” I originally had written the lyrics “I only have eyes for you” for the chorus but it didn’t fit well into the melody I wanted and also wasn’t edgy enough to stay true to “the sexy spark” concept, so I pivoted and that’s when I leaned into the possessiveness in love and made it “my eyes are always on you.” So, the song finished up as such and adding live musicians to it added to this “spark” energy, and it really ended up being a little bop! The song started taking on new meanings for me over time as the initial meaning of the lyrics faded for me a bit. I connected with other parts of myself like the loss of innocence as a child, the fear of life going by too fast, and yes, how I want eyes on me and am starting to admit that openly as I grow as an artist. I could geek about songwriting all day but this is one thing I particularly love about songwriting is that your own songs can reveal different meanings as time goes on. Like a subconscious version of yourself was there writing it for a different reason.
Your song “It’s Me” touches upon self-love and self-acceptance. How has music served as a therapeutic medium for you during difficult times?
This is the entire reason I am an artist. I’m on a quest to find “truth” but really I think that is a daily task of finding self-love and self-acceptance. “It’s Me” is a very special song to me. It might not end up being anyone’s favorite because it is so alternative sounding, but this is the song that does it for me. I wrote it at a dark time in my life where I was feeling sunken and trapped in my own downfalls. I wrote this song as an act of recognizing that I am the one that brings me down, so I can also be the one that pulls me back up. And, in fact, I’ve been doing that for myself since I started writing songs at the age of 14. I’ve been there for myself over and over and over again as my healer and my best friend. I just didn’t realize that because I didn’t have that self-awareness, acceptance, and love yet.
Nashville is quite a departure from the grunge scene of Seattle. How has the Nashville music scene shaped your sound or approach to the industry?
Nashville has been a wonderful community for me. It’s a small city and the people here are nice. I think it’s developed me (or labeled me?) as more of a grunge artist than I actually thought I was. I didn’t ever consider that my sound has a grunge influence until people started telling me that it did. So, I guess that’s cool!
Touring with a legendary act like L7 must’ve been a remarkable experience. Do you have a standout memory or lesson from that tour?
Yes, it was so amazing to share a stage with L7. They are all such badasses on and off the stage. Women who do their own thing and stick to that. They are also very humble, which meant a lot to me. It showed me there can be a healthy balance of “take no shit” but also “don’t be a dick.”
With your sophomore EP about to release, how do you anticipate it will be received in comparison to your debut?
I think people are going to love it! Both EPs have their strengths but this upcoming one is much better in all aspects, to me anyway. I’ve grown a lot as a person, as a vocalist, and as a songwriter and the musicians I played with on It’s Me are very talented. I think similar to my debut EP, there will be something for everyone and also something not everyone likes. That is how I roll and how I like it!
Vera Bloom is set to release her vibrant EP, ‘It’s Me’, on September 29th. Fans can get a taste of her unique mix of alternative, grunge, and punk at the launch show at The Vinyl Lounge on September 28th. The EP features the magnetic single “Eyes On You,” which boasts a pulsing drumbeat and a captivating hook. Dive into the powerful vibes of the “Eyes On You” music video here. Join the celebration at The Vinyl Lounge for a night of raw musical energy!