Band Of The Week #323 - Blush Puppy
This week's Band of the Week is Midlands four piece Blush Puppy - who have just released their new EP 'Here You Dream' via Venn Records.
‘Here You Dream’ is a five-track journey through fragility, disconnection and the search for release. Blush Puppy’s electrifying collision of emo, pop, grunge, alternative and metal is topped off with killer three-way harmonies, which are bound to become their signature. Previously-released single ‘Under The Water’ conjures the feeling of early 00’s emo singalong classics, but with crystal clear production (courtesy of Grammy Award winning Adrian Bushby [Foo Fighters, Muse]). “Each of us were struggling in different ways but with the same questions,” says drummer Harry Rogers when musing on the headspaces the band were in during the EP’s genesis. “These songs became a dream-space for us, a place to let go and breathe.” The whole EP was written in Harry’s shed. “It was pretty much always freezing, as it is literally a shed with a few seats in,” he admits. “But we made it work.”
An unlikely match of old classmates from the Midlands, the four members of Blush Puppy bonded through a love of music and sharing the experience of some of life’s challenges. “For us, music became the way out, the only way to take off the mask and breathe for a second. We’ve all been through difficult stuff, family fallouts, loss - we’re just trying to turn all the messy, complicated and overwhelming feelings into something positive,” says Osmond. The band’s creative chemistry, and love of bands such as: Bring Me The Horizon, Boston Manor, Turnstile, Deftones and Enter Shikari result in a fusion of pop hooks, raw rock energy, and flashes of metal intensity, all wrapped up in their unique triple vocal attack.
Their guitarist Luke Osmond took a moment to talk to us about how the EP came together.
Hey there Blush Puppy, how are you? So your EP is out now – how does it feel to have it out there?
It feels a bit surreal to be honest. These songs have lived in our heads and in the studio for so long, so finally having them out in the world feels really good. It’s like people are finally seeing a side of us we’ve been sitting on for a while.
It is called ‘Here You Dream' – what is the meaning behind that?
The name actually came about when we realised all of the songs we chose for the EP had this theme of sleep, dreaming, and that world between reality and what’s going on in your head. It’s that blurred line between what’s real and what isn’t. We kind of realised the EP itself feels like a place where you dream.
Where was it recorded? Any behind the scenes stories you are willing to share with us?
It was recorded with Adrian Bushby, and the whole process was pretty intense in the best way. We pushed everything quite far, sounds, performances, ideas. One moment that stood out was getting the gang vocal sound for the chorus in TEARS IN RAIN, me and Ciaran were stood in a big open room within the studio unit, with loads of natural reverb, just shouting the chorus in different voices over and over to build that effect.
What are the key influences behind the EP?
It’s quite a mix, heavy, grungy energy but with more melodic, almost pop leaning moments. We’ve always liked that contrast between something that hits hard but still sticks in your head. Bands like Bring Me The Horizon, Linkin Park, Deftones, and Alice in Chains definitely played a part, especially how Alice in Chains use harmonies.
If the EP could be a soundtrack to any film – which one and why?
It’d be interesting to hear it in something like Blade Runner with the atmospheric synth stuff we use, but honestly Lord of the Rings feels more fitting. We actually had it playing in the studio while recording, and there were moments, especially with STILL ASLEEP, where big battle scenes were on and the cinematic parts of the song just lined up weirdly well.
Do you have a favourite lyric on the EP? If so, which one and why?
“Behind every house, is a tale untold” from POLISH THE CHROME stands out. It’s about how everyone’s dealing with things you’d never realise from the outside. I also really like “five steps, you couldn’t breathe” from STILL ASLEEP, that came from a moment where we were chatting about films and Kill Bill came up, and we got onto the five point palm exploding heart technique, and it somehow found its way into the song.
Now the EP is out there – what next for you?
We’re focused on pushing it as far as we can. More shows and just getting it in front of as many people as possible. We’ve got a headline show coming up, and we just want to build momentum from here and take this as far as it can go. And alongside that, we’re already deep into writing what comes next.
