Nottingham-based 5-piece Blondes gained a lot of traction last year due to their track, Coming Of Age, going viral due to the power of social media. They recently signed to C3 Records, and are releasing an EP at some point this year, so we thought it was time to get to know the band a bit more. Check out our interview below for more info!
By Jane Howkins
We hear you recently signed to C3 Records, congratulations! How did that come about and how has it been working with them so far?
Thank you! We received a lot of interest from labels around the time that Coming of Age went viral which was super exciting, but definitely a little daunting too. Our main priority was always to sign with someone who was as much right for us as we were right for them, and with C3 we felt straight away like that was what we were getting. We had some meetings over Zoom and the relationship began from there; we all felt like we were on the same page and started putting a team together straight away. It’s been great so far, we’re very grateful for all the opportunities and resources that come with working with a label and more than anything we’re just excited to turn that into some great music going forward.
You’re also releasing a video for your Coming of Age single very soon. What can you tell us about the track?
The track means a lot to us for sure, and to me (Alex – guitar, songwriter) personally too. I first wrote the guitar riff nearly five years ago, and I held onto it because I knew there was something special about it, and yet I’d been trying for years to finish it but didn’t feel confident in anything I was writing. And then fast forward to the summer of 2019, we’ve got tickets to Glastonbury, and we’re standing in a field listening to one of the acts tell the crowd ‘go start a band, go be creative, don’t give a shit what anyone else thinks’ It was oddly liberating, and they were right; it was about doing what we loved doing without worrying if it was any good or not. And so, we went home and we finished the song. The lyrics became a story about that moment. Us in a field, sat on each other’s shoulders, thinking, ‘Yeah, we could do this. This could be us. Why the hell not?’
The song went viral last year, after being featured in many TikTok videos. How did that start off and were you surprised by this? It’s amazing how much power social media has nowadays!
The whole thing has been completely insane. It started with a couple of videos, which after a few months had somehow turned into a few hundred. That in itself was crazy to us. And then at about 2am one night in October, a TikTok by an American high school teacher that was set to Coming of Age went viral. We had friends messaging us like ‘this video just came up on my page!’ or ‘have you seen it’s been posted on Instagram now?’ Meanwhile we were trying to keep up with it ourselves. And with how social media is, once that one video blew up, the number of Coming of Age TikToks started snowballing. Within a couple of weeks, we’d surpassed 100,000 videos made, and TikTok had launched the official Coming of Age trend with its own hashtag. It just goes to show how much the music industry has been transformed by social media. We’re incredibly lucky to have had our music shared to millions of users across the world, and we’re grateful to anyone that has since become a fan.
The track originally came out last year, why did you decide to release the video now?
The track actually came out as a single from an upcoming EP that eventually got shelved due to the national lockdown in the UK. With the pandemic resulting in the effective closure of the music industry, there was very little we could do as a band besides put the track on streaming sites. And now, with the song picking up more traction than we could ever have anticipated (internationally as well as in the UK), it feels like a great time to put out a video.
Do you have any more singles and videos planned for release anytime soon?
We’ve been working really hard over the past few months writing and recording music, especially with us being on furlough from our day jobs! We’re super excited about everything we’ve been writing and there’s definitely more music to come very soon.
How has the pandemic affected the workings of the band, has it hindered you in any way?
Like I said, if anything we’ve been lucky to have more free time outside of our normal working lives to write and record music together. It’s a huge shame, though, that we can’t play any shows and we’re really missing the live aspect of band life. We’ve had to adapt and spend more time on the creative process than gigging, but it’s been a great opportunity to develop as writers and musicians.
You have an EP coming out in March – what can you tell us about that? Are you excited?
Yeah, it’s been a really long time since we’ve put any kind of longer project out and we’re really looking forward to it. The project feels great, like a natural progression from our other material but also bigger and better in its own right.
How has the writing and recording process been different for the EP compared to your previous single releases?
We all live together now, and since (like everyone else) we’re spending a lot of time locked indoors, the writing process has become a lot more collaborative. I’ve traditionally written the majority of our material, but it’s been great to work with the boys to get their ideas onto the EP and help them develop as songwriters. We’ve been recording demos in Stroud’s bedroom, and having our own little mini-studio has helped us be super productive. We’ve also been lucky to have access to a great studio and work with more experienced producers and engineers, so we feel that, overall, we’ve been able to produce something of higher quality.
Do you have any gigs planned in the UK? And would you consider doing socially distanced gigs?
We’re looking at booking a tour for later in the year, but it’s difficult at the moment to get anything set in stone, as I’m sure everyone is aware. I think if the opportunity arose we’d definitely be interested. We’re absolutely desperate to get out and play shows, at this point we’d probably play in your mate’s living room if they let us.
Any last words for fans?
One thing that has been really nice is all the people who have messaged us to say that Coming of Age has inspired them in some way. I think that is such a rewarding part of what we do, to feel like our music has really impacted another person’s life in a positive way. So, in terms of last words, we’d just like to say thank you to everyone who has supported us, and just remember to do what you love, be creative, and be fearless. You never know what could happen.
Check out Coming Of Age below: