Sometimes when worlds collide we think about ourselves and try to hide. We’re living in a very strange time when things look kind of scary. Everyday we put aside our fears as things aren’t always as bad as they seem. Despite the barrage of daily bad news regarding this global pandemic, we are constantly being reminded life will be OK. Life will go on and we will smile.
The positive reinforcements are one of the themes coming out of many artists these days. Music can be uplifting and positive, it can also make us think, laugh, cry and it can inspire. Luckily for us, new music from Blondfire adds to the great new music we’ve been getting during this Zombie apocalypse.
Truth be told, Blondfire isn’t new to the music scene. Fans have loved the music since 2006. In fact, Erica Driscoll has been the muse behind the mic since day one. In those early days, the band was a duo, it consisted of Erica and her brother Bruce. Before they were Blondfire, they were known as Astaire. Due to a variety of reasons, they had to change the name. Who knew the Music Fates had something up their sleeve as the name change turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
Since the debut album “My Someday,” Blondfire has steadily gained a fan base that stretches worldwide.
Erica started her solo career in 2015, but still carries the Blondfire name. Over the years, she’s continued to put out great music while living her life to the fullest. She’s now married with a son, and she continues to work hard on new music.
These days, she creates music from her home studio. Over the years she’s put out several successful singles DIY style. These songs have all done very-very well.
In more recent years song like Heathens (Twenty One Pilots cover) and Black Hole Sun (Soundgarden cover) have been grabbing the spotlight.
Other songs like “Waves,” “Walking with Giants,” “Domino,” “L-L-Love” and “All In My Mind” have become fan favorites and propelled Blondfire into that next level of uber-coolness.
To understand how we got here with Erica, we have to circle back to 2014. That’s when her sonic journey launched into orbit with “Where the Kids Are.” The song blew up and was on heavy rotations at places like KROQ here in Los Angeles, 91X in San Diego and TNN RADIO right here in Orange County.
The radio play was one thing, but the response to the music video put it over the top.
Blondfire went from a very good local act to a great band with an incredible lead while developing a fanatical international audience.
Just like Emily Haines of Metric and Sarah Barthel of Phantogram, Erica Driscoll became that next “IT” girl.
Once the song took off, people got to see what Erica had been working on for so many years. Aside being a gifted musician, she proved to have amazing vocals. She’s best compared to Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries, Shirley Manson of Garbage, Hope Sandoval of Mazzy Star and Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders, she’s that diverse. Her fans swear that she has a unique and almost angelic sounding voice. Needless to say, nobody was surprised at the amount of attention she was getting.
In the past, Driscoll has said “Music is a reflection of my surroundings. We don’t always realize how much we are affected by our surrounding environments. The places we go, the people with whom we spend our time – the ones we love – all of these and more factor into our individual emotional and physical experiences. We like to think of ourselves as independent, but the truth is that most of us are far from it. We feed off each others’ feelings. When those around us are up, we’re up, but when those around us are down, we risk being down as well.”
Blondfire’s music and videos capture a sonic vision that is so personal, we can’t help but to take it all in.
So how did the talented Erica Driscoll acquire all this life knowledge? Well, she was born and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Like so many successful artists from the Midwest, that alone gave her a great start… she was inherently born with a great work ethic. Her mother was from northern Brazil and she spent many summers there. That experience gave her an appreciation and afforded her a symbiotic relationship with the native music of south America. The combination of Brazilian music influence, a great work ethic and her incredible talent was a recipe the Music Fates couldn’t pass up.
Another aspect of her international appeal has been her collaborations with other artists. For example, she co-wrote and sang on the Avicii album True (the song called Liar Lair) where she took part in a duet with Aloe Blacc for that song. In other projects, she wrote the theme song for the Ultra music festival a few years back (a song called “Something About You) as well as the ARTY Song “Glorious.” She’ll also have an upcoming feature with the big Dutch DJ, Sander Van Doorn.
In regards to her new music, Driscoll is set to release the single called “Marigold.”
In a recent interview she told us that ““Marigold will be the 2nd Blondfire song I’ve released in a while. I’ve been writing and recording a lot, but my main focus has been on my son. He just turned 2.“
Marigold is a great blend of Indie Rock with the signature Blondfire vocals we’ve grown to love. This one will do very well for her.
Driscoll went on to say “When the lockdown started and things we’re getting heavy, I wrote a song called “Climb.” A friend of mine had just passed away from the virus and it really hit me.”
“I picked up my guitar and that song appeared. It’s about wanting to rise above and escape the current situation we’re in.”
She went on to say “I knew I had to get that out right away, since it’s something I think we’re all feeling. I’m so thankful to have a home studio right now. I can focus on creative things and put my energy into something positive and I want to share that with people.”
We asked her what’s next for the Queen of DIY success? She said “I’ve also been sitting on some songs for a while that I’ve been wanting to get out there. “Marigold” is one of those. I wanted to write something empowering and anthemic. The song starts with some in your face guitars, which I love because it’s not what’s going on currently in most popular music, but that kind of sound inspired me. Bands like Oasis, Catherine Wheel, Stone Roses, etc. This song is about being true to yourself. No regrets, breaking out and shining your light for the world to see. I hope it lifts people up.”
She also said “Coming up for Blondfire, I have a ton more songs ready to go and I’m going to be releasing music consistently. Possibly incorporating them into a full length album. All I know is that I have to get them out there.”
For Erica Driscoll, her someday is today. Life is good and her music is living testament to that. She shares her positive energy through her music, we should all be so lucky. Check out Blondfire, the music lives up to the hype.
