A QUICK CHAT WITH HARPER BLOOM

Hey Harper! You’ve come back to music after a two-year creative hiatus, can you describe to us what the new Harper Bloom sound is and represents?

The new sound, I would say, is much more self assured! My previous music was pretty stripped back, acoustic and raw. This upcoming EP has a much fuller soundscape and it’s more polished, production wise. It’s queer indie pop with heavy nostalgic/vintage undertones and quirky, at times. There is still a huge personal story-telling element involved in all of these songs, which I think helps keep the songs slightly left of center, compared to usual indie-pop. It’s a bit of a coming-of-age moment for me personally. 

You describe your latest single ‘Pinwheel’ as your favorite track to perform live - what was the writing process like? 

It is so fun! We usually have everyone lay on the floor for that quickly spoken bridge. Perhaps I will start to check if the floor is clean first!!!!!

Honestly this track came together super quickly. Tim Cox and I decided to have a songwriting night the night before he got kicked out of his rental. We thought we’d use the room one last time! Tim started playing those retro keys and he had that nice little riff straight away. Then I started singing a melody over it and the words just fell out. I had this really intense and secret crush. It was pretty nice to just let it out, so the song was a cathartic release for me and came very naturally. I think you can almost feel that sense of honesty and urgency in the song. It was like a diary entry or something. 

Flutterby, your forthcoming EP is a new era for you. What changed in the past two years for you to embark on this new part of your career?

I think I just embraced the fact that I needed help to reach my full potential. I think as a singer-songwriter, you can feel like it’s “cheating” if you don’t write the lyrics/melodies 100% yourself. I had been writing for other people for a while and just embraced the fact that maybe it would be good to co-write for my own project. This really shifted things as well as going to the UK and exploring the music community there. I did a few co-writing sessions over there and worked with an amazing producer, Charlie Westropp (Maisie Peters). As well as this, I’ve had a huge shift in confidence in the last few years. I’ve really grown into myself and I truly finally feel empowered by my sexuality and I guess, gender fluid appearance.

Do you have a favourite song off the EP?

This would be Flutterby. Lyrically, if I am honest, it feels like the best song I have ever written and it feels like a bit of magic to me, so I’m really hoping that people connect with it the same way I do. Also, I work with an incredible woman called Liz with early onset-Alzheimers - she is an amazing musician and person and helped me come up with some lyrics in the chorus including ‘Flutterby’, so it feels extra special. 

What do you think makes a great song?

This is an interesting question because I think there is sometimes a bit of a difference between great and popular. I think a great song is one that musically perfectly compliments the lyrics, so it builds a theme or a world. I think a great song strikes such a deep chord that it makes the listener tie moments and memories from their own life to the song, so the song becomes a part of the person.

When you’re not working on music, what other creative outlets do you have?

I like to write. I am no means a professional writer, but I have been writing a novel that I may try to get published one day, but it may also sit dormant on my laptop for eternity, we shall see!! My talented friend, Scott Horsebra and I do a lot of photography and videography together for content, which is fun and we like to be a bit abstract. Creatively, this tends  to take up a lot of time!! I do like op shopping and pairing together random outfits - my partner has coached me in this! I also like to cook, I’m a big fan of Ottolenghi!

Who are some local artists we should check out?

I am really into Eaglemont’s new EP at the moment!

Mad Vantage - this is my keyboardist's solo project (Selene Messinis). Selene is an incredible musician and this project is prog metal with a jazz element. She will blow you away!

My bassist/guitarist, Oscar also plays in a great upcoming band called Neutraliser, he's an incredible guitarist - worth checking out their shows also!

What can we expect from Harper Bloom for the rest of 2024?

Lots of writing and gigs, including Leaps and Bounds Festival, late this month! Then “Flutterby” , the final single off this EP (and the full EP - titled Flutterby), is coming out on August the 30th. My band and I will be doing an East Coast tour in late September/early October - we are just finalizing dates at the moment, so look out for that. I’ve been blessed with an incredible band! I can guarantee you will love our live show!