5 bloggers, 5 questions, 1 band, hand-picked by the MWA writers. Welcome to FIVE x FIVE. This week: Philadelphia rockers, Bleeding Rainbow.
Working as a duo under the name Reading Rainbow, Sarah Everton and Rob Garcia released two LP’s and a handful of 7″ singles on a variety of labels before expanding to a quartet, changing their name and signing with Brooklyn-based Kanine Records. Their fourth LP, Interrupt was released at the end of February, and the group is currently in the first leg of a month-long tour across the country. Bleeding Rainbow was kind enough to answer a few of our questions for this week’s FIVE x FIVE.
With four full-length albums and more than twice as many 7″ singles, how do you decide what tracks will make it onto an LP and which ones will be released as a 7″? | Eric Slager
For us, the deciding factor has always been timing. We’re always trying to write new songs and push forward. So sometimes someone will approach us about releasing a 7″ and we’ll have a few songs in hand already and release them. Or we’ll accumulate like 6 songs and then just realize that we could finish writing a few more and have enough for a full length. We’re still always really excited about each new song we write.
Personally, I love collecting singles but you do get a bit more bang for you buck with an LP. Do you guys prefer releasing your music in 7″ single form as opposed to a full-length LP or was it simply just easier/cheaper to do it that way in the beginning? | Dan Jarvis
It really wasnt that calculated. It kind of just happened that way. We just want people to hear the music, so storing it away until we can release an album is not always the easiest thing. Its also fun to work with different people and release something that is limited and really special.
How do you view Interrupt within your discography? Do you see it as a culmination of your past works, or as a new chapter of the group? | Alyssa Welch
I feel that its a new chapter of the group. Its been a long time that we’ve worked on developing as a band and finally have a lineup that feels permanent. The songwriting still comes from the same voice, so this connects the new work to the older material. We’ve been relearning older songs as a 4 piece and it has been a lot of fun.
As the dynamic of the group shifted over the years, has your writing process changed at all? | Dan Fiorio
It’s changed in small ways. For each new batch of songs we writing, the process is never the same. I feel like you’ll quickly fall into a rut if you think there has to be a certain way to write a song. We are always learning from previous attempts and doing what feels right or works.
Was the “Images” music video done in one shot or did it take longer? What motivated you to go with the simplicity of the images vs. a more complex video? | Patrick David
The footage in the music video took about 30 minutes. We just played through the song about 10 times with different filters over the lens of the camera. The process of making this video matched our process for making Interrupt. We wanted to create a body of work that was to the point and raw. The immediacy and energy that went into the music is translated more directly this way. This is what we were trying to achieve with this video.
You can catch Bleeding Rainbow live tomorrow night at VFW Post 5040 in Woodstock, IL. They’ll be playing with Chicago’s Landmarks as part of Bright Future Band Frenzy. The show kicks off at 9 PM, and you can grab tickets online for just $8.
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