VIDEO PREMIERE: Scranton alt rock band Just Blush debuts moody ‘And Your Mother Too’
After a contentious election and with a general state of unrest across the world these days, the “us vs. them” mentality is rampant, which is embodied in the moody new single by Scranton alternative rock band Just Blush.
The band’s current lineup – Nick Barno (drums), Andrew Bryant (guitar), Abby Vail (bass), and Todd Oravic (vocals, guitar) – formed in the fall of 2010, with each member influenced by different genres that find their way into their music, so they never quite know what a song will sound like until it’s completed.
“I guess we don’t think about it too much, and many different influences filter their way into what we make,” Oravic said.
“We’re also always thinking about what we want to try next when we’re working on something new, in an effort to make it really ‘new.’”
In the case of “And Your Mother Too,” debuting in this exclusive music video premiere on NEPA Scene, the head-bobbing tune is catchy, dark, and just downright cool, even if its inspiration isn’t.
“It’s a bit of a drag, really – ‘And Your Mother Too’ mainly talks about the impulsive nature of an ‘us vs. them’ attitude and about what can happen when people forget how to disagree with one another and remain cool and respectful about it. The inspiration just came from observations over the past year, in particular, and from a general concern that the ways people prefer to or are made to communicate are becoming more impersonal, and as a result less meaningful, as time goes on,” Oravic explained.
“That’s what it means to us, but it may mean something completely different to someone else listening to the song. It’s always great when that happens.”
Filmed by Ryan Wood of Wilkes-Barre’s Fenner Productions just over a week ago on Sunday, March 26 in “The Embalming Room,” the band’s basement jamming space in Bryant and Oravic’s apartment building that was once a funeral home, this helps set the murky mood for the one-take video, though the location was chosen more for its convenience than its aesthetics.
“To be honest, we chose this setting because it seemed the most practical available to us. It lent Ryan some space to move around with the camera safely, and the ceiling has these exposed beams which allowed us to pretty easily light the space from above,” Oravic noted.
“The moodiness sort of happened naturally out of what started as a simple idea of capturing a live, uninterrupted performance.”
The band’s upcoming album, “Everyone Is Two,” was recorded in a similar DIY style from February through October 2016 in Bryant’s apartment in State College before he moved in with Oravic, and then in their basement in Wilkes-Barre. Bryant mixed and mastered the 10 tracks while supportive friends provided feedback and encouragement on their first full-length album.
“The name of the album is a title of one of the tracks. At the time when we first reconvened as a band and decided we wanted to finally put a full-on LP together, we were each bringing some personal baggage into the endeavor that had sort of been building up in the nearly two years we weren’t playing together, so we just used it for the songs, which gave the process a certain urgency. ‘Everyone Is Two’ seemed like the right moniker for an album about acceptance and about how being honest with yourself is crucial, especially as you get older,” Oravic described.
“[‘And Your Mother Too’] captures the general energy we were bringing to our songs this time around, which is different from anything we’ve done in the past, like on our first two EPs.”
Just Blush will celebrate the long-awaited record by playing it in its entirety, along with some of our older songs, at an album release show at Thirst T’s Bar & Grill (120 Lincoln St., Olyphant) on Friday, April 28 at 9:30 p.m.
“We’re starting on some new stuff, too, so we hope to have a song or two ready by then. Polly Anna and Days in Transit will be joining us; we had a great time playing with them in the past and love their music, so we’re happy to have them along,” Oravic said.
“We’ll also have copious copies of the album available for purchase if anyone would like one.”
And after hearing this song, who wouldn’t?
