This interview took place prior to the release of “Save Me.”
Mustard had the pleasure of speaking with Blue Lush’s Katherine. Together we discussed Blue Lush meeting through Molloy College’s music therapy program, their creative process, where they would love to perform, and so much more!
1. Mustard is thankful and grateful to have Blue Lush join them. How is everyone?
Hello Mustard! I’m obsessed with that name by the way. Katherine here (⅕ of Blue Lush) and I’m feeling great! “Save Me” is finally out after months, or actually years, of working on this song. So honestly I’m on a high right now.
2. You all met each other through Molloy College’s Music Therapy Program. How long after meeting did you form Blue Lush?
I believe we started playing together after a year of going to school together. Tina got a gig opening for Aaron Carter- the infamous “I Want Candy” singer. So she hit up Matt and I to ask if we would be interested in playing the show with her. Matt on guitar and me on the keys- two instruments that we are required to learn in order to be music therapists. From then on we kept playing together and gigging. Then luckily Polly and Alex were able to come along and made Blue Lush what it is. We formed Blue Lush in 2021 and agreed to start recording music together under that name, after Matt mentioned it in passing during a late night zoom call. And here we are.
3. Mustard wonders if you were always Blue Lush or if you had any other band names in mind? Is Blue everyone’s favorite color?
Okay so, “Suckle Pocket” was a top contender. Tina was gunning for it. The rest of us were excitedly unsure. I think Polly and I pushed for it too, cause we’re Gen Z and all. I think something with the word “velvet” in it was a contender as well. We obviously think of music in terms of texture. But yeah, blue is not everyone’s favorite color. Actually it’s pretty funny, our idea at first was to avoid the color blue as much as we could. We were like “let’s make the website and instagram layout red!” but obviously we ended up accepting the blue theme.
4. Blue Lush views music as a way to heal, preserve, and connect deeply with others. What are some of Blue Lush’s go-to songs to help them feel this way? How will Blue Lush do this for their listeners?
Katherine here once again!! I am a huge Adrienne Lenker fan and I love her album “Abyskiss”. Go listen. Leave this page and go listen. Come back of course, though. Such beautiful, grounding music. I’ll let everyone else say what their go-to’s are. But in terms of how we’d like our music to help others heal and connect with one another- we create songs that are centered around the human experience. “Save Me” is for empowerment. “Save Me” is for people ready to move on and choose themselves. We hope to reflect the emotions and inner dialogues of our listeners.
5. What is Blue Lush’s creative process?
We kinda throw spaghetti at the wall and see what sticks. Someone usually just starts playing something and then the rest of us just join in. I’d say we’re very improv based.
6. Who (or what) influences Blue Lush?
We definitely all gravitate towards rock music. All of us play guitar and I’d say we all enjoy jam bands. I think I’d say we’re influenced by Tame Impala and there is an ambient/psychedelic influence, especially now that we have a synth (WHICH I AM VERY EXCITED ABOUT). But you guys haven’t heard that side of us yet, it’s mostly in our live sound.
7. If Blue Lush could perform anywhere, where would it be and why?
I want to go overseas! I’d love to end up in Japan somehow. I feel like our sound might go over well there. And oh my god I would love to open for Baby Metal, that would be so cool.
8. What can listeners expect from your upcoming single “Save Me?”
They can expect a lot of energy! This song is meant to empower and validate, as I’ve said before. So I’d say that listeners might end up feeling more positive about themselves and their relationships, and they also might end up dancing to some capacity. At least, I hope they do.
9. To celebrate the release of “Save Me” Blue Lush is putting on a release show on Saturday. Could you share more about this event?
So our release show was at a venue that we’ve been playing at for years, Finley’s in Huntington. We told all our friends to come through and celebrate our debut, although they’ve been hearing that song played for a while. But when we first played the song about a year and a half ago it was nothing like the version that you’re hearing now. The producer of “Save Me”, Dave Caggiano, showed us that it could be an upbeat, Pop Punk song instead of the chill ballad that it was before. So yeah- shout out to Dave and shoutout to Maxwell Peters for inviting us to play at the legendary Finley’s Grand Slam!
10. Where can readers listen to your music?
EVERYWHERE BABY! AT THE CORNER STORE! Every streaming platform, including Youtube Music which I am really enthusiastic about for some reason. Thank you if you read this far into the interview and happy listening kings!!
Music Shelf With Mustard 