Since releasing the album Mondegreen last month, genre-defying indie band Boston Flowers have been attracting a lot of attention. The band’s Brad Flowers joined TGEFM to talk about the record, the what ifs in music and what’s next for Boston Flowers in our latest Roll of the Dice interview series.
Thank you so much for agreeing to this interview! Congrats on the release of “Mondegreen” I’m absolutely enjoying the hell out of the album. What should our readers know about Boston Flowers, your history and your sound?
Thank you for listening and for your kind words! Boston Flowers is mostly the brainchild of my (Brad Flowers) own musical journey. I’ve played music in various original pop/punk rock bands for over 20 years, mostly as a bassist and back-up vocalist, picking up guitar and drums over the past 15 years. I suffered a brain injury in 2009 which derailed me from my musical path for a time, but I wrote my first full original song called “Impact” (released via my previous band PRSNA) after I was able to come back to my true passion. After PRSNA disbanding in combination with a heart-wrenching breakup with an ex in 2021, all of the songs on the Mondegreen album came to me over the ensuing several months. Being a frontline healthcare worker in hospitals (especially during the height of the COVID pandemic) also proved to be an inspiration for my creative spark to shine through the darkness. Usually after a long night shift at the hospital and while in the shower, I let my exhausted idle mind wander and hear guitar riffs while listening to music that wasn’t quite the song I was listening to. My muse usually comes to me in my most tired and stressed out state, apparently. I would jump out of the shower immediately and write almost entire songs just from one misheard riff that ended up becoming my own.
What album or band or significant singles made you go “Yeah, this is what I want to do” – not just an influence but who or what was the catalyst?
As Tall As Lions is the most significant life-changing band I’ve listened to. Their guitars and synths create walls of ambient-indie rock sounds, and the drums and bass driving timeless rhythms created the standard for the way I should be creating music. The singer of As Tall As Lions (Dan Nigro, who produces and co-writes with Olivia Rodrigo) has the voice of an angel and a style that I emulate vocally.
We’ve all got a few, what is your biggest regret? A gig you turned down, advice you didn’t take, what one thing do you wish you handled differently as a musician?
My band in high school, The Vision, was offered an opportunity to rewrite the songs we had created at 16 years old to be made into a more radio-friendly version with the prospect of signing with Drive-Thru Records (a record label that heralded the rise of bands such as The Starting Line, The Early November, Hellogoodbye). This was back in 2007, right before I had to make decisions on where to go for college. My parents told me I must prioritize academics and a more stable career path before music, and I was forced to go away to school so as to not fully pursue music at such a young age. Can’t help but wonder if Drive-Thru Records would have propelled my high school band into a completely different and rewarding musical direction.
What’s the state of the scene from your point of view? We are living in a “just deal with COVID” world and everything about this timeline is some level of completely fucked, but since 2020, it does seem like the live experience has been rejuvenated for the crowds and artists. How has the live scene changed over these last few years?
I just hosted/played Boston Flowers’ first show a couple weeks ago at Arlene’s Grocery in NYC and must say, there was no lack of energy in the music scene that night. People are ready for music festivals to flourish in the streets once again, and I would be so glad to contribute to some dancing in the street.
One of our obligatory questions in these interviews also tends to be the one I have found most important on a personal level. Who are some bands on your radar that TGEFM readers may not know about, but you think they should?
As Tall As Lions, American Football, Little Tybee, Mk.gee, and Fujii Kaze are some of my favorite (somewhat) lesser known artists.
What’s next for Boston Flowers?
Boston Flowers plays at The Spotlight (part of The Paramount venue in Huntington, Long Island) on 10/19/23, and we are currently locking in another date at Arlene’s Grocery. I am currently recording the next 5 Boston Flowers songs, which will be released by this time next year. My current goal is to continue putting out new music, play more shows, and eventually organize the Flower-Power World Tour.
Was there anything I missed that you’d like to share or dive deeper into with our readers?
The songs I’m currently writing/recording are inspired by The 1975 and Daft Punk. I also threw in a little surf rock and inspiration from The Doors; can’t wait to share the new tunes with everyone.
Roll of the Dice is a short interview format with a variable amount of questions. A pair of dice is rolled and the total, between 2 and 12, is the amount of questions we can ask. All questions are given to the interviewee(s) at once, and no follow-ups are allowed. The interview may be lightly edited for content and clarity.
Bad Dad (occasionally called Ed) has been on the periphery of the punk and punk-adjacent scene for over twenty years. While many contributors to this site have musical experience and talent, Ed’s musical claim to fame comes from his time in arguably the most punk rock Blockbuster Video district in NJ where he worked alongside members of Blanks 77, Best Hit TV and Brian Fallon. He is more than just an awful father to his 2 daughters, he is also a dreadful husband, a subpar writer, a terrible dresser and has a severe deficiency in all things talent… but hey, at least he’s self-aware, amirite?
Check out the pathetic attempts at photography on his insta at https://www.instagram.com/bad_dad_photography/
