Last month, Blood People played at Bric-a-Brac Records and we caught up with the band after the show. We discussed their latest EP, Great Reactor, in terms of its recording process and the inspiration behind some of the songs. The record demonstrates Blood People’s ability to merge hard rock, ‘90s alternative and punk into their own distinctive sonic blend. It also captures a good amount of the ferocity and heaviness that’s routinely displayed at their live performances. In addition, we talked about some of their recent shows, what they’ve got planned in the coming months and more. Blood People is comprised of singer/guitarist Aly Jados, guitarist Jeff Loehrke, bassist Norm Burns and drummer Mickey Molinari.
Bill – Where did you record Great Reactor and how would you describe your time in the studio?
Norm – We did it at Transient Sound Studios in Ravenswood with Steven Gillis. It took us some time, but we didn’t want to stop until we were positive it was right. We only did two songs at first, we weren’t planning on doing an EP. After doing those two as singles, we decided to do three more, so it was kind of broken in half.
Bill – What was it like working with Steven?
Aly – He definitely helped us progress as songwriters and kind of opened our eyes to different kinds of arrangements.
Mickey – Getting us to think of songs in a different way than we were previously…
Jeff – Yeah, we would show him a song we were thinking of recording and then we’d kind of go through and see what we might want to change about it. We’d all be together for that, but the actual tracking was a bit broken up just due to schedules and stuff like that.
Aly – I think it was a good learning experience for us. Steven really put a lot of time and heart into it and really wanted to make it great with the mixes and everything.
Norm – We had Ted Jensen master it.
Mickey – He’s most known for mastering the Eagles’ Hotel California and American Idiot by Green Day.
Bill – That’s crazy.
Mickey – Nothing about this was small. We wanted it to sound as big as possible.
Bill – What are some of the things you like most about how the recording turned out?
Aly – I think the sound quality is pretty amazing. It kind of set the bar for us with having that great of a recording. We’re already making plans for our next EP to make a better record, but we’re very happy with it.
Norm – Every time we listen to it, we might hear subtle things that we’d like to change, so the fact that we were finally like “It’s done. We can walk away.” I feel like that’s somewhat of an accomplishment.
Mickey – Anytime you listen to any recording it’s like that. I think with our first EP, which we didn’t even intend on releasing, I’d love to go back and redo that. But you have to move on. We’re a band that can never sit still. We’re always looking for what we can do next.
Bill – Tell me about the song “Shapeshifter,” which I read was inspired by Shelley Duvall.
Aly – It was. I grew up watching her movies and the TV shows she was in. I just think she’s an incredible artist and I don’t think she really got the recognition for her brilliance in the roles that she played. I think she took on some really tough roles, especially in The Shining, and never got the recognition for that movie. And it kind of destroyed her a little bit. The song is about how art can take a piece of you or how it is very all-consuming when you really throw yourself 100% into it. I related to that and also empathized with her. I don’t want to say that she’s forgotten, but I have a special connection with her and I just feel like she deserves more than she got recognized for.
Bill – Absolutely. What’s the relationship between the song “Liar’s Club” and the venue by the same name here in Chicago?
Aly – None, (laughs). I mean, it was fitting for the song itself and we love Liar’s Club.
Norm – It’s the most high energy song on the EP and the most aggressive. It’s also one of Gary, (manager) and the owner Herb’s favorite jams that we play. Whenever we play there it’s kind of like every other rule we normally have gets tossed out the window. It’s just crank up the amps and throw down harder than anywhere else. The song originally had a questionable name that we knew we had to change.
Jeff – The song was written during the election in 2016 where Bernie got burned in the primaries. That’s what it was inspired by.
Norm – On a broader level, the content was more about seeing right through falsities and calling people out on that.
Mickey – And Liar’s Club is a place you can be fuckin’ real.
Norm – Yeah, if you walk in there with any sort of falsehood you’ll get called out immediately, but it’s the most welcoming place you can be as long as you’re yourself.
Bill – Very cool. The song “Great Reactor” incorporates several different genres in its style. How exactly did that song come together?
Jeff – It started with Aly and I just jamming this little idea. We kind of wrote the melodies and the chorus and everything right then and there.
Mickey – I remember sitting in the practice space and talking about wanting the melody to just really own the song.
Norm – It’s one of the oldest songs we have because it was around before I was even a part of the band.
Jeff – In terms of the chorus, it’s sort of a simple idea, but it carries a certain energy when everybody is essentially playing the same part. That was kind of the thinking behind it. I think it’s why I love our song “Last One Standing” so much. The underlying idea is that when all hands are playing the part, it gives the chorus more powerful energy, which is needed to keep up with Aly’s vocals, (laughs).
Bill – What were some of the highlights from your record release show at Beat Kitchen in April?
Mickey – That people showed up, (laughs).
Aly – Yeah, that was one good thing. We had Gared O’Donnell from Hawks and Doves play. They kill it and his voice gives me the chills.
Norm – He’s one of my oldest friends and I’ve seen him play music for years, before he even moved up here, so the chance to have him do that meant a lot to me. Denim Matriarch was kind of the savior…
Aly – They’re an awesome band from Minneapolis that we had played with the night before. We decided to go to Minneapolis the night before our record release show, where I blew out my amp. We played with them, (Denim Matriarch) that night at this really cool place called Mortimer’s. It was cool and they were awesome dudes and killer musicians. Originally, we had our release show booked with another band called Bruder that kind of introduced us to Denim Matriarch. Sadly, one of the members of Bruder had unexpectedly passed away a couple weeks before that show. Without going into it and sadness aside, we were happy and lucky to have Denim Matriarch represent them there. They did it well and are a great band. It was a great night and a lot of people came out.
Mickey – It felt justified with the crowd response, the energy in the room and how we played. It felt like at one moment everything kind of locked in.
Aly – Yeah. It was a really great night. My parents came, (laughs).
Jeff – The biggest thing for me was just people being there and people being interested. That’s everything.
Aly – Exactly and them wanting to be there because they believe in what we’re doing. You really felt that people were like, “Fuck yeah, we want to see this band!” Even though a lot of them were of course our friends.
Norm – There were a lot of strangers there too.
Mickey – It felt like we were on the right track, like this was one of those moments where all the work was actually paying off. A lot of times when you’re in band you never get to see or experience it. A moment like that, you’re like “Wow. People fuckin’ care. That’s cool. We’re doing something right.”
Bill – That’s awesome. Speaking of shows, how would you describe your experience playing Pouzza Fest in Montreal in May?
Aly – We just had good energy following us because we were afraid we weren’t going to get into Canada.
Mickey – It’s always questionable for bands to get into Canada.
Aly – Yeah, but we were at the border for maybe two minutes and then the guy was like, “Go ahead!”
Norm – We were all panicked and the guy was just like, “Welcome to Canada.”
Jeff – We had been preparing for weeks, talking to lawyers…
Aly – Getting paperwork together and making backup plans…
Mickey – There were literally no other cars at the border. We pulled up, they asked us a couple questions and then we were in.
Aly – We went to Niagara Falls and we rode some go-karts. Then we hit the road again.
Bill – Some band bonding time…
Aly – Then we rented this Airbnb. It was this cute little place. We got to see Against Me! kill it onstage that night.
Jeff – Montreal is awesome. Everyone was nice and the food was great. The city puts so much appreciation and money towards art.
Aly – We played at this place called Katacombes that was this kind of rock ‘n’ roll dive. It was perfect for our band. We were the first band of the day and we had a great crowd.
Jeff – There’s a big outdoor venue where Against Me! played and then there’s smaller venues surrounding that area and that’s where Katacombes was.
Mickey – It reminded me a lot of when Riot Fest started and all the shows were at different venues and then there was one spot where all the big bands played.
Aly – We would definitely do it again next year. We had a great time. We drove all the way there for one show, but it was worth it.
Bill – You guys definitely seem to be in your element in a live setting. What are some of the things that you like best about playing live?
Aly – We’re all animals and we gotta unleash.
Jeff – There’s so many amazing live bands that we all love going to see. I just love going to a show and seeing amazing energy. When we get to perform, we want to put all of ourselves into it no matter what. No matter how many people are there and just put on a show and not be boring or lifeless.
Norm – It’s necessary. It’s absolutely necessary to each of us in our lives. Not just as a band, but all of us have to do it. We have to let it out as frequently as possible.
Aly – Listening to records is one thing, but I feel like you really do have to have the kind of combo experience. I feel like if you see us live you kind of get it after that.
Norm – We try to not be able to be ignored. If you’re in the venue and you don’t like it, the only thing you can do is leave, (laughs).
Aly – Yeah. I like it loud. I like people to be able to feel something at a show. With the energy we give off, even if we’re tired or it’s hot or whatever, the point is the energy. David Bowie said something about how it’s not really about the band as much as it is the audience. You’re kind of one. I don’t know the exact quote. We’re just a loud band. I like to feel it when I’m onstage and I want people to sing their hearts out with the band.
Jeff – We want to be the band that we want to go and see.
Bill – What else do you have planned this year in terms of shows or new music?
Aly – Next week we’re playing Dummerfest in Milwaukee at X-Ray Arcade. We’re also playing Wicker Park Fest in late July. After that, our plan is to be recording in August. We really want to have a new EP out by Halloween.
Norm – We’re planning on recording with the two guys that we did the first EP with, Ben Standage and Kevin Rendelman. We want to take what we learned with the second EP and take that back to the guys we worked with initially.
Aly – Basically we just want to be all in a room together, doing it over a week’s time.
Mickey – The first EP was meant just to be a demo. Now we get to actually record with these guys.
Aly – We’re purposely taking some time and not really booking shows as heavily as we typically do. We’re taking the time to focus on writing.
Mickey – For the first time as a band, we’re actually going to stop for a moment and get all our shit together.
Aly – We’ve been playing once or twice a month for the last three years.
Jeff – What we’re saying is we might not do a show in Chicago in August, (laughs). It’s not more than that, really.
Aly – Like I said, we get antsy. We gotta get out there and unleash. I feel like there’s something missing if we’re not playing out for a period of time.
Jeff – We’ve planned this several times, but every time we do some show comes along that we can’t say no to.
Aly – We’re trying to stick to the plan this time. We’re all excited to write an EP in this way. I think we just kind of missed it from the last experience. It wasn’t anybody’s fault or anything, it was just the way the process ended up, but we all want to be together in a room. I feel like sometimes it’s good to take your time, but if you take too much time it can wear it down.
Bill – Final comments?
Mickey – Listen to Blood People.
Aly – And don’t be an asshole.
Norm – Don’t be a jerk.
Jeff – And down with capitalism, (laughs).
