Blair Interview: SXSW 2010

Posted on Mar 10th 2010 2:40PM by Amber Walker
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Blair is an indie-pop artist, originally hailing from New Orleans, who's opened for Bright Eyes and Cat Power and performed in places from L.A. to her current city, New York. Her first full-length album, 'Die Young,' was released in 2010. Spinner got the chance to interview her before her performance at the SXSW music festival.

Describe your sound in your own words.

It sounds like pop music, and it has a dreamy melodic quality to it.

How did you meet the musicians you play live with?

I met them in different ways. My keyboard player [Adam Campagna]and I actually went to college together, and we met in New Orleans at a bar one night. The other two guys I play with I hooked up with in Brooklyn. One of them saw me playing a solo show and had heard my music, and he really liked my record. He [Zak Fishman] is a drummer and it ended up working out. The bass player [Eric Davis] is also affiliated with the college I went to in New Orleans.

When did you start to play music?

I started paying the guitar when I was nine, and I realized I could sing when I was 13.

What are your musical influences?

My musical influences are Beck, and I really like Neil Young. More recent ones I like are M.I.A. and the Strokes. Grizzly Bear is cool. Growing up, I listened to a lot of Nirvana and '90s Beck; it was a mix of '90s Alternative Mainstream radio, like Green Day and all that, and what my mother was playing -- like Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Neil Young, Emmylou Harris -- so those two worlds kind of met.

What's your biggest vice?

My biggest vice is that when I get excited about something, I get really excited. I might be having a conversation but I get so excited I forget about the conversation and go on and on and on and my voice gets louder and I become way more animated way more quickly and, well, I think it frightens people.

What's in your festival survival kit?

A poncho and a pillow.

Where was your favorite gig?

My favorite gig was in New Orleans. Every city has a bar that is not one of the classic venues the city is known for, but one that locals know about and it's where locals actually go and hang out. And there is this one bar in the Ninth Ward called Saturn Bar. I have really fond memories of playing there because it is crowded, and there is a great balcony, and you feel like you know everyone there.

What is your favorite town you've been to on tour?

I like Los Angeles; it's funny and laidback, and there are great places to eat.

What's the craziest thing you've seen or experienced while on tour?

Well, my van got broken into in Arizona. I guess that was unfortunate, not so much crazy. It was the first peaceful breakfast we were having when someone ran in and told us that, so it was kind of creepy. As far as partying goes, I'm a light partier. I think me and the band members prefer board games over excessive drug use. I hope it lasts. Who knows? Maybe we'll take an awful turn.

What's your musical guilty pleasure?

There is one I should be embarrassed about but I don't feel bad about it -- I love Lady Gaga. Mainstream pop radio has a lot of good songs. I don't necessarily like the production; it is made to sound really compressed, and there are no mistakes in it, which makes it sound bad. But I like mainstream pop.

Beatles or the Rolling Stones?

I like the Beatles.

What is the inspiration for your songs?

Inspiration is usually some kind of place I imagine in my head; that place is a waking dream or an actual memory. I come up with melodies first and the melodies remind me of those places, and I match words to the melody.

How would you describe your fashion sense?

I describe it as a mix of colors, jeans and T-shirts. It's a mix of disheveled and rock n' roll.

You have an acoustic sound that isn't overproduced, do you think you will go electric?

I like both, when I play live I use an electric guitar because at this point I have a four-piece band, including myself. I think [electronic and acoustic] can be mixed beautifully. As far as where my music is heading, when I started writing I was completely acoustically-based. Then I started learning more about instruments and having more of a direction, of what kind of songs I want to write and having them be the kind of songs I actually listen to. I am more on the electric side, being fond of that.

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