a conversation with… ALT BLOOM
We talk to Alt Bloom ahead of the brand new single, ‘High School’.
If you could imagine the best moment for a first-time listener to listen to “High Sometimes”, what would it be?
The first time I listened to it right out of the studio was driving the interstate at 2am with no one on it. Did I speed? Maybe, was I yelling at the top of my lungs, definitely. I’d say doing anything that makes you feel that type of freedom.
What was it like working on music for the National Geographic on their Planet Possible initiative, and how do you connect those values to your music and life?
I’ve done a few sustainable missions with Nat Geo now. I love that they are trying to preserve what we have here on this tiny blue dot. I’m trying to do the same by buying sustainable merch, only wearing sustainable brands, and keeping people seeing how beautiful the outdoors are. Sometimes in cities we get so tucked away that we forget the full depth of life on this planet. It’s truly miraculous.
How do you think living in Montana for most of your life influenced your style in your music?
I think it’s influenced mostly the heart of my music. There’s a perspective of the world that has stuck with me since I was a little kid and it’s that everyone is out there trying to do their best. Lyrically it impacts because of the backdrops I have in my mind. It’s a mix of college nights in city streets and jeeps out in the mountains going wherever a wooded dirt road takes you.
What was the spark that led to your most recent release, “High School”?
My buddy Brian Phillips, who co-produced the record, and I were trading High School and College stories sitting in the studio while we were jamming on some noises. The song lyric started off with something about Joan Jett and the lyric just took off from there. The pre is just a feeling I’ve had for ages and after I sang it the first thing that came to mind was “the truth is I fucked my life up in highschool”. It felt so honest and out of nowhere. We ran with it from there on out taking imagery from all the stories we had just traded. By the next day we left the studio and were calling each other from our cars yelling “THIS IS SO SIIICK.” Really was just a snowball that kept going and still is.
You’re very focused on connecting with your fans through social media, which is so important through this pandemic where live music is understandably restricted. What are some moments that have stuck with you through your online interactions with fans?
Well we’ve dubbed ourselves the tribe with a mission of just loving. Something that stuck with me is every time someone new joins the live stream I have every Tuesday everyone just pours love. It’s actually impacted me pretty heavily seeing that positive radiance in this group of people. Another moment is I crashed a kite into a tree after about 5 minutes of flying it one day and I showed the kite in the tree to the tribe and it’s now become like our mascot. I feel the imagery explains me pretty well. And yes it is still in the tree.
Can you give us a sneak peek into what’s coming up for you for the rest of the year and going into 2022?
A sneak peak is a ton of music that’s been made over the course of the last 3 years. I have a stockpile I’ve been growing out and am going to pick the best ones and paint a world out of them. I am very excited to continue the plunge.
It’s hard to put your music into one box- but if you had to describe it in under 30 words, how would you?
It’s Alt Bloom.