Sonic Blumes Endless Summer
Entertainment

Transport Yourself to Sonic Blume’s Endless Summer

If you’re looking for new music, look no further: Sonic Blume, a local indie pop band, is guaranteed to become your next obsession.

Their sound creates an indescribable alternative dreamscape, accomplished by marrying the vibes of bands like Tame Impala, The War on Drugs, Joy Division, and The Smiths.

The band’s talent far surpasses what you may expect for their age, with most of the members clocking in at only 18 and their bassist at 17.

Max Connery leads the band as an effortless jack of all trades; he serves as Sonic Blume’s singer, songwriter, guitarist, and synth/keys master.

The rest of the band consists of Chase Landgrebe (guitar), Danny Murray (drums), and Andrew Phelan (bass).

The story of Sonic Blume’s formation seems like kismet.

“We met at The Count Basie Performing Arts Academy’s Rockit Program in Red Bank when we were still in middle school. We became friends and found that we all had the same taste in music – indie/shoegaze/80’s alternative. In December of 2015, we decided to start our own band,” Connery said.

Shortly afterward in May 2016, Sonic Blume performed at Battle of the Bands at Mater Dei High School in Middletown, where they met Jon Leidersdorff of Asbury Park’s Lakehouse Recording Studios.

Connery stated, “He encouraged us to start writing our own stuff; it was that conversation with Jon that inspired us and gave us the confidence to explore our creative side.”

“A year later in November of 2017, we released our first EP and went on to win the Asbury Music Award for Top Young Band. I guess you can say Jon saw something in us, and we’re forever grateful,” Connery said.

Sonic Blume has had plenty of other incredible accomplishments, including playing a gig with one of Netflix’s biggest stars.

“The most memorable moment for me was playing at The Starland Ballroom.  It was our first big gig opening up for Stranger Things star Gaten Matarazzo’s band, Work in Progress. We played to a sold-out show of 2,500! It was surreal – the kind of thing I dreamed about as a kid,” Connery shared.

Sonic Blume’s latest release, Beach Karma, is an addictive 9-track EP, worthy of being added to your playlist.

The instrumental “Door” tracks are delightfully unnerving, and the radiant closing track “In the Sun” is my personal favorite.

They recently released a beautiful music video for the song, directed by their drummer, which you can find on YouTube.

“Danny started writing a ‘script’ for this song last summer, drawing inspiration from this secret, cool place we sometimes drive to just to chill.  It’s an open field in the woods that gives off a beautiful, sunny yet sometimes eerie vibe.  We asked our friends, James Waltsak, to film and produce it, and Sophie Stone, to be my co-star,” Connery explained.

Looking to the future, Sonic Blume is releasing a New Order cover on tomorrow, Feb. 14.

I can’t think of a better Valentine’s Day present!

They’ve been busy recording at Lakehouse with their producer Erik Kase Romero, as well as Anthony Yebra.

Connery said, “We plan to officially release some songs before summer, one single at a time. We’ve only played them out live once so far, and the response we got from our fans on the new stuff has been great, so we’re really excited to finally get it out there!”

Connery continued with, “We’re taking a little break from gigging right now to focus on writing, with the ultimate plan of putting out our first full-length LP by the end of the year.”

Despite their primary focus being put on their album, you’ll still have a chance to catch Sonic Blume live before the semester ends.

“On Mar. 21, we’re playing a live set on 95.9FM the WRAT and doing an interview with DJ Tom Hanley at River Rock in Brick. And on Apr. 19, we’re playing with Shoobies, Flipturn, and Ocean Heights at The Saint in Asbury Park,” Connery announced.

At Sonic Blume shows, you can always expect an energetic and fun time.

One moment to look forward to is when they play “Shotgun,” which is their favorite song to perform live.

“The song has so much energy and it keeps building as it progresses. If you’ve been to one of our shows, it is the song that gets everyone dancing and moving, and it almost always involves a mosh pit,” Connery stated.

Sonic Blume has undoubtedly become one of my favorite bands.

The talent that exists within our local music scene is endless, and Monmouth’s proximity to Asbury Park gives us easy access to it.

Sonic Blume’s new single, as well as the rest of their discography, can be streamed on Spotify and Apple Music.

You can also get all the band’s latest updates on their website (sonicblume.com) and social media pages.

IMAGE TAKEN FROM njarts.net