Music / Feature
Bled: The monochromatic rising stars of pop goth
Bled are a duo consisting of singer-songwriter and producer Blue and visual artist and bassist Red.
Self-described as “pop music for goths”, the two musicians met at an emo night at Thekla before creating the band, formerly known as DRAG.
Why the name change?
is needed now More than ever
“As a queer band we found ourselves being booked on a lot of lineups with DRAG acts, which was awesome, but quickly got kinda confusing when people started putting DRAG (the band) on posters,” the duo tell Bristol24/7.
“We wanted a name that kinda matched the blue and red theme and the slightly moodier direction we’d gone in.”
The monochromatic colours are a signature Bled look, their image just as important as their music – “Our image is pretty important to us and it’s become a full time thing, dying and painting everything we own to match.”
The monochromatic duo are an exciting addition to the music scene. photo: David Hall
Following several single releases from 2021 and performances at Dot to Dot Festival and Bristol Habour Festival in 2022, Bled released their debut EP in September 2023.
The Way of All Flesh is reminiscent of the heavy synth sound and haunting vocals of the 80’s, making the duo’s sound feel both nostalgic and contemporary.
The EP leaned more into the pop sound than their previous releases, a risky move but one that has paid off.
“Our followers seemed to like it which we were happy about as we felt we’d changed our sound somewhat, or found our own sound maybe,” they explain.
“This also confirmed our hope that people support us because they are buying into our whole schtick, not just the music, which is what we’ve kinda been working towards, so that was positive!”
Influenced by the artists they listened to growing up – David Bowie, Kate Bush, Queen – the band fuse both art and music into their performance, their persona bleeding through both their single releases and their theatricality on stage.
“As a child it was really cool to see someone making their music more than just songs but art and concepts and characters,” Red tells us.
“A lot of punk and glam had that stuff going on. I was never a song writer, I was always more of an artist but my art is inspired far more by music than it ever was by art.”
Following the successful release of their debut EP, what else do they have in store for 2024?
“We have quite a lot coming up that we are really excited about! Our first new single since our EP is coming out this spring. Off the back of that we’ll be doing a UK tour plus making our first trip to Europe.
“But if you can’t wait until then we will be playing a special Valentines Day headline show at The Louisiana for Cellar Door!”
It’s been an exciting journey for the coloured goth duo, one that is only just beginning.
Tickets for Bled’s next show are on sale now and can be found at https://hdfst.uk/e101047
Main photo: David Hall
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