Today we’d like to introduce you to Breathless.
Hello Breathless, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
Believe it or not, we all met online! Over a few months, we all found each other through group chats and connected over our desire to start a band. After sending song ideas back and forth, we all met and worked on our first two songs, Loose Ends and Rooney. From there, we decided to write an EP to play it live before the end of the summer. We ended up playing our first show at the end of June to a packed house at Uncle Lous, and we haven’t stopped writing and booking shows since. Earlier this month, we had the opportunity to record some of these songs live, all of which are now on Bandcamp!
Alright, let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
Managing demand can be challenging for a new band. There’s a delicate balance demanded to strike between sharing the work and taking a step back. Finding that sweet spot has been our biggest hurdle to date. While it can be tempting to play a ton of shows and post new content every day, doing so can desensitize the audience to one’s brand. What may have once seemed like a cool and unique event worth getting excited over has now become a daily occurrence to them. It’s important to give people a chance to breathe and trust that they’ll come back for more. For smaller bands such as ourselves, this can be an especially tricky issue to work out, as we rely primarily on shows to bring in new fans. Our solution so far has been mixing up where we play and presenting ourselves on social media. Branching out into new markets, such as Lakeland or Tampa, has allowed us to keep playing shows and getting our name out there while leaving some space for our hometown shows to feel fresh and exciting.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
On a musical basis, our goal from day one has been to present old ideas in new ways. Growing up, we loved bands like Alice in Chains, Tool, Filter, Hum, and Smashing Pumpkins. We wanted to take our favorite elements from those bands and fuse them with more modern influences, drawing from shoegaze, post-hardcore, and 5th-wave emo. We’ve created a cool blend that feels familiar and fresh by incorporating the heavy, catchy riffs of 90’s alt, synthesized textures, and a wall-of-sound aspect. But above all else, I hope we’re remembered for our role in the community. From the beginning, we’ve aimed to put together unique lineups that expose our audience to new artists they might not have found otherwise. Some of our local favorites, like Memory Well, Cold Subject, Preying Mantease, and Magi, have since become roster regulars and personal friends; we look forward to working with other awesome local bands in Orlando and the rest of Florida.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some changes you expect to see over the next five to ten years?
Singles and playlists have slowly phased out the traditional album in the last few years. Mood and atmosphere have become the primary interest instead of listening to one artist’s work. In live music, the floodgates have opened for tours that might not have found an audience in years prior. Seeing heavier artists such as “Knocked Loose” find success on tours with mainstream acts like SuicideBoys is a super positive sign for our scene, as it means our outreach is broader than it has been in decades. So, if you’ve ever thought about giving music a shot, now’s the time!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: breathlessfl
- Other: https://linktr.ee/breathlessfl
Image Credits
Cheyenne Runner
