Melbourne-based, Perth singer-songwriter Harper Bloom has released her new single Red Rocket, a bright and empathetic tune that describes dealing with loss in a positive way – by looking back on fond memories. Red Rocket is a positive, upbeat indie-folk track that ironically stems from melancholy, about finding happiness after losing someone close to you.
Speaking on the inspiration for the track, the young artist says, “A Red Rocket is a symbol of an indent someone has left in your life that you hold onto for comfort. This song navigates grief but it’s also a celebration of how lucky we are to have had a chance to know someone so special – no matter how brief that encounter may be.”
We caught up with Harper to hear more.
For a young writer, Harper your storytelling is amazingly emotive and rich in life experiences, how did your journey start and where has it taken you so far.
Ohh thank you so much for those kind words, it means a lot! I started writing songs when I was a little kid. My Dad bought me a guitar and encouraged me to learn and it felt natural for me to start writing songs. After I finished Uni, I moved to New York for a little while for a holiday and I started thinking that maybe I should start performing these songs. So I started playing open-mic nights around New York and continued that back in Perth, and then moved to Melbourne in 2019 to pursue music and record with some incredible producers 🙂
Your storytelling is very descriptive, what inspires your music and what is your writing process?
Thank you 🙂 I try my best to capture a story and the feeling behind the story. For this track the feeling was grief really, but it was the sort of grief where you can also sit back and smile with tears in your eyes. Events in my life and observations of other people’s life inspire my music. This song is based on a true story, a family member passed away suddenly and I couldn’t quite figure out how you could ever feel joy again if you were his wife. I had a long chat with my mum about it, I took notes really, and then pieced the story together. That’s how it usually works. A lot of the time I’m calling people up, asking them to talk me through an experience in intense detail.
There is an EP due, can you tell us when and what can we expect?
I’m hoping towards around October this year. I’ve got a bunch of tracks I’m just finishing off in their raw form, then we will select the ones we think are the best and head into the studio :)You can expect more Australiana storytelling, I’m aiming for a “Streets of Your Town” kind of vibe mashed between “Anyone Else But You” by the Mouldy Peaches. I understand my sound a lot more now so you can expect a very cohesive and exciting sophomore EP 🙂
Are you planning to tour this year and will we see you in Brisbane? I played in Brisbane at Felons last year and I loved the place and the people, so hopefully I can go back this year for a headline show or I’ll try and jump on a couple of support tours heading that way. It is such an easy going place, I saw people eating parmas and drinking pints at 10 am on a Sunday!! Haha I loved to see it. If you sign up to my mailing list, I’ll keep you updated on any upcoming shows 🙂 Contact — Harper Bloom
