Five-piece Blair Street—comprised of Pascual (guitar, producer/manager), Siann (bass), Logan (guitar), Gabriel (drums) and Emiko “Emi” (singer/songwriter)—is a pop band that draws inspiration from all over the world, each member honing in on aspects of their own cultures and upbringings. “We try to get edgy with it, more punk, but not so punk that someone who likes pop wouldn’t listen to it,” says Pascual, the band also pulling inspiration from Cumbia, Japanese pop and more.
For most of the time the band has been together, Blair Street’s band members have been Hispanic, but that changed after Emi joined and brought a new element to their group, with her own experiences, sound and style. “For me, what was—and still is—missing from the scene is a cultural flair. [So], whether that be Japanese on Emi’s side or Latino from our side … this band felt like a great opportunity to do that and really try to make a splash in the scene and see what we can do differently,” says Gabriel. Originally, Emi had been working on a solo bedroom-pop project, but she had always wanted to perform live and experiment with louder vocals. “I heard them play for the first time and it was right up my alley. ,” says Emi.
Siann is the second newest member of Blair Street. She originally helped with artwork (stickers, posters, etc.), but she had always wanted to pick up an instrument—more specifically, the bass. “It kind of felt like some bassists in the past weren’t super into it, or they were just doing it out of necessity. I wanted to commit to the instrument completely,” says Siann.
Blair Street’s newest single, “Love(Her),” was the first song Emi has written with the band, and it’s one she holds near and dear to her. They have more releases on the horizon—specifically, “Love(Her)” hits streaming platforms on September 23—but for now, be sure to see Blair Street perform with Who Killed Candace and June Rose at SLUG Picnic on Saturday, September 24, and you can listen to their past releases on all streaming platforms.