New Bloods

By Bob Ham

Classifying your sound in three words or less is a job no band wants, but Portland’s New Bloods are one of the few groups to actually come close to telling it like it is on their MySpace page. Though still fairly reductionist, “new wave/punk” is an apt description of the trio’s fascinating amalgam of the tribal rumblings of late-’70s/early-’80s groups like The Slits and The Raincoats and the urgent political angst of the early ‘90s riot grrrl scene.

“We are definitely influenced by those bands,” says drummer/vocalist Adee Roberson, “but a lot of other stuff contributes to the mixture.” She points to the band’s love of soul and Afrobeat music — smatterings of which creep into the songs on New Bloods’ debut full length, The Secret Life.

The diverse interests of Roberson, violinist/vocalist Osa Atoe and bassist/vocalist Cassia Gammill partially stem from the trio’s roving nature and varied origins. Roberson and Gammill both moved to Portland from New Orleans, and Roberson spent some of her formative years in Florida, where she was first introduced to the riot grrrl and punk scene.

“Iwas friends with bands there,” Roberson says, “and was friends with a community that was oriented around women and girls playing music.” Roberson says she chose Portland as her destination after seeing that same kind of community thriving there. And because, as she explains, “Iknew Sleater-Kinney’s from there.”

In keeping with the ideals of being a punk band, the three decided to start playing music together on a whim, picking up stray instruments at Roberson’s house with no expectation of anything long term. “It wasn’t a planned thing,” recalls Roberson, “it just ended up working out really well.”

It has worked out so well in fact, that the band was picked up for its debut album by the venerable Kill Rock Stars and personally asked to open some shows for disco punkers The Gossip. In spite of the accomplishments and accolades that New Bloods have collected already, they are choosing to stick to what has sustained them thus far — performing at house shows and art spaces instead of typical venues, as well as preferring to play bills with friends such as Portland art-punkers Magic Johnson and the all-girl psych band Purple Rhinestone Eagle.

One aspect of the punk/DIYscene that New Bloods (thankfully) do not share with their influences is the animosity that greeted outspoken bands like Bikini Kill and Heavens to Betsy in what used to be a fairly male-dominated climate. “When Iwas living in Florida, Iheard that people were getting chased out of shows and beat up and assaulted and cursed at,” says Roberson, with understandable disbelief.

The fact that three young women, two of which are African American and queer, are able to make and perform music and say that their gender, race and sexual orientation have all “not been an issue for us,” in Roberson’s words, speaks volumes about how far the indie music world has come in a mere 10 years. That’s not to say that these subjects aren’t on the minds of the band members though. “Because of our experiences as people of color and as women,” Roberson says, “we have no choice but to comment on how we’re seen in the world.” This commentary works itself into multiple aspects of the band, from its songs to its touring schedule. In fact, New Bloods will be heading to Europe this month and are already lined up to play two Ladyfests in London and Madrid.

Besides their jaunt overseas, New Bloods are simply looking forward to writing more songs, according to Roberson. Whatever category those songs fall into, if they are anything close to the bracing, engaging music on The Secret Life, they will further cement this trio’s place amongst the pantheon of great Northwest bands.

www.myspace.com/thenewbloods