Photo by: Josh London
Since their formation in early 2017, pushflowers has established themselves as staples of the Boston DIY scene with only four singles to their name. We here at Allston Pudding named them as a band you oughta know earlier this year. Fronted by Rocío Del Mar (vocals, guitar, keys) and Justine DeFeo (vocals, guitar) and supported by Ryan Alfonso (bass) and Josh London (drums), the indie pop group has developed a fluid songwriting process that showcases strong guitar, synth-y keys, and two contrasting yet harmonizing vocal styles. This April, they signed with Forged Artifacts and their debut EP Close for Comfort is due out this September 13th (preorder here).
The ways Del Mar and DeFeo each approach singing and guitar couldn’t be more different, but they compliment each other in a way that becomes the signature pushflowers sound. While Del Mar belts soaring soulful melodies that fit the traditional “pop” label, DeFeo skates across the lower registers with a pop punk panache, à la Great Grandpa and Dude York. On guitar, they flip-flop. DeFeo takes over the higher-noted hooks and Del Mar provides deep swelling support.
Audiences can tell the four members are a well-oiled machine, having played together for years before pushflowers was a twinkle in their eye, but the crowd can also sense a shift in energy when the band starts playing new material from the forthcoming EP.
“We feel so much stronger about these songs, and because of that, we’re so much more into it when playing them live,” Del Mar says. “When you’ve been sitting on songs for so long, it’s very easy to overthink every aspect about them, whether it’s thinking they aren’t good enough or that they won’t be taken the way you mean them. But that’s the beauty in art. It can be taken in literally any way, and that’s okay! It’s liberating.”
Today we’re premiering the first track from that EP, “bed song,” written by Del Mar. It explores the themes of codependency, and the self-examination it requires is a poetic progression after their prior songs about breakups. Del Mar says it’s about “being raised in a way that makes you codependent with your parent and then passing that onto your partners and into your art without even realizing it… You like to think you’re independent and making your own choices, but every decision in your life is made from the reaction/feedback/help of someone else. I’m still working on it, and I hope people can relate and take from it what they need.”
The band is also learning how to take assertive stances for their musical goals. DeFeo says, “Who we choose to work with will not always be on the same page as us, or know what we want. Being able to stick up for ourselves is huge since we’re a small band and we don’t have anyone else consistently looking out for us. Saying no when we don’t feel comfortable working with someone is essential as well.”
Preorder Close for Comfort for its September 13th release, and catch a sneak peek by listening to “bed song” below:
Catch pushflowers live on 8/2 at Hojoko for Boston Music Awards: Off the Record (tickets here) and 8/22 at Great Scott for Lilith’s record release show (tickets here)!