Lady Bleek’s self-titled debut EP packs a big punch in just four songs.
Addie Bolles and Kevin Neal have been performing as Lady Bleek for about a year now, but the project has been in the making since Bolles sought out Neal’s Redd No. 7 Recording Studio eight years ago. Their genre is hard to pin down — it’s primarily Americana-tinged indie, but the duo has serious rock, folk and blues influences as well.
“If you've heard one song and it wasn't your genre — pick another one, because we kind of cover a lot,” Bolles urged with a smile.
With split-dye hair and patchwork tattoos, the fiery, 29-year-old Independence native is the heart of Lady Bleek’s image and songwriting. She's been making music seriously for about 10 years, and her vocals and lyricism have the prowess of a veteran artist. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons why the “old soul” descriptor has been following her since she was a kid.
“We spelled ‘Bleek’ with 2 e's because my middle name is Lee, and it’s like, a fourth generation — my Great Grandpa Homer, he is someone who originally started singing with me, doing like, ‘She'll Be Coming Around the Mountain,’” Bolles explained. “But there's also such a bleakness to life, and the life that brought this album. And I just think, especially as musicians, we use music to escape or to evoke emotions that we can't verbalize or understand at the time. Lady Bleek is an encapsulation of sadness and the joy that comes from getting out of sadness.”
A key theme of Lady Bleek’s new music is emancipation from emotional enmeshment. Bolles said she drew some inspiration from others’ experiences for this motif, but mostly channeled her own struggles while songwriting through a former abusive relationship.
“At the time that these songs were written, I was in a very abusive relationship, and it was a very dissociative state. When I was writing these songs, I would play them for my mom or something, and she'd be like, ‘How did you come up with that?’ In hindsight, I was writing about myself, but at the time, it was very much external as a way to, I don't know, take it away from myself,” Bolles said. “It feels selfish to write songs that are like — it's almost like I'm taking the emotions and putting it on other people, but of course, that ends up just being something to relate to.”
Once Bolles conceptualized the songs on Lady Bleek’s self-titled debut, she took them to her trusted collaborator, Kevin Neal, who brought the tracks to life. Neal is a lifelong Iowan who’s been making music since he was a teenager. He has had an illustrious, decades-long career in recording music and doing tech work for bands on worldwide tours. Lady Bleek’s music was developed and recorded at his Redd No. 7 Recording Studio in northwest Des Moines.
“When we're working together, it's very collaborative in a way that's just easy. If I write a song and it's just the bare bones, I bring it to Kevin. I'm like, ‘Hey, what do you like? What do you hear on this? What do you want to put on it?’ He will bring back the exact sound that I didn't even know that I was wanting for that song, but then he'll just do it,” Bolles said. “We'll kind of go back and forth like, ‘Hey, let's try this chord instead, create a little dissonance.’ But for the most part, it's just having fun and following our gut feeling.”
“We've had days where we've been like, ‘Oh, it’s seven hours later,” Neal said. “It's also a very vulnerable place to be when you're just being open and honest and letting things fall out on the table. It’s just what we do.”
The four tracks on Lady Bleek are “Jar On A Table,” “You’ll Be Seeing Me,” “Mercy” and “Someday.”
“I think my personal favorite is "Mercy.” It just resonates with me in a way. When we first heard it and started working through it together, I just felt a strong feeling for it and towards it,” Neal said. “It makes me cry every time I hear it.”
Lady Bleek also has two music videos out, both of which were filmed and edited by the band. At their debut album release show, a limited run of 300 vinyl records will be available for purchase, as well as band merch. Lady Bleek is definitively DIY, but the exceptional production value of the work is at a much higher caliber than a typical indie band at their debut. Despite their budding star power, Bolles and Neal exhibit fun, humble personalities that are sure to translate to a heartwarming, intimate atmosphere.
“Anybody who listens to us, we appreciate it very much!” Bolles beamed.
Tickets for Lady Bleek’s debut EP release show at xBk in Des Moines on Friday, Sept. 25 are available on the venue’s website and at the door. Fellow locals Oswald Family Band and Tyler Tallman will open.
