Blix Wants You to Stop Being Bored And Make Music
“What is your favorite band?” Bassist Kizer Burchard snarls into the microphone while pointing an intimidating finger at the small audience. He is riled up after a heated debate about the legacy of The Sex Pistols in punk rock music. Reveling in the on-stage antics, bandmates Sierra Duarte and Abraham Pegg take some good-natured jabs at their cohort. They have grown accustomed to Burchard’s impassioned outbursts; it is, after all, punk rock.
Formed in the summer of 2021 from the solo work of lead vocalist Abraham Pegg, Blix is part of a wave of bands that rose from the ashes of the pandemic. The band draws inspiration from the classic punk sound of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. With a tight rhythm section and thoughtful guitar riffs reminiscent of New York art scene band Television, Blix manages to musically dip their toes in the past while remaining refreshingly relevant.
Leaning on those past sensibilities has served the band well as they attempt to navigate a scene still dealing with the after-effects of the lockdown. The DIY music scene took some of the most brutal blows of the past three years. Without access to government grants like larger music venues, many DIY and house show venues simply disappeared, reverting back to basements full of Christmas decorations and private residences with newly planted gardens. However, a renewed enthusiasm to rebuild the DIY music scene emerged in 2022, with bands like Blix using house venues as their home base and scheduling nearly DIY exclusive tours. The Manor in Caldwell, Idaho, has been a long-standing staple of the Idaho and Pacific Northwest DIY music scene. Managing to weather the storm of the pandemic, its curator Scott Pemble opened the doors this past week to host a three-band lineup, including Blix, to the delight of local music fans who were more than ready to catch a good living room set. We sat down with Blix before the show to chat about their sound, Idaho’s music renaissance, and the future of the DIY scene.
AM: Your sound is heavily influenced by classic punk of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. That sound is very different from what is considered punk rock today; what drew you to those influences?
Abraham Pegg performing with Blix at The Manor in Caldwell, Idaho. Photo by April Massey
Kizer Burchard: I think we have become more influenced by those bands as we progress. Initially, we thought we wanted to do a more modern take on that sound, but our newer songs are even more inspired by The Ramones and other similar bands. It is classic punk mixed with a digital wavey kind of thing, but that sound is the base of our inspiration.
Abraham Pegg: I was listening to, not strictly punk, just a lot of early ‘70s rock ‘n’ roll, then I started going through a big Ramones and Dead Boys phase. It is not like, “oh, music was so much better back in the day,” it is not that at all, but there is something in the universe of that music that I feel is still untapped. The attitude of that music is what I am the most inspired by. We do have that influence, but I do not want Blix to sound like just a classic punk band. All three of us have a lot of modern influences as well.
AM: Like who?
Abraham Pegg: I have always been a Strokes dork. I will wear that on my sleeve. Sierra is way into Blink-182.
Kizer Burchard: Are you going to speak for her?
Abraham Pegg: Yeah, I will speak for you too. Kizer likes The White Stripes.
Kizer Burchard: There is not even bass in The White Stripes; you know my bass inspiration is Rancid.
Sierra Duarte: I like Blink for the way Travis Barker plays drums. It always stood out to me as a listener, even before learning to play. It felt like every song of theirs had its own distinct characteristics to it through the drums. Drums are the train of the song; that is the part that people dance and move to. I love hip-hop and pop music. My favorite part of those genres is how the beat cushions the song; that is what I take my role as. I never want to sound boring; I always want to complement the rest of the music the best I can.
AM: Abe, you spoke about being influenced more by the attitude of early punk. What about that specifically draws you in?
Abraham Pegg: My dad is a lot older; he was in the Vietnam War. During that time, bands like The Rolling Stones and Iggy Pop were doing a lot of anti-war stuff. I like the sentiment that rock ‘n’ roll had at that time. Today there are definitely messages in all different genres of music, but I have a more personal attraction to rock ‘n’ roll.
Kizer Burchard: With punk specifically, its phases depend on the world climate. When it started, it was anti-war. It came back around in the ‘90s. Today there is a lot of stuff you can write about, especially in punk—it dies down when nothing is happening.
Sierra Duarte: The attitude of punk has always been about giving a voice and platform to the marginalized. It is funny how punk can be gatekept sometimes because the whole point was not to have any rules and to make everyone feel included. As someone who is gay, that is the part that drew me to punk. What you looked like, how you dressed, or what your values were did not matter as long as you were about treating people fairly. Being rebellious and mischievous really drew me in as well. I grew up in a privileged, suburban life, but I was still able to find this music that spoke to how I was feeling. For me, it will always be a blueprint for how I approach artistry and music.
AM: Being from Idaho, you are in a place that is very different politically and culturally from what you represent as a punk band; how does that influence your music?
Sierra Duarte: The first time I went to Treefort, I was blown away by the kind of people I saw. They were the exact opposite of what I knew Idaho to be. There were kids with shaved heads that were clearly queer. The whole city of Boise is just so much more vibrant and colorful. These people who love music and community come out of the woodwork every year. It was like looking into a world that I did not know existed. I grew up in Nampa and went to high school and college in Caldwell; I could never find anyone to be in a band with. But, seeing that reassured me that there is a community of people who like punk, rock, and hardcore and want to go to shows. You just have to be in the know to find that scene and those spaces. There is a want for hardcore and alternative music that coexists with those kinds of alternative lifestyles. Boise has changed a lot to welcome those people, which is a sign of encouragement that we are doing the right thing.
Abraham Pegg, Sierra Duarte, and Kizer Burchard performing at The Manor in Caldwell, Idaho. Photo by April Massey
Kizer Burchard: Boise is much more liberal than the rest of Idaho, but we did not grow up there. The Boise bands feel a lot more comfortable expressing those kinds of sentiments. It is more extreme to do that kind of stuff in a place like Caldwell than in Boise. Being in Caldwell makes us push a lot harder. There are a lot of punk bands out there but growing up in an environment that is more accepting makes you a little less expressive about it.
Abraham Pegg: For us, being from Caldwell and Nampa, we really had to make a loud noise to get any recognition in Boise. I have been a part of the scene since 2012, and I have always known there is a stigma around people from Caldwell and Nampa. It is a lower-income area, and there are a lot more republicans. I do think it is really cool, though, how much the music scene has grown in the past few years. I am excited about how many people are moving here because it allows places like Caldwell to be a part of the overarching music scene.
AM: Idaho has always been the odd man out in the Pacific Northwest music scene, but in the past ten years, a renaissance has been happening in the state. What do you think has sparked that? Where do you see yourselves within it?
Kizer Burchard: I think a big part of it is that we get skipped over a lot. Bigger bands will make a tour stop but not necessarily the smaller bands. If you are driving from Portland to Vegas, you are not going to make a stop in Boise; you are going to drive down the west coast. Bands just do not come here as much, so that planted the seed for us to do it ourselves.
Sierra Duarte: It is also from the influx of people moving here. People from all different age ranges and socioeconomic backgrounds are moving here, and they all have a want for entertainment. They want to see stuff like Treefort all the time, which creates a bigger push for us to put on those shows. Where we fit into that is, we did not grow up in Boise, but the bands that tend to play the most are Boise people. So that quite literally puts us on the outside, but that has created a fascination around our band, which has given us the opportunity to wow people.
Abraham Pegg: Being in Caldwell will definitely put a chip on your shoulder when you are looking at everything happening in Boise. For years now, a few people have been reaching out to bands to play shows in Boise and Caldwell. We are playing with bands from Seattle and Portland tonight. That took a lot of networking and caring enough to put something together. The music scene has benefited from people like Scott Pemble and Eric Gilbert and countless others who have tried to make something happen in a place where nothing was happening. Much like Caldwell has a chip on its shoulder when it sees what is happening in Boise, Idaho has a chip when it sees what is happening everywhere else. It is a badge of honor. It is cool to be in a scene where the people are involved not because they want to be a big star but because they really want to do it. I have a lot of respect for fellow Idaho musicians of all genres. Everyone is doing their thing, and it is really cool to see.
AM: Do you see a scene forming outside of Boise?
Sierra Duarte performing with Blix at The Manor in Caldwell, Idaho. Photo by April Massey
Kizer Burchard: As far as I know, we are the only punk band from Caldwell right now. We have lost almost all of our DIY spots. Shows are starting to happen again here at The Manor, and the Flying M in downtown Caldwell is also beginning to have shows, but if we want to build a scene, we need more places to play and bands willing to do shows outside of Boise.
Abraham Pegg: Scenes are popping up, but I think it will take a lot more time. Moscow and Rexburg kind of have scenes. I am intrigued by places like Emmett. I have a friend there, and the few times I have been there, it is like going back to 1980. There is nothing to do out there; those kids must be so bored. There has to be some cool music that is going to pop up.
Kizer Burchard: I would love to do a show in Emmett.
AM: That scenario harkens back to what was happening around the punk scene in the ‘70s. Tiny towns where nothing was happening.
Abraham Pegg: Definitely. In Idaho, being young sucks. There is nothing to do here for younger people. You have to be really creative if you want to have any type of fun. When I was growing up, a lot of my peers just stayed in the house watching Dish Network and playing video games. I am proud that my family was too poor to have Dish Network. I do not want to get on a soapbox or anything, but it is so hard. Unless you are an outdoorsman, it is so hard to find anything to do in Idaho.
Kizer Burchard: I did not know Boise existed until I was sixteen. I went out there for a day, and I was amazed. Until you have a car, there is not anything you can do.
Sierra Duarte: My parents are from Los Angeles; growing up, we traveled to LA a lot. This huge city with all different types of people, food, and places. It was always normal for me to know what an actual big city was like. My mom is very city-oriented; we would go to Boise a lot. I could see the potential of what it meant to be somewhere with a lot of diversity and culture. That always kept me starving to have a dream. When I started playing the drums, I really wanted to be in a band; that looked like the most fun thing you could do. But if I had had more access to those things, I do not think I would have cared as much, and I probably would have fizzled out.
AM: You joined the roster at Mishap Records back in December and recently released a new single. Are there any plans in the near future for a full-length album?
Abraham Pegg: Yes.
Kizer Burchard: We have our second EP recorded and are working towards a full album.
AM: Any touring plans?
Abraham Pegg: We are looking at something in August. Mini tour of three or four shows in the Pacific Northwest.
Kizer Burchard: We want to do something bigger next year, though.
Kizer Burchard performing with Blix at The Manor in Caldwell, Idaho. Photo by April Massey
Abraham Pegg: Next summer is going to be the big one.
AM: Last question for you. Besides your own, what music have you been listening to this summer?
Abraham Pegg: I am listening to a lot of the bands that we have been playing shows with. We played with a Portland band called Fib; they are really cool. There is some great stuff happening in the Portland scene that is really inspiring to me.
Kizer Burchard: Plum Vision just dropped their new single. Abe recorded that and mixed it. Papas just dropped their new single. Abe recorded and mixed that as well. The French Tips' new album is great.
Abraham Pegg: When we started this band, I had been listening to a lot from the Indiana punk scene for a long time; that has always been a huge inspiration for Blix.
Kizer Burchard: CCTV, D.L.I.M.C.
Sierra Duarte: BTS
Kizer Burchard: Quite you.
Sierra Duarte: I love BTS, I love K-pop music, I love rap and hip-hop. I have been watching a lot of the XXL Freshman Cyphers on YouTube. I have been working on some solo stuff. I have always wanted to make a rap mixtape, so I have been learning how to do productions. I would love to have a solo career one day.
Abraham Pegg: After Blix falls apart.
Sierra Duarte: I have been listening to a lot of old Nicki Minaj and old Drake. I am in a weird 2009 to 2012 phase. I have also been listening to a lot of House music as well. There is a renaissance of House music happening right now. To be honest, I do not listen to much rock music. That is my little secret. They are always talking about these obscure bands, and I have no idea who they are talking about.
Kizer Burchard: That is what makes us good, though. We would be too obscure if you listened to the same stuff we did. You ground us.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
