ON THE RISE
A father-daughter duo that has come together through their love of music, Then & Now is composed of father Graham and daughter Tori Ferreira, along with a collection of skilled creatives to share their vision and bring incredible music to their fans. Most recently Then & Now has released an incredible new album, Aces, Angels and Devils.
Then & Now came together over the COVID-19 pandemic. “It was because of the fear and coldness of the pandemic,” they explained. It didn’t take long for the duo to build a team of top class musicians of varying genres and backgrounds. All together they were able to create magic.
Aces, Angels and Devils features a collection of nine amazing tracks. The album showcases a collection of sounds, with the duo pulling from Graham’s Country background, Tori’s more Punk interests, and a collection of other genres ranging from Classical to Reggae.
The single from Aces, Angels and Devils, “Angel or a Devil?” is a track about deciding if a woman is an angel or a devil. “It’s really about loving someone who has the potential to hurt or even destroy you,” Graham said. “There’s an angel and a devil in all of us.”
Along with this single, this album features songs about meeting the devil on a train to Reno in “3 Aces”, or a fun cover like “Tequila Sheila”. Each song dives into its own unique sound and a genre that feels like a sort of Classic Country of its own design.
Graham and Tori hope that by listening to Aces, Angels and Devils, as well as all of their other projects, people are able to know and feel the father-daughter dynamic of the project. “This is the kind of music that you can listen to it over and over and over again,” Tori explained. “It's a blend of music and genres that are so complex. There is always something new to hear in it.
Following the release of Aces, Angels and Devils, Then & Now is excited about their next big release. Another new album, Cowgirls Also Sing The Blues, features Tori’s vocals, Graham’s writing and a gorgeous bluesy sound. The new project is set to release in February of 2024.
“We focus on the highest quality of all aspects of our music but it is really lyrically and vocally driven,” said Graham. “I want people to listen to our music and really decide for themselves what it means.”
Be sure to stay tuned in to Then & Now on various platforms for new music, visuals and social posts.
ON THE RISE
Blossoms caught up with NME to discuss competing with The Beatles and Johnny Marr for this week’s Number One album. With ‘Songs From The Wedding Cake’ in the running, the band also explained why making things themselves remains such an important part of their work as AI becomes more common.
The Stockport group put out their sixth album last Friday, October 2. By the midweek update, it was sitting at Number Two, between The Beatles’ expanded edition of ‘Rubber Soul’ and Johnny Marr’s latest solo album, ‘The Age Of Everything’.
“It’s mad, to be honest,” singer Tom Ogden said to NME about the chart race. “Liverpool on one side, Manchester on the other and Stockport in the middle. If you’d told us this 10 years ago, when we were releasing our debut, I wouldn’t have believed you. But I mean, we’re in good company aren’t we?”
Discussing the stories behind the album, Ogden described ‘Songs From The Wedding Cake’ as “about being married and all the everyday stuff that comes with it”. He married Katie Donovan, the sister of Blossoms drummer Joe, in 2021. Married life has since given him a new appreciation for what he describes as “the extraordinary ordinary”.
“Saying the wrong thing in an argument, losing your wife’s no claims bonus, crying at the Kardashians, it’s all in there,” he explained. “The album is named after Stockport Town Hall, which everyone round where we live calls the Wedding Cake, and it’s where I got married, so it couldn’t be much closer to home.
“The last album [‘Gary’, 2024] had a song about a stolen fibreglass gorilla, which everyone loved, and that gave us the confidence to bring the same playfulness to this one, just with more personal subject matter this time.”
Alongside tracks that came out of writing sessions with Declan McKenna in a hot tub, the album reflects the band’s desire to stay involved in every part of the creative process.
“It started with the recording,” Ogden explained. “We made the album with Shawn Lee, playing live straight to tape, and once you’ve done it that way you can’t really go and fake everything else. We sat down as a band and picked the colour palette, and everything visual followed from that. We had body scans taken of ourselves and cake toppers of the five of us 3D printed, put them on a real cake and photographed it. I’ve directed and edited the videos, and the sets are all built by hand, no green screen. For the pop-up shop on launch weekend, a local artist hand-painted the album cover for the sign outside.
“It’s more work, but you end up with a world that’s yours, and I think people can tell when a band’s had its hands on everything.”
With AI tools and digital effects becoming increasingly widespread, that approach feels particularly relevant. For Blossoms, though, the motivation is simple: “the fun is in the making”.
“Tape doesn’t let you cheat and neither does a real cake,” Ogden said. “If a set’s a bit wonky, it’s because one of us or our mates built it. I think the more stuff gets generated, the more people want to know a human being actually did it. We’ve been in this band together for over 10 years, five lads from Stockport, and that isn’t something you can ‘prompt’.”
Maya Jama also appeared in the video for the album’s first single, ‘Meet Me In Love’. Her appearance came shortly before the UK launch of Celebrity Traitors, where she took on the role of a traitor alongside a cast that included Richard E Grant and James Acaster.
“She was brilliant,” Ogden recalled of working with Jama. “We’d met her at the MTV EMAs in Manchester a couple of years ago, so we took a chance and sent her a DM …and she said yes. Next thing she’s in a theatre in Cheadle miming my vocals while a load of people dressed as me serenade her. She got the idea straight away and was a proper laugh about it.”
The conversation then turned to whether he thought Jama could take home the win on Celebrity Traitors.
Ogden joked: “As for Traitors, she spent a whole day pretending to sing my song and I almost believed her, so I’d say she’s got every chance.”
Fans can listen to ‘Songs From The Wedding Cake’ now. In November, Blossoms head out on a UK arena tour with The Royston Club. Tickets and further details are available here.
Before the tour begins, the group is also scheduled to appear on SNL UK on Saturday, October 24.
