BAD BUBBLE
Q When you sing about claiming the night as your own, what does that moment mean to you?
Being young again. The angst and intrigue of a night at the mall as a young man…it’s funny..I go to that same mall now. Stand in all the places I did back then. There’s a longing to go back and live in that moment again. Young and without a care in the entire world…
Q You mention moving past frustration and disappointment — was there a personal experience behind that?
Yes, but many. Not one in particular. In fact, all experiences. Wanting this particular one to not only not end up the same, but to not end at all…
To seek a fountain of youth in the middle of a small town.
In hindsight, it seems all frustrations are linked to the same thing. Whether it be mistakes of youth or being sabotaged by others. The frustrations and disappointments in Frustrate are more generalized to something that keeps occurring over and over and it’s welcome was worn out long ago.
Q What does “unlocking the other door inside the other heart” represent to you?
It’s a request. Asking the person to “look again”….find the thing that led you here and run with it. They were there for a reason. For one night, lean into it…
Q In the song, you talk about being meant for greatness. How do you define greatness in your own words?
Good question. In this sense, it simply means become that which we were meant to be. In my eyes anyway. “The one for the authors”…the ones who will write stories and songs about us because we set the standard. Because something of greatness. I use this word a lot. Greatness. I always use it in the traditional sense. Human beings are capable of greatness. It’s something I strive for in music. But in music only. Everything else seems to not add up to even mediocre. That said, I’ve personally met people who are what is considered mediocre or common who had something billionaires do not. The love of their lives who will go to all lengths for. I’ve personally seen it in the way they are with each other. Again, billionaires don’t have this because money cannot buy it. That is a level which we can rest assured is a universal truth. But also very rare…
Q The lyrics talk about “us” and “them.” Who do “us” and “them” stand for in your mind?
When we are young, it’s very much “us vs them”. We later learn this is all bullshit, but at that time it is everything. No one possibly understands what we go through. And for each generation, that may be true to a certain extent. But we get older and eventually we have to pay the rent. That is when these things disappear. That said, in this sense, “them” is everyone on Earth. This night is ours. It belongs to me and you and no one else gets their place here. We claim it as ours and we will remember it always…to everyone else…it’s just a Saturday night.
Q Do you see Frustrate as more about healing yourself or reaching out to others?
I would say teaching others to find if they relate. I’m often left to my own devices, and all that entails. I do want to know if others feel the same. I don’t know the answer to that question. I don’t know if I ever will. They say the more people can relate, the more universal the argument. But I have my doubts. Too many misinterpretations. Too many bad guesses. I’ve made a few myself. If we can at the very least conclude we are being heard, by someone not obligated in some way to hear the things we are saying, perhaps we can then heal…but I don’t know. I’d like to find out.
Q How did you balance the honesty about past pain with the hope you express in the song?
Frustrate is greatness (in whatever form) buried 50 yards down in the middle of the rain forest. Only known to the person. This is an artist’s home in 2025. Everyone has something to say and no one has the ears to hear. If anyone is going to speak and be heard, they better goddamn we’ll be honest. Or else that is an insult to those who do choose to share honesty. It’s not easy…it’s very difficult. And painful. At times I tend to think there is no need to balance pain and honesty because they are one in the same. But lately…I don’t know. There has to be hope somewhere. Or else it’s irresponsible, possibly irrelevant. Like a movie with no ending. But at the end of the day, I pull myself back down to earth. And I become realistic in my endeavors. And I remember the rain forest and how there’s not going to be any marker, no matter how hard I try.
Q How do you personally keep believing in something greater when times get hard?
Can you imagine the alternative? I shutter to think…
That would be hell on earth. What I do, there has to be a reason. 3 full years of non stop, not counting every day before then since 3 years old. Reaching people on a mass level. Or even a significant, yet modest level. There has to be something…some kind of purpose. I’ve sat and thought of this before and it goes to a very dark place. Hope. I never tried using hope as a tactic but in this business, it is simply unavoidable. But there is an end. And it’s very soon. I can’t keep this up. Not at this level. And if I lighten up, hope disappears. I just keep hoping someone is listening.
Q Do you see the song as a message to your past self, your listeners, or both?
Essentially, it’s a message to that past, special someone everyone can relate to. In my case, no one, as it seems. The nostalgia of the night in youth. Where everything was big and important, no matter how small the town, or how ugly the city. To any listeners, I hope they hear what they held dear back then. And relate in some kind of way. Wanting so bad for something to take place or wanting someone to see things how you did…magical.
Q Looking back, what part of the lyrics still feels the most true to where you are now?
There’s a sense of invincibility in Frustrate. A room with a great view. Nothing fabricated and everything clean and new…forever. Where we rid ourselves of the slop we knew as good … .and replace it with the angst and mischief of the misguided promises we made to ourselves, & we held dear. Forever young. Without a care in the world.
