an interview with Iulia Ciobanu of Cherry Blaster

Cherry Blaster are a 3 piece band based in Toronto who have just released their newest track "I Don't Wanna" a party ballad about being done with dating. Lead singer Iulia Ciobanu states, "I had been through yet another superficial dating experience that left me wanting more. I was feeling frustrated and hurt, even though I knew that I had been trying to see more in it than was really there." Our writer Meg, got to chat with Iulia about all things "I Don't Wanna" and more!

For those who are just hearing of Cherry Blaster for the first time, who would you compare your sound to? What kind of music do you make?

This is always a hard question to answer since our sound changes every year. But I think 90s-2010s indie rock is at our core. The Breeders, Metric, St. Vincent, Beach House, Mitski, etc. have heavily influenced our songwriting and my vocal style.

Your Instagram bio reads, “shit-pop.” If you had to define that genre, what would you sum it up as?

Haha it’s the result of our tasty blend of alternative and accessible influences. Pop with a little bit of poop.

Cherry Blaster started off as a solo project and morphed into a three-piece. How would you say your sound and/or lyricism has changed since becoming a band?

So much!! Solo Cherry Blaster was a witch-house inspired project. Then a few years ago I reacquainted myself with some of my old faves like the bands listed above and started writing songs in that vein, so it was time to form a band. Lyrically, I think things have gotten a little less melodramatic.

“I don’t wanna” is inspired by the frustrations of dating. What’s your worst dating story, if you’re willing to share?

Oy I’m afraid I can’t share that haha. But actually for the most part I don’t have entertainingly bad stories, so I’ve been lucky. I get along with people pretty easily; the frustration comes from things just not clicking romantically.

Do you think connection, like the kind you’re lamenting in “I don’t wanna,” is easier in song for you than face-to-face?

Apparently so :P! I don’t know, I hope not. I’m a huge romantic and I tend to get swept away by my feelings. I think in the past, yeah, it’s been easier to express those feelings in a song than in person, but I feel like that’s changed.

The song pairs lyrics of frustration and pain with uplifting instrumentals. Was this juxtaposition intentional?

My initial composition choices are rarely if ever intentional, though I do love juxtaposition. I just try things and if I like how it sounds I go with it. The chorus in this song was actually a joke at first. I was having trouble coming up with one and started messing around singing “I don’t wanna do this anymore”, as in, I don’t wanna try writing this song anymore. Then I realized I liked it and that it actually made sense as the chorus. For me, big, high choruses are cathartic and dynamic, regardless of the emotional valence of the song. It also allows for the chorus to be interpreted as a celebration of doing away with dating.

Do you think there’s any cure for the superficiality of online dating?

I don’t know, I mean plenty of people have had success with it. I think meeting up in person and just knowing how to recognize people who share your intentions should help.

This is Cherry Blaster’s first release of 2022. How do you think you’ve grown as a band since last year?

I think recording this song has brought us into a new sonic space and writing approach that we’d like to continue exploring on our next release. Every element fits comfortably in its own lane, probably because I brought just the skeleton of the song (piano + vocals) to the band and then they added their parts. It was just a very organic process and we zeroed in on how we wanted it to sound.

Is this track in any way indicative of a new direction for Cherry Blaster?

We tend to switch things up with pretty much every release but I would like to explore this sound further yeah.

What can we expect from Cherry Blaster in the near future? Any shows or other new releases?

We have a show in Toronto on June 2 at the Monarch Tavern supporting Harper Bizarre’s LP release. We would also like to put out an EP next spring. And every few weeks I like to post micro music videos on Instagram for bits of demos I’m writing - @cherry__blaster

Words by Meg

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Listen to "I Don't Wanna" here