Meet The Tissues

Today we’d like to introduce you to The Tissues.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Bianca – It was a blurry Los Angeles night of drinking on the east side of Los Angeles looking for the next adventure when friends told me to “COME TO THIS SHOW NOW” I crossed the bridge and made my way towards downtown stopping at the 7th street punk house (RIP). Thirsty, I scoured the house and found no beer but made my way to the end of the long bathroom line when this girl with a wide smile at the front stuck her head out and yelled, “Anyone else want to pee with me.” I popped my head out of the line with a reciprocating smile and said, “ME!” Stumbling into the bathroom my new friend, Dana, pointed to the bathroom shower and said, “you could go there.” Laughing and yelling our greetings, we made our way to the show when she introduced me to her friend Kristine Nevrose, the synth player of darkwave band Flaaamingos who was setting up to play their set. She was a breath of fresh air, so sweet and kind and we all instantly bonded and danced/ stumbled the night away talking about jamming and hanging and making music. I was at this point looking and asking people (especially women who played) if they wanted to start a band with me. Luckily (for me) the Flaamingos broke up shortly after and Kristine asked if I wanted to try a new project with her and Jerry Narrows, and I said yes! And the rest is history.

Kristine – I used to play synth in a band w Jerry (ex-guitarist) called Flaamingos, where it broke up. He asked to start a project with me as a singer, and I asked B to play bass. We met Tara on our search for a new drummer and Chris was her boyfriend. We needed a new guitarist and he was the only one that knew how to play the parts perfectly. Voila.

Tara – Before I was in the band, I saw The Tissues play at Lot 1 for Echo Park Rising. I was in a band called Hawaiian T-shirt, and we played right after them. I remember it was so crowded during their set that I couldn’t even see them on the tiny stage but their sound reminded me of electric waves. A high energy push and pull. Not long after, they hit me up looking for a drummer. I met up with them at Downtown Rehearsal to try out. I remember thinking the drum beats were pretty simple and straightforward but the non-stop fast driving beats killed me at first. I wanted the challenge of doing something different. We practiced at Kristine’s house in highland park and I remember we had to put shirts over the drums to muffle the sound. Even the cymbals. It was so hot over the summer and the drums had no bounceback so I’d sweat like crazy and sticks would go flying out of my hands. (sorry Kristine haha) And the neighbors still called the cops on us. Our first show was at The Echo for Part Time Punks with Egrets on Ergot and Lie, and I was in.

Chris – I was originally just gonna fill in as a temp guitarist while the band looked for a permanent member. We were all having trouble finding the right sound and it seemed like no one could figure it out. I came up with a weird tuning and really trashy sound that the group liked a lot. We kept playing together and I never stopped filling in.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
One of the biggest challenges has been being a DIY band. We do everything ourselves on top of having full-time jobs and still need to make time to write all the music, create and design our merch, produce our own records, and throw our own shows.

On top of that, I think for the femme musicians in a band, just managing the obstacles of being a womyn who wants to be free, open and creative in music can be challenging when there is and has been a lack of support for women in the scene.

It can be hard to say no to things and events you are not comfortable or down with too.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We’re a post-punk four-piece DIY band – we create everything ourselves, down to the album art, pressing pins and printing our band shirts. We take inspo from shoegaze and classic horror and surrealist movies as well as old school punk and early art-punk. We also bring our life experiences to our music from our different backgrounds, as femme-presenting people, queer people, women of color, working class people, etc.

Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Throw what you want out there and keep asking. Get out there and talk to people. Meet other bands. Support and go to other bands shows that you are down for as well.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://thetissues.bandcamp.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetissues/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetissuesofficial
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTzwBD8mC73lmRMG21j1ViA