BRIDGET ELLEN: SINGER of the Band TWEENS

New Year's Eve night, celebrating the end of 2015 at The Comet in Northside with family and friends. The place was literally packed with fans waiting to see Bridget Ellen and the band Tweens. As I am sitting at our table, all I can see are bodies. The opening band finishes, and then I hear this powerful voice accompanied by a tight set of drums and wailing guitar. I couldn't see, so I make my way to the side and stand up on a chair. With my bird's eye view of this young woman, with dark and light hair, wearing a gold-shimmering shirt, looking down at her guitar and singing her heart out.  Bridget did not disappoint and leaves the crowd wanting more.

BRIDGET ELLEN
singer/ songwriter of the band TWEENS.

"I've been such a music lover from the beginning. As a kid, me and my mom would sing along to Heart, or ELO, on the radio. My first concert was Metallica at U.S.  Bank Arena. I've always felt like the 90's was a good decade to grow up in because there were so many females in radio rock (bands like Garbage, The Cranberries, The Breeders, etc.)

When I became a teenager, I got into punk and indie music- Cat Power, Royal Trux, The Replacements. When I wanted to start Tweens, I was obsessed with 60's girl groups and budget rock groups like The Shangri-Las, Bobbyteens, Mummies, etc. All of those musicians still really inspire me because they are still embedded in who I am, at this point. "

                                                                                                                                                           
Watching Bridget perform, you can see and hear the passion and influence of all these artists.

(This photo was taken when they were on tour in Brooklyn, New York. )

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

(From the early days of TWEENS in 2012, Photo by Artist and Musician John Hays) 

The band TWEENS was created in 2012; the band members consisted of Jerri Queen (Drummer), Peyton Copes (Bassist), and Bridget Ellen (a.k.a. Bridget Battle, Guitarist and Singer). They described themselves as the "nasty doo-woop band." The three of them came up with the name because "we thought it had a cheeky ring to it. I also kind of liked the crazed tween rock 'n roll fan base vibe, Beatlemania, pop culture obsession, etc. "

How did they meet? Bridget shares, "I had known Peyton and Jerri for a couple years from going to shows and living in Cincinnati.  We decided to move into this house together in Northside to have shows in our basement. One day, we decided to jam out this Dixie Cups song and BOOM, Tweens was born."

Their first gig was in the spring of 2012 at The Comet, right after Bridget had learned guitar.  Bridget started singing in grade school and "didn't play guitar until Tweens was formed in 2012." However, she took to guitar like a duck to water. 


      
                                                  
                                                 (picture by photographer Jesse Fox)


When talking about how to get their music out there she said, "the internet has kind of changed the game, I think. When we put 'Be Mean' online it was like rapid fire with a mix of luck and timing." The internet can certainly help artists with a simple search engine. However, there is a flip side as Bridget states, "With the internet helping with easier exposure, I've found that over saturation has been a problem. It's hard seeing so many people work years on an album and have it released along with like 100 other albums the same day and MAYBE see it remembered on a yearly top record list. It kind of diminishes what makes art special because it's harder for people to savor things."                                  

              



I asked Bridget what she does when she's not performing. She explained, "these days, I make REALLY long playlists every couple of months that I listen to religiously. I like to listen to songs over and over again 'til I get really sick of them. I think anything I listen to that much when a record, or song, is being written or recorded is going to subconsciously inspire what I create.  Been revisiting a lot of Elliot Smith and the Clean, as of lately."


Today, Bridget still performs with her band Tweens with new members, the former members decided to go another direction. Peyton is a manager and tours with bands, and Jerri has chosen to take a vacation from music (at least for the time being).  Bridget sings her heart out, continuing to tour with Tweens. She also has other projects in the making, along with a possible new band that she will reveal at a later date.

I asked her about her feelings toward today's indie scene. She says, "I think its grown a lot the past couple of years. I'd like to see a little more of an eclectic pool of music genre, but it has been really refreshing not seeing just a bunch of dudes on stage all the time."


Thank you Bridget for this wonderful interview, I wish you the best of luck in all your success!



To checkout Bridget and Tweens, you can click on their Facebook page here: TWEENS FACEBOOK 

YouTube video: Song BE MEAN (official music video) 





And, as always, Thanks for reading!





***To see other articles just click "home" at the bottom.