Mal Blum is an American songwriter, musician, writer and performer from New York. Blum has released six full-length albums, most recently ''Pity Boy'' in 2019.

Career

Blum spent their early career promoting self-booked DIY solo tours and also self-released their early albums before signing to

record labels "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and t ...

. In 2014, they signed to punk label

Don Giovanni Records Don Giovanni Records is an independent record label originally specializing in punk rock from the New Brunswick, New Jersey music scene but eventually working with a variety of artists from different genres. Its also operated out of Lansing, Mic ...

and announced they would be working on a new album produced by Marissa Paternoster of the band

Screaming Females Screaming Females were an American rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey comprising Marissa Paternoster on vocals and guitar, Jarrett Dougherty on drums, and Mike Abbate on bass. They released their debut album ''Baby Teeth (Screaming Females a ...

. After the Don Giovanni release of ''You Look a Lot Like Me'' in 2015, Blum began touring nationally with a band, contributing to what critics called a "more developed but still gritty, punk" sound. Blum was a recurring musical and comedic guest on '' The Chris Gethard Show'' They have also appeared as a musical guest on the

Welcome to Night Vale ''Welcome to Night Vale'' is an absurdist supernatural fiction podcast created by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor. It is presented as a community radio show in the fictional American desert town of Night Vale, with the eccentric local radio ho ...

(WTNV) podcast and have toured extensively opening for WTNV's National and International live shows in 2018, 2019 and 2023 In February 2019 Blum released a new single, "Things Still Left To Say," and in March 2019 they toured with Lucy Dacus. That year they released the album ''Pity Boy'', recorded with Joe Reinhart of Hop Along at

Headroom Studios Headroom Studios is a music recording studio in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was originally started by Kyle Pulley and Joe Reinhart in 2008 in a room in a live/work artist warehouse collective, located in North Philadelphia, until it moved to ...

in Philadelphia. Pitchfork's Abby Jones categorized Pity Boy as a shift "into potent pop-punk that recalls both Hop Along and Titus Andronicus." noting the newfound focus on guitarist Audrey Zee Whitesides' electric riffs, while maintaining the lyrics as "the album's centerpiece" writes Jones,

''If the electric guitar had evolved into a supporting actor by Blum’s last album, 2016’s You Look a Lot Like Me, then it’s the lead on Pity Boy. The nimble, vigorous riffs ..ricocheting like rubber balls around “I Don’t Want To” and “Not My Job” with Blum’s vocals surging in countermelody.''

Max Cohen, in their review for

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online music distribution platform founded in 2008 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with an office and record store in Oakland, California. Acquired by Epic ...

's "Album of the Day" series, writes of Pity Boy's production value:

''It’s punk in spirit, but the production is rich and warm, wrapping the power chords and solos in a sunny, welcoming fuzz. At their best, as on the jangly opener “Things Still Left to Say,” they sound like The Buzzcocks, if The Buzzcocks opted for compassion instead of bile.''

On Oct 20, 2020 Blum announced a new single to be released on Saddle Creek Records as part of the label's 7 inch series. In August 2020, Mal Blum was tapped to write music for Season 2 of Netflix's Trinkets television show. They wrote the song "Passenger Seat" to be used in a recurring story arc for the character Elodie. Blum signed a publishing deal with Terrorbird Media seemingly during this same time period and began contributing music to other tv and film projects. Upon co-writing with other artists on the roster, he forged a connection with Kyle Andrews and together the two worked remotely during the pandemic on a collection of 6 songs that would ultimately become the EP "Ain't it Nice." On April 15, 2022 Mal Blum released "Ain't it Nice" which critics described musically as "a bridge between indie rock and Americana" Thematically, writer Mel Woods described the EP as

a dust-covered collection of tracks that wouldn’t sound out of place in a wayward diner off the side of the highway. Drawing inspiration from John Prine, Bruce Springsteen and others, Blum has crafted a record steeped in pandemic loneliness and the messiness of queer and trans masculinity.''

On February 11, 2023 Blum announced plans to record a new full length album with producer Jessica Boudreaux of the band Summer Cannibals On April 30, 2025, Blum announced new Album ''The Villain'' to be released in July of 2025. Blum stated that the album was about their trans-masculine identity.

Personal life

Blum is openly

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

and

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...

. They have spoken about their voice changing while recording "Ain't it Nice" in 2020 They attended

State University of New York at Purchase The State University of New York at Purchase, commonly referred to as Purchase College or SUNY Purchase, is a public liberal arts college in Purchase, New York. Established in 1967 by Governor Nelson Rockefeller, SUNY Purchase is one of 13 compr ...

. They are

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. Hannah Fleischman of

Hey Alma 70 Faces Media is an American non-profit media organization focusing on the Jewish community. The name is a reference to the idea of the Torah having "70 faces", or multiple methods of espousal. The idea comes from the religious text Numbers Rabb ...

magazine wrote:

''Although their songs’ subject matters often touch on heavier subjects, Blum’s dry approach to otherwise difficult topics typifies Jewish humor.''

Blum was diagnosed with

ADHD Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and emotional dysregulation that are excessive and pervasive, impairing in multiple ...

at a young age.

Discography

Notes

References

External links