Seeing the Blueflowers live is a real experience. The members pour themselves into the performance, though it's hard to take your eyes off Hinote, who usually has her eyes clamped shut as she throws her soul into every note. What is she thinking about behind those eyes? "Please make this note come out right," the singer says. "I'm able to let go now, but for a long time I couldn't. I just didn't want to sound like Chewbacca. We once did a show at the Magic Bag when we were still Ether Aura, and it was our first show with Dave. I went to sing a note, and it was just not the note. I couldn't sing that song again. I was terrified. Now, I'm more comfortable."

The Blueflowers' third album, Stealing the Moon, is about to be released. Their debut, Watercolor Ghost Town, had remnants of Ether Aura. The second, In Line With the Broken-Hearted, with its "folk noir" sound, took huge strides away from the first, and Stealing the Moon picks up where the second left off. This is a band that has now found its feet and is confidently marching forward. Whether you're listening to them play or listening to them in conversation, it's apparent that these guys are a genuine unit.

"We were playing in New Jersey and I overheard a mother tell her son, 'See, that's what happens when everyone in a band works together,'" Johnson says.

Exactly.

Brett Callwood writes City Slang for Metro Times. Send comments to letters@metrotimes.com.

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