“Princess of designer handbags / and losing her housekeys has requested me tonight / And I’m a fool for her, a court jester / I wonder if her sadness feels like mine,” sings Blake Ortiz-Goldberg in the opening line of “Crush,” a single off of his debut album, City of Careless Angels. It’s a lyric that captures the ethos of the album as a whole: introspective, intimate and a little funny.
Known onstage as Blaketheman1000, the New York-based indie musician has been building a name for himself in the underground alternative music scene since 2018. Having previously referred to himself as a “Downtown Dimes Square Diamond,” his circle is diverse, ranging from figures like electronic duo Frost Children (whom he co-manages) to DIY pop musician and frequent collaborator May Rio to “Euphoria” actress Chloe Cherry. Last year, his song “Citibike” was even featured in a viral campaign video for Zohran Mamdani, then-New York City mayoral candidate.” to follow style guide and make it sound smoother.
The scene Ortiz-Goldberg orbits mirrors his musical style; a motley crew of textures, genres and funny yet candid lyricism, his songs are often equal parts sincere, tongue-in-cheek and stream-of-consciousness. It’s as if the stream were made of neon green Gatorade and crushed up cocaine. Although City of Careless Angels retains some of this deadpan humor, the project is more vulnerable than previous releases, featuring slow, acoustic elements. Its tender lyrics follow family ties, love and the experience of having bad days.
In an interview with The Michigan Daily, Ortiz-Goldberg discusses integrating this vulnerability into songwriting, balancing careers and how becoming a musician has changed him.
The Michigan Daily: City of Careless Angels is your debut album, but you’ve been releasing music as early as 2018. What personal or artistic revelations have you experienced through the years that informed the creation process of this album, or that made you realize it was time?
Blake Ortiz-Goldberg: I’ve been working on this album since I started releasing music. Whenever I’ve released music, I’ve also been simultaneously saving songs for the album that ended up being City of Careless Angels. Once it was finished, I felt very confident that it was done and that it was the album I had wanted to make. I don’t remember what specifically made me decide it was done, but I finished it last summer.
TMD: Where did the album’s title come from, and what does it mean to you?
BOG: It’s a reference to a John Frusciante song called “Anne,” in which he says, “There’s so many careless angels responsible for me.” I love cities because they are man’s greatest creation and a reflection of humanity itself, since a city is really just a lot of people. People are the “careless angels” I believe John Frusciante was alluding to. My album is about city life, people life, careless angel life.
TMD: Your songwriting combines humor, catchy hooks and vulnerability, oftentimes in the same track. How do you decide when to lean into one aspect over another?
BOG: I try to write my songs to be honest reflections of myself. Real people’s personalities blend humor, performance and vulnerability, so I believe good songs should do the same. Many of my favorite songwriters strike this balance: Kanye West, Charli xcx, Lou Reed.
TMD: In an Instagram post about the album’s release, you stated that you’ve never worked on anything harder in your life. What was the most challenging part of the album’s creation, and what did you learn from it?
BOG: It required a lot of patience. I’ve never identified as a particularly patient person, but perhaps I have demonstrated the opposite via this process.
TMD: In addition to making music, you work as an audio/visual technician. What’s the most memorable experience you’ve had in this work, and how does it compare to your most memorable moment as a musician? Are there things you’ve learned from one job that can apply to the other?
BOG: Like any job, I experience a lot of mundanity in my A/V job. I am lucky to live a very exciting life outside of work, so I view this mundanity as a sort of balancing force. I’m like Hannah Montana. I certainly apply my technical A/V skills in my music practice; conversely, I think the confidence and charisma I’ve learned as an indie musician has helped me progress in my A/V career.
TMD: Live shows have been a key part of your musicianship. Do you often think about how songs will perform or be experienced live, and if so, how do you integrate this into the music production process?
BOG: I didn’t think about this much with (City of Careless Angels). I’ve already written my next two albums, and I considered live performance heavily while writing them. It’s likely I will perform those albums live more than this one.
TMD: You talk a lot about having bad days on the album. What’s one thing that can instantly make a bad day better, and what advice would you give to someone having a bad day?
BOG: I like to be creative or go in the sun. Creativity fulfills my cerebral desire for control and meaning. The sun fulfills a more physical thing.
Daily Arts Writer Lane Liu can be reached at liuisa@umich.edu.
