The indie-rock band Cardinal Bloom won the Velour Battle of the Bands in December 2021, marking a milestone for the four members.
'It was really exciting and I felt really grateful,' lead guitarist Josh Thomas said. 'We've worked really hard towards it, so it felt good to get recognition.'
The win against 19 other bands was surreal for the members of Cardinal Bloom. They said they did not expect to win, but they were excited their years of work paid off.
'I don't think anything we have gotten to this point was, like, handed to us by any means,' lead vocalist and guitarist Joey St. John said. 'We have put a lot of time into rehearsing, getting people to shows, songwriting and lots of fights.'
According to bassist Jacob Silvester, the band's popularity has been steadily growing in the past year.
'We have been gaining traction and having bigger crowds at our shows. With Battle of the Bands, we've seen Spotify stats go up,' Silvester said.
The growing audiences and exposure gave hope to the band members for the future of their band; all of the members would love to make this their career.
'I have always wanted to play original music and be in a band and have that be my career,' Thomas said.
The journey of this band started in 2019 in Ephraim, Utah where the members met while studying at Snow College.
Silvester and St. John were both original members. They formed the band after Silvester returned home from serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Thomas and Nathan Adair, the band's drummer, came into the band later and replaced two former members. 'We found Nate and Josh, who were like the missing pieces,' St. John said.
According to St. John, the road to victory has been a grind. Through all the hard work though, the band members have become best friends.
'As long as we are playing, I will be happy. That is all I care about,' Adair said.