Buzz Band: SoCal Musician Lauren Lusardi Aka Plasmic

Lauren Lusardi aka Plasmic

Lauren Lusardi aka Plasmic

Lauren Lusardi is a native Californian techno musician. Playing under the name Plasmic, Lusardi is unique not just for her quirky music and style but a textbook example of how hard work does pay off.

For her, that payoff is a record label from the independent run Devour Records.

“I met Devour Records by playing shows at [Timewarp Music] in Venice,” Lusardi relates. “They [the label owners] both worked there and told me they were starting a label and asked me to be part of it. They’re now my best friends and I’ve become not only an artist but a partner to the label.”

Lusardi has accomplished much with their help with her most recent success having filmed her first professionally made music video directed by local photographer Jenna Mason-Brase.

Part of that filming took Lusardi away from her Mission Viejo home to Corona Del Mar just outside of the B Candy Store. Its huge, outdoor décor featuring sculptures of various sweets and candies caught the eye of Lusardi immediately.

“I saw the candy store and I thought it was really cool for my song that was coming out,” Lusardi said. “The song is called ‘Revenge’ but in the lyrics we say ‘revenge is so sweet’. So [the] candy store kind of worked out perfectly.”

The song itself is in large part based on Lusardi’s upbringing: something that wasn’t so sweet. Born in Beverly Hills, she isn’t ashamed to admit that her childhood was a struggle.

“Growing up I struggled a lot with anxiety [and] ADHD,” Lusardi admitted. “I kind of struggled with that and went through a lot of therapy and a lot of my songs are about that. They stem a lot from what I’ve been through and those situations have kind of like shaped the person I am.”

Lauren Lusardi aka Plasmic

Lauren Lusardi aka Plasmic

Lusardi found solace in music: something she discovered she had an immense talent for creating.

“I always played piano as a kid,” Lusardi recalled. “Then I started making music digitally and then I got into electronic music and then it stemmed from there.“

Lusardi began investing in music at the age of 16. Until being signed by Devour Records, she shared her music both online and playing at local venues while also attending an audio engineering course at Saddleback College.

“My dad’s really been my biggest inspiration in music. [He] kind of taught me how to play everything and then it just stemmed from that.”

She notes how various rock and new wave bands of the 80s influenced her. One group she cites specifically is Devo along with its founder, Mark Mothersbaugh.

“I watch interviews and just really connect with him and how he creates his music and how innovative he is and how he goes against like everything that is punk rock and I feel like I do that a lot with my music. He’s really inspirational to any musician [and] any genre.”

Like Devo, Lusardi isn’t afraid to experiment and try new things. This has resulted in her music being something of a shapeshifting amalgamation.

“It’s like a mixture of like synth pop but also experimental. That’s pretty much the best way to describe it. It’s always changing and it’s always changing for the better I think.”

This helps lend to both the nostalgic and progressive tones in songs like “Revenge” and “Tears Are Routine.” Mixed with lyrics usually inspired by her life experiences, the effect they produce puts them in what Lusardi considers to be a unique genre.

“I did a show one time in Whittier and someone came up to me and told me that my genre should be ‘music to burn Barbies to.’ So I’ve kind of adopted that.”

Her performances however, have been sporadic and usually confined to small venues, recently playing her music at the All-Star Lanes Bowling Center in Los Angeles. Still, despite their rarity, she is amazed to see the effect her music has on others.

“I see people that they go from like standing next to the wall to, like, dancing, like, crazy. Even if they don’t know how to dance they dance and it’s really cool.”

These performances often see Lusardi wearing vivid pink outfits that compliment her playful stage behavior such as tossing balloons out into the audience.

“The reason I wear pink all the time is because I’m taking back femininity and making it powerful and I feel like wearing a tutu is powerful and I learned the hard way feminine power is real.”