Q&A: PANIK FLOWER Brings Dreamgaze to the New York City Scene
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY JOANNA GIANO ☆
Credit: Ivan Alexander
NEW YORK-BASED DREAMGAZE BAND, PANIK FLOWER, is made up of five co-collaborators: vocalist Sage Leopold, guitarist and vocalist Mila Stieglitz, guitarist Jordan Buzzell, bassist Max Baird, and drummer Marco Starger. Together, they create an atmospheric, nostalgia-laced sound reminiscent of the '90s, often drawing comparisons to The Cranberries. With a fusion of dreamy, fuzzy textures PANIK FLOWER carves out their own space in the NYC music scene. Their latest single, "Alkaline," offers a glimpse into their upcoming EP, Rearview, set for release this April. The track sets the tone for the moody and reflective soundscape the EP will embody, exploring themes of identity, yearning, and transition through hard-hitting instrumentals.
Formed from a blend of lifelong friendships and serendipitous encounters, PANIK FLOWER is a band born from the magnetic force of New York City that pushes people together. Sage, Mila, and Max all grew up in the city, attending different high schools before their paths crossed in the local music scene. Jordan, originally from Virginia, spent his teenage years skateboarding through the city streets before fully immersing himself in its musical scene. Their bond, strengthened by a shared love for shoegaze and dream pop, is evident in their collaborative songwriting process. The band cites influences like Slowdive, My Bloody Valentine, and The Sundays, but each member brings a unique musical perspective, allowing their sound to be both familiar and refreshingly new.
As they prepare for the release of Rearview, PANIK FLOWER continues to make their mark in the NYC music scene. They will be playing at the New Colossus Festival in New York City in March, along with an upcoming single release party featuring LIP Critic and Scary Bradshaw.
Listen to Alkaline now.
LUNA: If you could describe Rearview in three words, what would they be?
SAGE LEOPOLD: I feel like we've been talking a lot about this push-pull throughout the EP, and juxtaposition has been a word that keeps coming up. So I guess, I don’t know—tell me if anybody disagrees—but I think juxtaposing, and I think that theme recurs a lot throughout the EP. So that’s mine.
MAX BAIRD: Maybe similar, practiced chaos comes to mind. We have a lot of fun going kind of crazy during that song, but there's always a lot of communication around it. It’s a lot of fun to perform.
LUNA: What’s the story behind the name PANIK FLOWER?
SAGE: Oh, so PANIK FLOWER kind of started a while ago as a solo project, and when I was looking to start a band, I was like, What should I name it? My stepdad—he's 85 and British and really quirky—kind of took it upon himself to come up with names. He’d send me new ones every few weeks, and I’d be like, Eh, not quite right. Then one day, he was like, PANIK FLOWER. I was like, Okay, that’s interesting. What does it mean? And he said It’s when a flower blooms to its fullest and then—You can look it up on Google. It’s on Google.
So I went to look it up...and it wasn’t there. And I was like, perfect. It just felt fitting—not just for me at the time but also for the music.
LUNA: The New York City music scene is really different from places like LA. What brought you guys here?
MILA STIEGLITZ COURTNEY: Three of us, Sage, Max, and I grew up in the city. We all went to different high schools, but Sage and I met through something in high school and have been friends since then. Max is obviously from here.
JORDAN BUZZELL: I’ve been in the city since 2018, but in high school, I used to come here to skateboard. I grew up just outside of DC in Virginia, and my friends and I would take buses from DC to New York just to skate. Then in college, I really got into the music scene, and as soon as I graduated, I made it my goal to move here.
I actually met Sage at a party where a friend of mine played in a band called Grand Army Reapers, and they did a show with Sage. We just got to talking, and yeah, it was one of those mutual, chance connections that led me here. I’m so grateful that these cool city kids accepted this transplant.
LUNA: Who are some of your biggest musical influences as a band?
SAGE: I think I can maybe speak for Mila and me on this one—maybe Jordan too, maybe everyone in the band. We love Slowdive, My Bloody Valentine. We’ve been listening to a lot of The Sundays over the past year. I don’t want to speak for everybody, though-everyone should throw in their own.
One thing that’s cool about this group is that we have similar tastes, but everyone has their own niche. That really informs the writing and brings something different.
LUNA: Do you guys listen to a lot of dream pop?
EVERYONE: Yeah.
MILA: I second Sage. There are bands we all share a love for, but we’re all on different ends of the spectrum with our personal tastes. My favorite band in high school was Beach House, which is a little different. I love that ambient, dreamy sound, but we also have a lot of influences that are either more upbeat, heavier, or more shoegaze-y.
LUNA: What’s your favorite part about being in the NYC music scene?
JORDAN: The community is really strong. Any given night, you can find a great local show. It can be overwhelming sometimes, but there’s a real sense of support here.
I remember my first show—I was having a panic attack because it was so overwhelming. And the bands we played with were so supportive in that moment. That’s a good anecdote for how this scene is: people really show up for each other.
LUNA: Do you have a performance that stands out as a special moment?
MAX: Dirty Nelly’s when we were on tour. It’s not really about the NYC scene, but that was an awesome show.
LUNA: Tell me about it—what made it special?
MAX: It was in Charlottesville, Virginia. A total dive bar with no PA system.
MILA: Right, and there was a football game that got rained out, so the crowd was very…unexpected. Not the typical audience for shoegaze or post-punk or whatever we are.
MAX: Yeah, and there had been this nasty review of our touring band—someone really went in on them for being self-proclaimed feminists. So we were like, Uh, what are we walking into?
But then…they ended up loving us. It was so sweet. This middle-aged man was getting down right in front of the stage. He even waved a $2 bill in my face and tucked it into my bass. Weirdest thing ever. But also kind of adorable.
SAGE: The first time we played Baby’s was really special too—that was January 2023. We had taken a few months off to write the EP, and our first show back was New Colossus Festival. We were so excited to finally play the new stuff. The only song people knew was “Dark Blue,” and it was cool to see how they reacted to everything else.
LUNA: What do you want people to feel when they listen to “Alkaline?” How would you describe it?
SAGE: A lot of this upcoming EP has to do with identity and reflection. “Alkaline” is about change - that push-pull of wanting things to stay the same but knowing they’re not going to.
Lyrically, I was trying to get across this sense of longing, and I think that comes through in the instrumental too. There’s a real yearning in the song—I hope that comes across.
MILA: Yeah, that’s reflected in the instrumentation—the way the song resolves at the end but keeps this moody, haunting feeling throughout. Especially in the chorus, there’s this tension.
MAX: The contrast between Jordan and Mila’s guitar parts really makes the song. Jordan’s got this huge, atmospheric soundscape, and Mila’s got these tight, super catchy, clean riffs. The verses are sparse, then everything really lets go in the chorus. It was so fun to write and record.
LUNA: How has your sound developed since “Dark Blue?”
MILA STIEGLITZ COURTNEY: That’s a good question. I think it’s just gotten a lot tighter…
SAGE: Yeah, I think with “Dark Blue,” we were still figuring things out. That was our first song, and it was kind of like, What do we sound like? What do we want to be? Now, we’re much more intentional about the songwriting and the dynamics.
JORDAN: “Dark Blue” was really open and dreamy, but the newer stuff has more tension and release. We’re thinking more about contrast, space, and letting the instrumentation breathe.
Credit: Ivan Alexander
LUNA: What’s next for PANIK FLOWER?
SAGE: We’ve got some shows lined up that we’re really excited about, and we’re always writing.
JORDAN: The EP comes out soon, and we can’t wait for people to hear it. It feels like a step forward for us, and we’re really proud of it.
MAX: Yeah, we’re just ready to play as much as possible. There’s nothing better than getting to share this music with people in a live setting.
MILA: We’re always evolving, but this release feels like a really big moment for us.
LUNA: You also have really striking visuals. How do you decide on those? Is there a specific theme behind them?
SAGE: Mila and I have spent a lot of time figuring out how we want the music to look. For the “Alkaline” video, we pulled from old family footage. A few years ago, my aunt digitized my grandparents’ old Super 8 films—about two hours' worth. We’d already used some of it for projections during live shows, and a few weeks ago, we realized we should build a visual language for “Alkaline.” Once we started piecing it together, it just clicked with the music.
I think it works so well because the instrumentals have this grungy ’90s feel, and that grainy Super 8 footage complements it perfectly. For the other visuals in this EP, there’s a mix of nostalgia—calling back to the era that inspires us musically—but also an intensity. That’s something you’ll really see in what we’re putting out next.
MILA: And there’s also something personal about it. Maybe it’s because I know Sage and her family, but watching that footage—seeing her mom and aunt growing up—it just felt really moving when paired with the music.
LUNA: What’s your creative process like when writing and recording?
SAGE: Oh, we have to talk about Marco. He’s been such a big part of this.
MAX: Yeah, Marco [Starger] really felt like the missing piece when he joined last year.
SAGE: Exactly. And he brings so many ideas to the group. Usually, he’ll send me an instrumental he’s written, and I’ll build vocals and lyrics from there. But it’s really fluid. Some songs started with ideas I brought in, but then Mila would have a different take, and we’d go in that direction instead. Sometimes, the lyrics are a mash-up—there are pieces from Max, from me, from Mila. It all blends together in a way that feels really natural.
MAX: Even in rehearsal, we’ll be like, “Okay, is this gonna be a verse-chorus-verse-chorus kind of song, or do we want to get weirder?” We talk about whether something leans more towards ’90s shoegaze or something else entirely. It’s cool because everyone’s different music tastes become concrete choices we get to make. There’s no head-butting, just this really open, collaborative process.
MILA: It’s a very sweet songwriting dynamic.
SAGE: Yeah, and I think that’s because we’re all willing to try everyone’s ideas. If something doesn’t work, no one takes it personally—we just move on. It’s such a safe, comfortable space to create in.
LUNA: Last question—if you could open for any band, dead or alive, who would it be?
SAGE: Oh god. So many.
MILA: We’re all gonna have different answers, but if we could open for Slowdive, that would be life-changing.
JORDAN: Right now, I’m really into Wisp. I feel like our sounds would complement each other well, and selfishly, I’d love to just watch them play every night.
LUNA: A free concert!
JORDAN: Exactly! Just sneaking peeks through the curtains
MAX: Similar vibe—I’d say Tagabow. That would be so much fun.
JORDAN: Ooh, that’s a great one.
SAGE: I’m gonna go a little rogue. Unfortunately, this isn’t possible anymore, but The Cranberries. I’d love to open for them. RIP.
LUNA: That makes so much sense for your sound.
REARVIEW TO ARRIVE ON APRIL 30 — PRE-SAVE
