BRIA’s Optimus Masochist Takes Aim at the Artist’s Ego
Punk Head: ”Optimus Masochist" is a great title. At what point did you realize the biggest obstacle for most musicians might be the person in the mirror?
BRIA: You never really realize that you are the obstacle, you blame it on everything else, the mirror is only there to beguile you, and you become beholden to the idea of you, not the real you.
Punk Head: The phrase "where the mirror always lies and the prize is just over the hill" suggests an endless chase. Do you think musicians ever truly arrive, or is dissatisfaction part of the creative engine?
BRIA: Music is art, and art can be a form of a curse or a drug. some of us are never satisfied and the terrible search goes on and on.
The chase is always better than the catch.
Punk Head: Your career stretches from the 1980s metal scene to a new rock project in 2026. How has your understanding of ambition changed, and does Optimus Masochist reflect that evolution?
BRIA: Yes OM is a study of case and point, ambition never changes, the delivery does.
Punk Head: After decades in music, what still gives you the adrenaline rush that made you want to do this in the first place?
BRIA: Creating is always the rush, coming up with something new and performing it in front of people is dangerous, but danger just adds to the excitement, and that's the rush you want.
Punk Head: If Optimus Masochist is really about ego, illusion, and perseverance, what do you hope younger musicians hear in it? Is it a warning, a celebration, or a little of both?
BRIA: Oh it can be both, yes, not everyone will survive, but I have created an alter ego to weather the storm, and this song is the blueprint.
Time spares no one, even the youngest musician out there will be answering questions like this one day.
