What is “bombastecoustic” (bom-bast-ee-koo-stik)?

 

The term’s origins stem from a much older question … you know, that question.

 

If you haven’t already guessed … that question alludes to the inevitability that a musician or musicians (band) will be asked, by someone, at some point … “So, what do you sound like?”

 

Responses can vary. From a list of the musicians’ influences … to common genre labels (Rock, Folk, Blues, etc.) …  or a list of component parts (Guitar, Horns, Keys, etc.). Oftentimes these descriptors fail to adequately describe the musicians’ “sound”, leaving the artist frustrated, and the questioner without an answer that makes sense to them. The easiest answer is obviously, “come listen, and tell me what you think”, but creating that moment has its own set of challenges.

 

I faced this same conundrum when asked that question.

 

Listing influences like Tantric, Days of the New, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Joe Strummer and Tom Morello didn’t help; and, I honestly didn’t feel that a simplistic label like “acoustic rock” adequately captured what I was trying for, or what my band-mates and I were creating.

 

Sure, the core of the sound is acoustic …  but the songs and arrangements, and the intensity with which we play them, doesn’t sound like acoustic music, in the traditional sense … it feels more aggressive … more energetic …  more something … more … explosive?

 

And so, I coined the term bombastecoustic … "acoustic rock" that’s a tad too loud … a little distorted … intense, and honest.

 

We certainly aren’t the only artists creating this sound (see influences above), but at least now I hope we, and others like us, have a more definitive answer to that question.

 

Listen yourself, and let us know what you think!