It was 2013. I was in California for the first time visiting my cousin and exploring the southern portion of the state. I can’t remember what day it was or if it was night time or the middle of the afternoon, but I sat in her downstairs bathroom catching up on social media. I saw a tweet from someone I followed that hyped up a band named Bastille. The tweet also mentioned several songs. I sat there checking each one out before I left the bathroom. I can’t say I was a fan of any of the songs. I had much more important things to focus on though, mainly being in California. That was the first time I heard of Bastille.
Months later I re-evaluated my opinions on the band. I got into the song Pompeii (like everyone else) and eventually Bad Blood. Pompeii was one of the songs I listened to in my cousin’s bathroom. The song Flaws was another, which I started liking later on too. Sometimes bands or artists have to grow on us. Sometimes we have to hear them in a different context to appreciate them. That’s what happened in this situation for me. Now a little over three years since I first heard Bastille, I fell in love with their sophomore album, Wild World.
Bastille is a British indie pop band formed primarily by lead vocalist Dan Smith, but includes members, Kyle Simmons (keyboard), Will Farquarson (guitar and bass), and Chris Wood (drums). The band was formed in 2010 as a solo project of Smith’s. The band name comes from the French holiday Bastille Day which is celebrated July 14th, Dan Smith’s birthday. The band independently released their debut single and self released their first EP before their debut, Bad Blood, came out under Virgin Records in March of 2013.
Their first album reached the number one position on the UK Albums Chart upon its release. Following the release, Bastille played SXSW and supported Muse on The 2nd Law Tour in May and June. They also played on the UK festival circuit in the summer 2013 including appearances at Glastonbury, Blissfields, and Reading and Leeds (all festivals they played in prior years as well). The band won a BRIT Award in February 2014 for Best Breakthrough Artist. In December 2014, the band released their third mixtape (the first two were released in 2012). The mixtape had all original content compared to the combination of original songs and covers on the first two.
After a somewhat quiet 2015, this past June Bastille announced their second album, Wild World, and released the first single from the album “Good Grief”. The album was released on September 9th. By the album’s second week, it topped the UK and Scottish album charts.
The success of their first album will be difficult to match, but if my opinion says anything, I thought it was excellent the first time I listened to it (Can you tell how much Bastille has grown on me?). It looks as if the band will be touring worldwide to promote their new album through the coming months. They’ll most likely be playing several dates on the festival circuit next year as well. Just by looking at their upcoming tour dates, there’s a pretty good indication that they’ll be a lock for Coachella 2017, their second Coachella.
They are undoubtedly an indie pop band, so much so that I initially questioned if they were indie at all. I think the initial reason why I wasn’t into them was because of how pop their music sounded. Maybe that’s also why I was into their newest album upon first listen. I feel like I’ve been listening to more poppy stuff lately. Too much poppy stuff if you ask me (Feel free to send me indie recommendations!). Anyway, I think their new album has many similarities to their first. Bastille has such a distinct sound that it’s difficult for me to pick out some major differences. I’m sure I could if I really studied both albums, but just take that as it is for now. If anything, there might be a hint more of an electronic influence in Wild World than in Bad Blood.
Surprisingly (or not surprisingly depending on your opinion), I’ve seen Bastille play before. They played the Sweetlife Festival in 2014, which I attended to see Lana Del Rey and Foster the People. I had lawn tickets (because it was all that was available at the time) and wanted to get a good spot for Lana and FTP so my friends and I hung out at the main stage all day. It resulted in missing Capital Cities and St. Lucia, but allowed me to see some great performances from Hozier, Bastille, and Fitz and the Tantrums. Bastille was actually my unintended favorite performance of the day. During the set Dan Smith, walked the entire length of the pavilion to the lawn area and back to the stage, which hyped up the crowd immensely. Pompeii, as their most successful song, also yielded a great crowd reaction.
If you’re into pop music, or indie pop, Bastille is a band you should check out. I also highly recommend seeing them live. I didn’t have any expectations for them at Sweetlife going in, but I thought they absolutely crushed their set. So if you do plan on checking them out or plan to see them live, these are a few songs you need to hear:
- Pompeii
- Bad Blood
- Flaws
- Overjoyed
- Good Grief
- Send Them Off!
- Things We Lost in the Fire
- Fake It
- No Scrubs (TLC Cover) (This cover is so so so so good!)
- Warmth
The Spentertainic Source 