Dan Smith, the lead singer of Bastille, is standing on the stage of the Today Show beaming a white smile and having a broken conversation with a fan over the loudness of the crowd. They just performed a rehearsal of their hit song “Pompeii” from their album Bad Blood which debuted back in 2010. They had a crowd of all ages singing along to the hit along with the anchors on the sidelines. It was a song that hit pop culture by storm. A song about the volcano in Italy that could raise spirits with its pop melody. In fact, their entire debut album broke the standards of what it means to be a modern pop artist. The album that set them into stardom contained roughly two love songs which is now unheard of in the industry, especially on the top charts. They aren’t typical love songs, they are songs that can be interpreted in many different ways. They bring the past, where lyrics could be looked at as an art form and not just repetitive drone, into the modern era. They have songs like “Pompeii”, about the eruption of Vesuvius, and “Icarus”, which tells the flight of Icarus. However, they were written to reach emotion instead of being just myth and history in a cliche format.
Dan backs up onto the other side of the stage and whispers to the band about the rest of the set. The music begins and he releases his powerhouse vocals onto the crowd as he hits the high notes in their newest single “Good Grief”. This song, although upbeat and dancey, is actually about a broken relationship. They add futuristic synths into their music just like many new pop artists do, but keep a lot of the artistic vision that they value.
The album Wild World was being released on the day of this live performance in New York City, so the band planned something special for the opening. By no means were they going to have a typical meet and greet. They created “Wild World Communications” a fake corporation that was made to be a post-war utopia inspired by the new album set in a empty building in Williamsburg. It was a theatrical pop up shop in which the band sold their album and met the fans in costume behind fake jail bars.
Bastille is the kind of pop band that is bringing back the art form behind popular music, while also incorporating modern styles like synth, instrumentals, and vocals that appeal to many different audiences. They are currently going on tour to the exact same venues that they toured before they made it big– including a few stops in New York City. You can pick up Wild World wherever records are sold and it is available for purchase or to stream on iTunes and Spotify.