There’s something inherently charming about seeing one of your favorite acts persist in pushing their creative vision in pursuit of art forms that they cherish. The bloom hasn’t fallen off the rose yet for Rocky, Louie, Lakan, and Nathan as they embrace their status as a legacy act, churning out music with a revived flair still as The Bloomfields.
A 20 Year Nostalgia Trip
A common story of high school peers starting out a band and seeing where it goes, their decision was to go against the grain at the time. They rebelled against the rebellious culture by putting on suits and churning out 60’s sounds akin to The Beatles and Beach Boys rather than joining the new rock / new metal movement that was raging along the airwaves back then.
With their timeless hits such as Ale, along with covering classic cultural soundtracks like Randy Santiago’s Babaero and Gary Valenciano’s Di Bale Na Lang, they’ve managed to stay on the radar of not just their fans of years gone by, but newer audiences that enjoy a touch of vintage in their listening space.
Of course in 20 years of making music, things are bound to change.
A Mandatory Detour
Admittedly amidst their discography, the band wanted to shift sounds to better suit their sonic image – although not everyone wanted the same thing. With their current inkling of wanting to go back to the 90’s Britpop inspired music that they’d enjoyed in their youth, former members Jayjay and Pepe wanted to further amp up the vintage vibes by going further back in time with a more 30’s inspired tune, which served as reason for their departures.
In terms of laying out their creative process as a group, they’ve shifted from a label-centric approach in creating songs to a more self-produced type beat. They retold a story that back in the day, they would need to craft an album around a certain timeframe to be able to sell to radio stations that’ll play their music.
Right now, the burden of creating hit songs has been lifted from their shoulders as they focus more on creating sounds that are authentic to their tastes.
“It’s a slower process but it helps us explore more.”
It can be said that their music resonates with various milestones in life, as the band has been hired for a range of events including weddings and birthday parties. Their journey has taken them to various places and settings, including performing at a funeral, which according to them was one of their most memorable gigs of 2024.
Next Stop: Biyaheng Mahiwaga
With a fresh album in the works, they’ve fully embraced the psychedelic nature not only in their visuals but also in their music. They were a bit hesitant to go all out with this in their previous works, but they feel like now’s the perfect time to dive headfirst into it.
Ditching the good boy imagery that had been synonymous with them throughout their careers, this move signifies the tremendous growth the band has undergone, shifting them away from the cheesy hits that had shot them up into the stratosphere in the 2000’s.
Meanwhile, you can find their stuff on Spotify and YouTube to listen to their 20 year odyssey firsthand, adding retro flavor that has stood the test of time. With some psychedelic spices peppered in, they have blossomed from a bunch of charming boys into the mature icons of the industry that are being looked up to today.
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