“Bad Fun” is a modern take on bluesy grunge, an anthem for seeking out naughty trouble in seedy places with seedy people. Imagine Nirvana and the Dandy Warhols recorded a banger at Third Man Records. Tracked mainly in a friend’s living room in LA, this is the first single from Van Bellman’s debut EP “Feelers”, due out in 2022. You may have seen frontman Zac Taylor playing guitar and banjo for multiplatinum pop artists American Authors. This new song is the sort of rock & roll he strongly prefers.

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Bad Fun

This is a grab life-by-the-horns dirty bluesy rocker. The moody story of not knowing what the road ahead has in store, and having no choice but to put the pedal to the metal and find out. Fate lies ahead, where your heart meets your guts, where you will find out what you’re made of. The future never tells the truth much anyway.

Fate Lies Ahead

Coney Island Kids

Van Bellman is the brainchild of Brooklyn-based musician Zac Taylor. The gritty first single “I Hate To See You This Way” might just be your favorite rock song of the year.

You may have seen him playing guitar on TV with multi-platinum band American Authors, or perhaps carrying your luggage at the Gansevoort Hotel on Park Avenue a few years back. And maybe you didn’t hear, but he doesn’t shine shoes anymore. Instead, Taylor has been cultivating this new project and is now ready to present it to the world. 

The theme of “I Hate To See You This Way” focuses on the pain of watching someone you love go down a dark road, witnessing them self-destruct. Anyone can relate to this heartbreaking and helpless feeling, whether they have played the role of the nurse or the patient. “It means a lot to me as both a lyrical and sonic story,” said Taylor, who also produced the track at the legendary Mission Sound Studios in Brooklyn through some serious vintage equipment. With influences from Kurt Cobain to Jeff Buckley, you can feel the accusatory growl of the chorus, and get pulled into the sensitive moments in between the roars. Textured with modern elements and pop flourishes, the track is ultimately a rock’n’roll song which is meant to be listened to loud.

I Hate To See You This Way

Gold & Blue

“Lightning in a Bottle” explodes with a mix of indie rock, blues, & catchy pop elements. Clocking in under three minutes, this guitar-driven scorcher shows influences from the Black Keys, Jimi Hendrix, and One Republic. Produced by Dave Rublin of American Authors, “Lightning in a Bottle” pulls off a balancing act of elements both vintage and modern, gritty yet polished.

Van Bellman

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