The Bacon Brothers' "Ballad Of The Brothers," releasing April 19, 2024, continues their diverse "forosoco" sound journey, blending folk, rock, soul, and country. Spanning decades, their twelfth album showcases the unique talents of Kevin, an A-list actor, and Michael, an Emmy-winning composer, through sharp songwriting and storytelling. Featuring a mix of alt-rock, Motown-inspired soul, and folk, it highlights their evolution and distinct approaches to music. Raised in Philadelphia, their influences include 1970s singer/songwriters, Philly soul, and classic rock, creating a modern musical homage to their roots.
The siblings have spent the better part of three decades creating their own mix of folk, rock, soul, and country music. They call that diverse sound "forosoco," and it's taken them around the world, from headlining gigs in Japan to American performances at iconic venues like Carnegie Hall, the Grand Ole Opry and Gruene Hall.
The exploration continues with the band's twelfth release, Ballad Of The Brothers . It's a record that highlights not only the similarities between Kevin Bacon (known worldwide as an A-list Hollywood actor) and Michael Bacon (celebrated as an Emmy-winning composer), but the differences, too. The two siblings may be bound together by blood and a mutual love of American roots music, but they've grown into sharp songwriters and cinematic storytellers with their own distinct approaches. Ballad Of The Brothers makes room for both of those approaches, offering a mix of edgy alt-rock ("Take Off This Tattoo"), Motown-inspired soul ("Put Your Hand Up"), fingerpicked folk ("Let That Be Enough"), and everything in between.
We’ve been doing this for several decades if you go back to when we first had instruments in our hands. We were raised in a family that appreciated everything that was artistic. I was in a band with our sister when I was in high school. We were given art lessons and dance lessons and acting lessons. That’s just the kind of family we grew up in. It was just a natural thing for Kevin and I to do things together. I discovered early on that he had a natural gift for sharing sentiments that were personal to him, but in fact universal as far as most people were concerned. That’s really the essence of what our band has been all about and it’s been immensely satisfying to us.
What’s always been surprising to me is that we’ve been able to do it for so long. The fact that we’ve kept making music is always amazing to me. Every time I write a song, I think it’s the last one I’m ever going to write. Every time we do a record, I’m definitely sure it’s the last record we’re ever going to do. But then we gather more songs. We’re a songwriting band. That’s the beginning and the end. It’s the be-all and the end-all as far as what we do.
On July 18, 2020, the brothers released their tenth record entitled The Way We Love, which contains a series of songs that explore those intimate relationships with the people and ideals that become a source of both purpose and passion. The album contains ten tracks, seven of which were produced by Michael & Kevin, two by Philadelphia producer/engineer Joe Nicolo, one produced by Saverio Principini. Two of the exceptional offerings were recorded live at Sony Hall in New York City. It’s also one of their most emotionally charged collections to date, and one of their most dynamic and diverse as well.
SixDegrees.org is a charity led by actor, musician, and philanthropist Kevin Bacon. Launched on January 18, 2007, the organization builds on the popularity of the "small world phenomenon" by enabling people to become celebrities for their own causes by donating to or raising money for local and grassroots charities in the United States.