MySpace emos are a different breed, there’s no denying it.
My friend and this week’s featured artist, Josh Bennett, proves that to be true. Josh first entered the public arena in a time before smartphones; he recorded himself on a tape recorder playing covers of popular songs and shared them on Myspace under the delightfully classic username The Acoustic Super Biskits (originally xbiskitsx). The “Biskits” moniker only lasted a few years, as eventually he grew up (what fun is that?) and adopted the name Josh Bennett, before releasing his first DIY EP in 2009. The music world saw nearly nothing of Josh Bennett for the next decade, as he, like so many of us, disappeared into the “real world”. 2019, however, saw his return to the scene with the release of his 10 song album, Songs from the Drive, and sweaters and lights, a bright and cheerful Christmas EP. Since then, Josh has continued to write and record. In recent years, along with the help of some talented friends, he has delivered a number of poignant tracks with a more mature indie-punk sound that feels authentic and devastatingly honest. I will happily admit I’m biased here, but it’s clear to me that the music world has only just begun to see what Josh Bennett can deliver, and whatever comes next promises to be something worth noticing.
Keep scrolling to check out my lightning round interview with Josh Bennett; be sure to follow along on socials (@tjoshbennett on Instagram and Tiktok) and tune in to Spotify and Apple Music. Don’t forget to save the Under Exposed playlist on Spotify to listen to my favorites from Josh Bennett, and the rest of the Under Exposed lineup!
Interview
Cameron Conrad sits down with Josh Bennett
What’s your dream venue, the place that will feel like you’ve “made it” once you've played there?
Honestly, anywhere that my daughter can say, “Hey, my dad played his music there!”
If you could pick any band or artist, past or present, to tour with, who would it be?
Bilmuri. I just want Johnny Franck to like me.
If you were a Disney character, who would you be?
Oh it’s absolutely Bluey’s dad, Bandit. 100 percent.
What’s the craziest, cringiest thing you’ve done for the sake of your music?
Craziest, 50 cover songs during COVID. Cringiest, seriously performing as The Acoustic Super Biskits in high school.
If we gave out high-school superlatives today, what would you win?
Most likely to not give up on their dreams.
Any new music or upcoming tours we should know about? Anything brewing behind the scenes you can give a hint about?
My newest song, I’ll be Fine, just came out. We’ve got two more singles in the works, and hopefully by this summer, I’ll put out an EP and just keep writing better music! We really want to get together for a few shows so hopefully the stars align and we can make it happen!