Ben Bostick’s latest album, Become Other, marks a radical departure from his Americana roots, venturing into a cinematic realm that blends orchestral grandeur with psychological depth. Spanning 12 tracks structured in four symphonic movements, the album tells a mythic tale of despair, struggle, and transcendence far removed from the greasy blues-rock of his earlier work.
Every word, every note, every sonic gesture of the album’s opening is transformed and reworked into the material that forms the music to come. Everything is connected; everything has meaning.
The album begins with “The Tangle,” a haunting opener that builds suspense over three minutes of eerie, cinematic instrumentation before Bostick’s voice cuts through with visceral imagery: “Vines all over me / Tear my skin away…” The lyrics paint a nightmarish landscape of entrapment, setting the stage for the album’s narrative of confinement.
The follow-up track, “Heavy Heart,” introduces a melancholic yet soothing classical vibe, with Bostick’s weary vocals lamenting, “I was born with a heavy heart / A heavy beating from the very start.” The track’s emotional weight reflects the protagonist’s struggle, offering a moment of vulnerability amid the album’s dense thematic tapestry.
Another standout, “World Without Measure,” unfolds with sweeping violins and ethereal lyricism (“In a breath on the blue / Under star so bright…”), capturing the hero’s shift from darkness to expansive vision. The title track, “Become Other,” further elevates the album with its serene yet profound meditation on duality: “The marriage of angels and evil / Rivers of blood, fields of gold.”
Bostick’s inspiration for this bold reinvention stems from his alarm at AI-generated music’s rise, pushing him to craft something with “real meaning” beyond algorithmic mimicry. “I was listening to an AI country song my friend sent me when my wife walked into the room and said, ‘Who is this? I love her voice!’ At that moment, I knew everything was different.” The result is a meticulously interconnected work where every note and lyric serves the overarching myth—a hero’s evolution from the claustrophobic Tangle to liberated enlightenment.
Fans of Bostick’s earlier Americana might be startled by Become Other’s Wagnerian ambition and Blakean mysticism, but the album’s audacious artistry is undeniable. As Bostick himself notes, this record isn’t for everyone; it’s for those seeking music that defies expectation, offering a “primal myth of personal struggle” rendered in staggering sonic detail.
Ben Bostick trades twang for transcendence on Become Other—a bold, cinematic odyssey of myth, meaning, and metamorphosis
