BEARTOOTH’s CALEB SHOMO: ‘I Am Not Being Driven By…

In a new interview with Germany’s Rock Antenne, BEARTOOTH frontman Caleb Shomo addressed questions about whether the more poppy sound of the group recently released single “ATTN.”, taken from the new deluxe edition of BEARTOOTH‘s album “The Surface”, is indicative of the direction he and his bandmates plan to take with their next album. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “I have no idea, to be completely honest with you. I think that it’s a little more complicated than just, ‘We like the heavy stuff. Play the heavy stuff.’ It’s, like, I am a human being that has grown and evolved, and I still love heavy metal, but I also still love pop music. And candidly, I think a lot of songs that I’ve written back in, however long ago, as much as they were genuine, they were written through the lens of a lot of fear and a lot of self-deprecation and a lot of — I don’t know — insecurity. And I think another big part of ‘ATTN.’ is me kind of making a statement to people that I really am not being driven by insecurity anymore. And I’m not driven by things that I used to do. And that’s why I chose to make the last song of this thing be most pop. I’m using synthesizers — things I’ve never really done so much in BEARTOOTH, things that I literally told myself 10 years ago I would never do, because I was ashamed of who I was and I was ashamed of the things I liked.”

Caleb continued: “I was in a band prior called ATTACK ATTACK! that was a very polarizing band to a lot of people. A lot of people hated it. And I think I was very young and I was very embarrassed at the end of it. And I shied away from all these parts of my life that I really enjoyed — playing piano, playing synthesizers, making electronic music. And I just leaned into this heavy stuff because I was angry and that’s what felt right at the time. But I’m not 19 anymore, I’m 31, and I’ve gone through a lot of life.

“I think to those who really care about following the whole story, ‘ATTN.’ probably will make sense if you really understand what’s going on,” Shomo explained. “And it also doesn’t mean that I’m never making heavy music again — not at all — but it is very important for me to make the statement that I am secure with who I am and I am secure with who I used to be now. And that does mean the heavy stuff as well. But that also includes synth, and that also includes pop music, and that includes me not being swayed by people’s opinion in my artistic expression.

“I think at the core, if you look at any good artist or any good, really just — I mean, if we’re talking about BEARTOOTH, BEARTOOTH song — all the good songs are the songs that, at the core, were me explaining exactly what I was feeling and what I was going through in the most honest way possible,” Caleb added. “And not trying to write songs from a place of, what does everybody else want me to make? Or what do I think people want me to make? Because that’s not going to be authentic. And people can see that from a mile away. It’s, like, the more that I ignore what other people tell me they want and I just trust my heart and I trust my compass, that’s when the real stuff happens. And then, in turn, those are always the songs that people like the most because they can tell that I was being honest.

“I think a lot of people underestimate the listener and the intelligence of a fanbase and they try to manufacture these big radio songs or, all of a sudden, ‘we’re gonna go mainstream’ and ‘we’re gonna do this.’ But listeners are so much smarter than that. They can tell when you care about what you’re saying and if it matters to you.

“So, yeah, in short, that is really what’s at the forefront of my mind, is I just wanna make songs that are honest to me, because the more honest they are to me, the more honest they are to our fanbase. And I think our fanbase has earned that and deserves that. And if I try to write them some bullshit, it’s just gonna be bullshit. And nobody wants that.”

“The Surface (Deluxe Edition)” also includes new mixes of beloved album tracks and live cuts, the latter of which truly capture the band in its natural habitat — on stage and laying all of its cards face up on the table with and for their fans. The live renditions on the package were recorded at the Hard Rock in Sacramento, where they brought an unforgettable performance to a sold-out crowd.

“The Surface” was released in October 2023 on Red Bull Records. It has garnered 190 million streams to date, debuted at No. 1 on Billboard Hard Rock Albums, Luminate Alternative Albums, and Luminate Record Label Independent Current Albums, as well as No. 5 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales. The single “I Was Alive” landed at No. 1 on both the Billboard Mainstream Airplay chart and the U.S. Mediabase Active Rock radio chart. Just six months prior, the album’s previous single, “Might Love Myself”, also hit No. 1 and was the band’s first-ever chat topper at the format. BEARTOOTH achieving back-to-back, chart-topping singles at radio was a huge testament to their decade of growth and the power of “The Surface”.

Like its predecessors, “The Surface” was an intensely personal and powerful journey for Shomo, who has never shied away from sharing his demons in his music and with his fans. However, the frontman has turned a corner with a more optimistic outlook and demonstrates exceptional growth as both an artist and a human being through the songs that comprise the album.

Like NINE INCH NAILS, BEARTOOTH remains a one-person band in the studio.

Rolling Stone heralded BEARTOOTH as one of 10 Artists You Need to Know. The rabid response to Shomo‘s music demonstrated how many people related to his struggle for self-acceptance. “Below” (2021) topped the Rock and Alternative charts and several Best Rock/Metal Albums Of The Year lists. As of 2024, the BEARTOOTH catalog boasts more than one billion streams across all platforms.

Photo credit: Jamie Waters