Prolific Brooklyn-based songwriter
Kevin Devine called on his fans to help fund not one, but two new albums in 2013, starting a Kickstarter campaign and reaching his goal of $50,000 in donations in less than a single day. The campaign would go on to more than double that goal, and of the two resultant records (the other being
Bulldozer, a folkier solo album)
Bubblegum is a high-energy rock & roll album made with the help of
Devine's friends in
the Goddamn Band, a loosely assembled group featuring
Mike Fadem on drums,
Mike Strandberg on guitars, and
Devine sharing bass duties with album producer
Jesse Lacey, as well as singing and playing guitar on most songs. The fantastically produced full-band sound serves as a lush backdrop for
Devine's often political or culturally critical lyrics, especially on tracks like "Private First Class" or "I Don't Care About Your Band."