SMARTBOMB
SMARTBOMB is an Oakland,CA based curatorial project/live events & multimedia platform centered around the creative community. Since its inception in 2013, SMARTBOMB has been widely recognized and considered a vital resource in discovering and celebrating the next great waves boundary-pushing & genre-defying musicians, producers, beatmakers, DJs, painters, visual artists, filmmakers, photographers and more from the bay area and beyond. The mission remains to showcase dynamic, innovative and often marginalized voices in need of space & resources. To encourage and nurture ideas of radical expression and unapologetic experimentation to unlock
Founded in 2013 by Asonic Garcia (aka W.A.L.A) and beyond area super band Secret Sidewalk as a monthly live art/music party in downtown Oakland, SMARTBOMB has been holding essential spaces, providing energy and resources for artists to be seen, heard, and supported by a nurturing community of like-minded beings, becoming a cultural hub for the ever burgeoning art/music/culture scene in the Bay Area.
In 2017, SMARTBOMB was inducted into the YBCA100 by Yerba Buena Center of the Arts, celebrating 100 figures, collectives, & entities pushing culture forward into the future. SMARTBOMB events have featured the likes of Standing On The Corner, Shigeto, Salami Rose Joe Louis, MNDSGN, Liv.e, Josh Johnson, Musele Project, Count Bass D, Keiyaa., Mark De Clive-Lowe, Dibia$e, Ras G, Quelle Chris, Dakim, Stoney Creation, Swarvy, Kiefer, Linafornia, Mejiwahn, Flatspot_., Chris Keys, Pink Siifu, Ovrkast, Astu, Jada Imani, Lealani, Mophono, and the list goes on..
Since 2020, SMARTBOMB has been heavily sought after by prestigious bay area arts institutions such as SFMOMA, ICA SF, Exploratorium, SFJAZZ, Gray Area, The Legion of Honor, and YBCA for collaborations and curatorial event takeovers. More collaborations and takeovers are planned for the coming years.
“For the last half-decade, Smart Bomb has held it down for Oakland’s beat head scene and beyond. At recurring parties and audiovisual getdowns around town, ….offering up “frequencies and vibrations from the future,” curated by a sprawling, rotating cast of beatmakers, DJs, vocalists, and artists.
Smart Bomb’s stated goal is to “provide a much-needed platform for abstract and forward-thinking music and art,” united conceptually under the banner of futurism. Sonically, Smart Bomb sets tie together past, present, and future effortlessly, from dusty breaks and lo-fi, Brainfeeder-ish beats, to footwork, funk, astral jazz, and beyond.”
– Will Bundy (Red Bull Music presents Oakland, 2018)
PRESS:
THE GUARDIAN (US):’You hustle because you care’: how Oakland’s music scene survived Silicon Valley March 1, 2019
REDROLL: Smartbomb Oakland’s Third Video Home System Episode Features a Transcendent Music Set by Liv.e November 1, 2020
BALAMII RADIO: Oakland, CA based creative collective and curatorial project showcasing the esoteric & eclectic vanguard of the bay area and beyond. Hosted by SMARTBOMB founder W.A.L.A (fka as Asonic Garcia) (May 23, 2021 – March 9, 2023)
BANDCAMP: Meet the Oakland Artists and Collectives Holding it Down for the Town During the Pandemic June 23, 2021
KQED: Building a Creative Community with SMARTBOMB, Salami Rose Joe Louis and Friends September 15, 2022
KQED: SMARTBOMB and Loud Cinema Present a Dreamy Evening of Pixels and Sound January 11, 2024
KQED: Smartbomb, Oakland’s Favorite Experimental Hip-Hop Party, Continues its Perpetual Reinvention September 19, 2024
SFJAZZ coverage:
48 HILLS: Under the Stars: SFJAZZ drops a SMARTBOMB as the new year opens December 27, 2024
SFGate : San Francisco’s most underrated concert venue closes at 10 p.m. January 12, 2025
STATIC & BLUR: SFJAZZ & SMARTBOMB