His music sways between Americana and Delta blues, folk and avant-garde, pub rock and punk. His Dylanesque lyrics tell tales of the downtrodden, the broken-hearted, and the forever jaded – a cigarette-smoking Cinderella wanting to be left alone, a doomed ex-lover dreading the next day, a flood victim trying to keep his head above water, a soon-to-be war refugee drinking away his fears.

   His recordings sound like an after-hours party winding down; his live performance – with just one voice and one acoustic guitar – rings like an intimate soliloquy.

   Bad Heart has over 60 original songs and covers more than 100 songs from a range of authors, from Stephen Foster to the Bee Gees.

   He is available to perform at cafes, art gallery openings, political rallies, house parties, street parties, etc.
   To hear and download his songs or see some live footage, visit www.reverbnation.com/badheart, www.myspace.com/badheart1967, or www.youtube.com/user/badheartvideos.

 

   Born and raised in the northern California suburbs of Carmichael, Bad Heart (real name: Mark Nishimura) spent his childhood studying the vinyls of Robert Johnson, Hank Williams, the Mississippi Sheiks, Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Townes Van Zandt, Tom Waits, the Ramones, and the Clash, as well as 45s from Sun, Stax, and Chess labels.

   He moved to San Francisco in 1992 and co-founded the nomad theater troupe Theater Rhubarb in 1996. In 2001, after five years of theater production, he tossed aside the plays of Brecht and Mishima and return to music.

   Bad Heart has performed in San Francisco cafes and bars, including Bazaar Café, the Cannery, Voodoo Lounge, Brainwash Café, Sacred Grounds, and Café International.
   He recently moved to Los Angeles, where he has performed at the Pig and Whistle and the Rainbow Room in Hollywood. He can also be found performing at Los Angeles’s farmers’ markets and San Monica’s Third Street Promenade.