Cute? Yes. That's obvious. But the best word to describe Slingshot Dakota goes deeper than what's on the surface: it's passionate. Passionate about doing what they love. Passionate about supporting their friends. Passionate about making a difference. Get the idea?

Sure, Slingshot can easily hook you in with their poppy tunes and adorableness. But there's so much more behind the blast of sound created by an amped up Yamaha keyboard, a deafeningly loud drum set, and two voice boxes. Carly Commando (Brooklyn, NY) and Tom Patterson (Easton, PA) also screen print their own t-shirts, put out their own records, talk about social and political issues during their stage banter, and greet their followers with bear hugs and cheek-kisses.

If that sounds like something you're into, I have good news: Slingshot Dakota is on tour now! Check out their Myspace page for a list of dates (and don't forget your ear plugs, cause they are seriously l-o-u-d). Keyboardist, vocalist, and bagel aficionado Carly Commando took the time to answer a few questions for BUST, which you can read after the jump...

Tell us the story behind your band in 3 sentences or less:
Slingshot started when I was in college with my two really good friends, Jeff and Pat. They asked me to play keyboard in the band as a bass instrument, so I happily obliged! Four years later, I am the only original member left in the now two-piece band and we spend much time making up fake stories behind the name ''Slingshot Dakota.''

How do you describe your sound to people who have never heard you play?
We're punk inspired indie rock. We're male and female vocals backed by loud keyboard and drums, and we're known to melt faces.

Where is your fav place to play?
Ohio! Specifically, Berea Fest in Berea, Ohio, which takes place every summer. Every time we go there we feel like we're part of a 500 person family!

Pick a song and tell us the meaning behind it:
We wrote The Golden Ghost as our own anthem to remind ourselves that it's okay to be doing what we love. I think it's really hard for artists to want to pursue their dreams because there's no money involved, or sometimes you have to invest in yourself (even when you have nothing to invest with). As if this isn't hard enough, sometimes our friends and family ask us when we're going to get a ''real'' job. After feeling pressured and discouraged, we wrote The Golden Ghost to tell ourselves and others to shut out the negative thinkers and to keep on doing what we love. I think that whatever you choose to do in life, if it makes you happy, then that's all that matters.

When you aren't playing music, what can we find you doing?
Eating lots and lots of bagels! And beating Tom at Wheel of Fortune on the original Nintendo system.