Damon Gough's work is best described as indie pop, though the songwriter has explored every corner of the genre—and just about every musical instrument—as Badly Drawn Boy. Case in point: the Mercury Music Prize-winning debut LP The Hour of Bewilderbeast, which distilled Gough's experimental arrangements into jovial tunes that sit between baroque folk and twee.

Badly Drawn Boy has since explored mainstream pop on the About A Boy soundtrack, while adding rock influences to his repertoire on albums like the Smiths-inspired It's What I'm Thinking Pt.1 – Photographing Snowflakes in 2010.

Damon chose his stage name from the title character in the show Sam and his Magic Ball, which he saw on TV at a party in Trafford, Manchester in 1995. Before he thought of using this name he made some business cards, each one unique, with a printed picture of a drawing by his nephew and a small collage by Gough. This was then laminated and given out to friends and people at clubs in Blackburn and Manchester.

In 2002, Q magazine named Badly Drawn Boy in their list of the "50 Bands to See Before You Die", although this was as part of a sub-list of "5 Bands That Could Go Either Way" on account of Gough's tendency to talk and tell stories for extended periods in concert rather than play songs.