Type 1) My character was a performer or wandering minstrel that became an adventurer because reasons (good so far) that casts mind warping and negative energy Occult spells because LOL (hmm...).
Type 2) My character is a seeker of occult mysteries and strange powers (good) that uses music in combat because LOL (sigh...)
I respect your opinion and not gonna lie when I was creating my bard I had a similar problem starting out. However the occult list allows for so much creativity and freedom to mold your character however you want. Also it’s always nice to remember that bards tend to receive magic almost as a coming of age arc. So it could simply be, “I’m a bustling minstrel who roams towns playing music and touring, I noticed when I play certain notes on my *instrument* I feel a greater power grow inside of me, I’m learning how to harness this and I’m using adventuring as a means to a end.” And if your character wants to help people maybe you’re more likely to select buff spells rather than debuff spells. Remember bards are much more than just in combat skill, they are music (or other creative arts) enthusiasts and they want to share that with the world typically. It’s very easy to be caught up in the typical stereotypes of bard but if you truly work at it bards can be AMAZING characters with really interesting story’s!