BRONCHO AT THE LOUNGE

I was pumped up knowing I'd get to see Broncho again at the Larimer Lounge in Denver this October evening.  I arrived just as the band was setting up and sound checking their equipment on stage, enough time to have a drink while enjoying a preview of what was to come.  Once the stage area become available for general public access, I went back to say hello to Ryan.  I gave him a bottle of fine whiskey I bought the day before, feeling bad when I could not come through with buying a bottle from the bartender at The Moon Room earlier in the year for not having enough cash.  He remembered that evening and thanked me for the gift.

The Low Litas, who opened for Broncho are temporarily part of the band as Broncho's bass player has departed.  And Broncho's drummer, Nathan, is the Low Litas drummer until they find a replacement.  Resources are being shared supporting one another.  Spent a lot of time with Nathan who stepped outside to talk to the bar patrons.

Right before Broncho took the stage I stuck my head in the back room door where Ryan is with the two gals from the Low Litas, waving me in to join them smoking a doobbie.  I declined the smoke because I was already cruising at a high altitude on the tequila alone.  We talked again for a bit and I probably delayed them taking the stage in front of an enthusiastic audience.

They really rocked the house.  They played several new songs which departed from their old fast paced style.  I understand the need to branch out and try something new or else they will live a short life like so many other punk bands.

Offered many words of encouragement, and I and others were excited at their opportunity at opening for Billy Idol later this year and next year.  More exposure means an opportunity to build a bigger audience base.  I'm all for it.  Ryan's expecting to see me at the Paramount in February!

I bought and they autographed an album for me!

In "bed" in the back of the truck by 1 AM.

Reverb had identified Broncho as one of several bands to see that week, describing them as:

At first glance, you’d think that BRONCHO is some horrible, horrible hybrid of “bro and macho.” You picture beer bongs, arm wrestling, fist pumping competitions, etc. In reality, the band makes delightfully fuzzy pop music characterized by addictive “do-do-do-dos” and “oh-oh-oh-ohs.” The band released its sophomore album, “Just Enough Hip To Be Woman,” last month and plays Denver’s Larimer Lounge on Oct. 21.

Download the audio from the show here:
http://www.filefactory.com/file/61ih9zftycel/?ns=1

BRONCHO AT THE LARIMER LOUNGE

I bought tickets to see Broncho as soon as I heard they were coming to Denver, loving their propulsive and infectious sound.  Playing at the Larimer Lounge this evening were Dudebabes, Hindershot, Mozes and the Firstborn with Broncho closing the place down.  Being a Tuesday night, there might have been a hundred people in the place at most, with many being members belonging to the bands.  After the show I drove the truck to the Morrison exit where I parked it and slept in the back, giving myself an extra hour of sleep (versus going home) before meeting others to head off to the Western Slope.

Westword writes:

Broncho hit the stage last night like a great, long lost band from several eras. With its catchy melodies, and its infectious exuberance and aggression, Broncho recalled the Buzzcocks by way of the Stooges, except the guitar sweep and atmospherics were more like some psychedelic '60s garage band playing riffs more grounded in '90s noise rock.

Frontman Ryan Lindsey sang with a calm, cool confidence but he also let loose with fiery yelps and during the instrumental passages, and he leapt in the air to rhythms and dynamics provided by drummer Nathan Price and bassist Johnathon Ford. Guitarist Ben King seemed to synch perfectly together with Lindsey to create interlocking, searing leads and a vivid, sometimes contrasting, tonal layer.

The band really got the crowd going with "Try Me Out Sometime." It was especially impressive that the crowd was so engaged considering how little interaction the band had with the crowd. At one point, Lindsey pointed out that Denver was going to be the next capital and made mention of the artwork at DIA. Curtis Wallach from Dudebabes said something about how it was a weird airport to which Lindsey remarked, "Conspiracy weird." Other than this exchange, Broncho didn't interact much with the crowd and instead left it to the music to inspire folks to movement both inwardly and outwardly. At the end of the show, a woman said, "I think I'm going to cry."

Read it all here:
http://blogs.westword.com/backbeat/2013/08/review_broncho_denver_larimer_lounge_august-27-2013.php

The surprise of the evening were Mozes and the Firstborn, playing their first night here in the US on their tour with Broncho.  It is written:

"The band is a group of youngsters from the Netherlands, with the age between 18 and 22 years. The lead singer has been working on the band for 4 years and has lived a year in London where he has searched the true roots of garage-rock. After playing a few years as amateurs, Mozes and the Firstborn started to receive a lot of attention from all the major Dutch record labels last year. However, they decided not to sign any contract, but they wanted to produce a good album first. They built their own studio, quit side jobs and studied and spent months non-stop in their basement studio, practicing and creating new songs. After this, they signed a good contract with the record label Top Notch. They have released their self-titled debut album on the 2nd of March. This band is the newest talent from the Netherlands, playing old style hard rock. It is a long time ago the Netherlands produced this kind of rock. For the last couple of months, they’ve played their album at a few festivals, getting 5 star reviews and already being labeled as the most talented new artists from the Netherlands."

I liked them enough to pick up a CD of theirs after the show.

Download the Mozes and the Firstborn show here:
http://www.filefactory.com/file/mvmtvgax7wd/n/MATF_Larimer_Lounge_Denver_Co_August_27_2013_rar

Broncho is good and I thoroughly enjoyed their short performance!  Others have written:

"Perhaps the best debut album of 2011 came by way of BRONCHO, a garage-punk quartet from Norman, Okla. Frontman Ryan Lindsey is better known as the keyboardist for the Starlight Mints, but this side project has been touring the Midwest since early 2010. Can't Get Past the Lips hit stores this August, and "Try Me Out Sometime" was an instant standout. It's not a complex song, by any means, and the simplicity is fantastic because the execution is so strong. Three chords are plenty enough backdrop for Lindsey to yelp out the hooks."

Download the entire Broncho show here:
http://www.filefactory.com/file/ju4z22cjhzl/n/BRO_Larimer_Lounge_Denver_Co_August_27_2013_rar

CLIMB MACHINE GUN RIDGE WITH BRONCHO

Thursday night at the Hi-Dive to see Broncho.  Loved their music going into the show, love it even more after seeing them live.  Nothing fancy, just ass-kicking good.

"Broncho, from Oklahoma, play a kind of nonchalant, grimy garage punk that might be more closely aligned with Bushwick or San Francisco. Theirs is a sound that is easily digested, infinitely catchy, and tailored perfectly to the limited attention spans of well air-conditioned summer crowds. This night at Glasslands gave the band an opportunity to run rapid-fire through another after another of two-minute burners, each with a ready-made hook and a sarcastic wit. Songs like “I Don’t Really Want to be Social”, “Try Me Out Sometime” and “Can’t Get Past the Lips” were among the highlights of this set, which focused on material from the band’s 2011 debut, Can’t Get Past the Lips. This was a high-energy set start to finish, punctuated by the yelps of lead vocalist Ryan Lindsey."

Read it here and grab a second show while you are at it:
http://www.nyctaper.com/2012/08/broncho-august-8-2012-glasslands-flac-mp3-streaming/

Download the show here:
http://www.filefactory.com/file/2mhchjqevujr/n/Broncho_-_2013_-_Hi_Dive_Denver_February_28_2013_MP3.rar



 



The show ended around 1 AM after which I hopped in the truck and drove west into the mountains and parked it in the lot at Copper Mountain,.  In bed by 3 AM, up at 7 AM.  I met a group of people there a little later in the morning and we skinned up to Janet's hut for the night.  The following day we climbed over Machine Gun Ridge and then down to the Fowler Hilliard Hut where we spent a couple nights skiing the fresh snow that had fallen.  Great tree skiing.  The skin up the the ridge was a bit hazardous considering that there were large pillows of wind blown snow on the east side, as demonstrated by several large avalanches along its entire length.  We found the sweet spot up and over.  This was the third and last hut trip of the season.  We got one reserved already for next year.  Can't wait!