Rebellion is always a staple in youth culture, but these days, punk music isn’t all about being angry and stickin’ it to the man. Like with every genre, things change and the energy evolves into something fresh and new.
For anyone with a taste for the aggressive and gritty, but who may not be ready or willing to knock someone around in a mosh pit, they may want to consider checking out Broncho, an Oklahoma band with a punk rock flair that is quickly progressing into something more.
“A Broncho show is kind of like the pillow-fight version of a mosh pit,” frontman Ryan Lindsey says.
“I don’t think that making a point through songs should be all about somebody being mad. I like to laugh about things a little bit. I like the humor aspect of music.”
Along with band members Nathan Price, Ben King and Johnathon Ford, Lindsey has taken what was initially a songwriting side project and created a band with a contemporary punk sound that both captures and defies the attitude of an era.
Broncho’s 10-song debut, Can’t Get Past the Lips, has been said to have echoes of The Replacements, Iggy and the Stooges and The Ramones, but there’s also a lighter element to it, stemming from a prominent Buddy Holly influence, that makes the music appealing to music lovers of rock and roll and indie pop.
“We’ve had good luck with our audiences. People that show up to our shows are from all over the map. There are some older people that were around for the first punk wave, younger kids that are just trying to get into anything, hipster kids, rock and rollers… it’s a fun challenge trying to entertain all of those different people and make the songs make sense to anyone who wants to listen to them,” Lindsey says.
From shows to parties to the Norman Music Festival, Broncho has garnered popularity statewide and, over the past couple of months, has begun playing the regional circuit, from Dallas and Austin to Chicago and St. Louis.
Currently laying the groundwork for an upcoming new album, Lindsey anticipates building on Broncho’s sound with his band mates.
“It’s not going to be wildly different, but it’s definitely a progression. There are people in the band now and we’re all writing songs together this time. It has definitely turned into a pretty fun situation.”
