Broncho "It's On" on CQ Records

Sometimes all it takes is the strength of a single song that can have you looking for a full length before it's even over. "It's On" from Broncho on CQ Records is that song you can spend all night playing on repeat, never even making it to the B-Side, the layers slowly revealing themselves. There's a cool, dorkyness to the way the vocals unfold about bellbottoms and cocktails, none of it should sound as good as it does. I don't know exactly what he's even talking about sometimes, but that's my fault I'm sure of it. The title lyric becomes a crazy anthem about making something happen out of three chords. A perfect two and a half minutes. On A-Side's "It's On" sticks count off to heavily gated power guitar, one of those loose riffs combined with a stutter rhythm - there's no way this isn't going to get you. When Ryan comes in with that nasally vocal wading in a shallow echo it immediately becomes an update on the Feelies or The Embarrassment. Between his verses the rhythm doubles up with vocals about going to LA and having Manhattans, pulling off his burden of cool like Matty from the Soft Pack. They repeatedly let things breathe, allowing for space in this, crafting a song that drives itself. I think CQ should be coming out with another full length from these guys soon? If you try to bum me out - it's on. A track made for the A-Side, this is why the format exists, you're going to want to hear this right away, that's all there is to it. B-Side I love you but there's no way you're better than this.

B-Side "Kurt" takes things into a steadier rhythm with anther great depth of echo, not that far back but not human, a sexy robot that keeps shifting turning metallic. Ryan works his weird seductive sound, the guitars cutting a wide pop path with a smooth psych rock sound. Multiple hazy vocals swirling around this instrumentation that isn't psych after all, the guitars are tight, the drums perfectly mic'd. Eventually the giuitar has a weird mental breakdown between verses but it's the vocals that take this into an undefinable place. This slap of the reverb sheets for extra thunderous hits of off kilter rhythm keeps this skittering - almost toppling over, just a hair off the beat, and his incessant na na / na na against the bass line. These two tracks are have completely proved they've got this concise junk pop song down and I want a new full length of this experimental hyper stuff. God dammit it's great.

Pick this up from CQ Records. It's On alright.