Broncho – Natural Pleasure
It’s been seven years since Oklahoma’s Broncho released Bad Behaviour, and now the band is back with their fifth album, Natural Pleasure. Produced by Chad Copelin, who has worked with Broncho throughout their career, Natural Pleasure is a nostalgia-infused, dreamy musical journey that sees the band reinvent themselves yet again.
From the outset, the record is transporting and, at times, achingly melancholic. It opens with Imagination, a soft and delicate number with an enjoyable guitar backing, and the second track, Funny, has an especially wistful feeling. While much of Broncho’s lyrics are vague and mysterious, it’s the music itself that evokes feelings of longing and sentimentality.
Get Gone stands out as a more energetic track on an album that often has echoes of the late Elliott Smith mixed in with the band’s unique brand of indie pop. This short and sweet song is catchy with an infectious beat, reminiscent of smoke-filled dance floors in dingy basement clubs.
Ryan Lindsey’s voice is noticeably softer on Natural Pleasure, and Broncho has come a long way since the release of their first record, 2011’s Can’t Get Past the Lips. In the past, Lindsey’s singing style has seemed more classically indie, with a shouty edge to it that was more than likely born out of the 00s music scene. On this new record, however, the singer sounds a lot more evolved.
I Swear is a particularly new sound for the band, a slow almost ballad-like tune, while Surely is one of the more searingly sad numbers, and the album aptly ends on the track Dreamin.
Broncho has been a consistently developing and progressive band, and it’s always a joy to see what they have in store for their fans on their next record. Natural Pleasure is just that, a naturally pleasurable album that does everything that music should do: it pulls on the heartstrings and comforts your deepest emotions. The band has successfully played with nostalgic undertones while keeping to their brand of indie cool.
In an era where many bands end up pandering to universality, and often stray away from experimentation, Broncho is not afraid to switch things up. While most things remain more or less the same, Broncho will always be a refreshing antidote.
Hannah Broughton
Image: Bryon Helm
Natural Pleasure is released on 25th April 2025. For further information or to order the album, visit Broncho’s website here.
Watch the video for the single Funny here:
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