Bronco Bullfrog return with a brilliant single on State Records
Bronco Bullfrog issued a pile of great records across the early part of the century (that’s this one!!!), wowed small crowds in the UK and did amazingly well in Spain. Those who heard and saw ’em fell passionately in love with their “technicolour pop” sound. But it’s all a long time ago now, with their last album seeing the light of day in 2004 and a compilation appearing slightly later on the prestigious Rev-Ola label. So what happened? “Basically, we broke-up,” says bassist Louis Comfort-Wiggett. “Not split-up like Led Zeppelin, but broke-up, like love that went off the boil (only ours was a love triangle from the outset). We didn’t divvy up the books and records, so effectively left our options open for reconciliation. That reconciliation came around two years ago, and since then we’ve been hanging out and writing new material.” What makes Bronco Bullfrog so special and endearing is that both then and now they have never been, or had the slightest inkling to be, fashionable. All obsessive record collectors and pop music fanatics, the trio of Mike Poulson (vocals/guitar), Louis Comfort-Wiggett (bass/vocals) and Andy Morten (drums/vocals) avoid obvious genre mimicking or being a part of any movement. This isn’t Mark E Smith anti-fashion or deconstructionism, but it’s not wear your influences on your sleeve plagiarism either. What the Broncos do so well is to take their inspirations and aspirations and play them hard and with abandon. “ ‘Never Been To California’,” Andy explains, “was conceived in the midst of an obsession with '60s sunshine-pop acts like The Fun & Games and The Gordian Knot but came out sounding like The Jam after a 12-hour yoga marathon. Again.” Not getting it quite right is what has always made Bronco Bullfrog unique. In fact, they’re the only band that can actually sound like The Jam in full broken vowel flight AND The Bee Gees at their balladeering best in the same song.
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