Seattle Show Gal

New Music, Concert Previews, Reviews, and Interviews

Bronze Fawn

June 16th, 2009, 11:26 AM

To See Rating 7/10
Just Curious Rating 7/10

Band Members
Jim Acquavella – Drums
Bryce Shoemaker – Guitar
Steve Becker – Bass

When it comes to Bronze Fawn, emotion is the name of the game. Bronze Fawn is a group of three highly talented musicians who compose instrumental rock. Having their music as a wide-open canvas gives people all sorts of places for their minds and hearts to wander off and get lost.

Wherever each person ends up in the wanderlust of a Bronze Fawn’s show, it is a sure thing that you will be taken there by way of passion, powerful execution, and a hint of romance. Jim provides the drum blast with quite strength. He keeps his fire bridled when appropriate; but when it’s time to bring the fire, he unleashes an explosion. Steve brings his years of musical experience to the bass with creative infrastructure. His stimulating contributions build on a solid foundation that gives the lead guitar the space to thrive. Bryce, the lead guitarist, takes the solid foundation prepared for him and dances all over it. His contributions are extremely compelling. The three of them together are a dynamic compliment to each other and a perfect mix to keep the audience very excited throughout their set.

Bronze Fawn

Visually they are a bit of kilter. Bryce, with his interesting guitar parts, is usually focused on the execution and not on stage presence. I would rather have accurately executed music than motivating stage presence, but it is preferable to have both. Steve on the other hand has movement in spades. His exuberant energy is good, but it also draws attention to where stage presence is lacking elsewhere.

When it comes down to it, Bronze Fawn is about the music. With their diversity of sound and skillful execution, their music does and will continue appealing to many.

Being intrigued with Bronze Fawn, I asked Bryce a few questions about where they are and where they are going.

Nikki: Why do you make music?

Bryce: I make music because it is something I have done since taking my first piano lessons in fourth grade. Therefore, it has become more a part of what I am as a human being, not a tool through which I hope to gain trivial things such as money, pussy or fame. Though I cannot fully speak on behalf of my band mates, it is my observation that we do this because we enjoy the challenges of working together to create smart compositions with interesting dynamic shifts, logical key changes, aurally stimulating tones, etc , etc, with the end result being a product we can all be proud of and have our own individual marks on. It’s a pretty simple concept: we make music because we like to make music.

Nikki: What contribution do you hope to make in the melting-pot of post-rock?

Bryce: “Post-Rock” is an incredibly vague designation and one that I personally loath. Too many bands are thrown under this umbrella term and it really does no justice nor provides ample description in regard to the music they actually make. At our core, we are an instrumental rock band with moments that are psychedelic, heavy, cinematic, lush, sparse, and so on. Diction aside, our contribution to the musical landscape would be one of creating an interpretive journey in each of our songs via varying motifs and passages that one can easily connect to without the aide of vocals for guidance – analogous to the hallmarks of classical music, only transcribed to a guitar/bass/drums format.

Nikki: Who are the Bronze Fawn influences?

Bryce: Space, massive volume, silence. We listen to such a wide range of things and come from such differing-yet-relatable musical backgrounds that our best influences may very well be one another.

Nikki: What’s next for Bronze Fawn?

Bryce: Just finished mixing our second album tonight [6/15/09] and the next step will be to get it mastered and put out either by a label or by our own means.

Thanks Bronze Fawn for the mini interview

So there you have it. Bronze Fawn is definitely a band to look out for, but you don’t have to take my word for it! Please enjoy clips from their June 5th performance at The Sunset Tavern.