Brave Combo | |
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Background information | |
Origin | Denton, Texas |
Genres | Polka, Polka fusion, Latin alternative, worldbeat, Tex-Mex, salsa, Latin jazz, ska, dance |
Years active | 1979 | –present
Labels | Four Dots, Rounder Records, DenTone, Cleveland International |
Members | Carl Finch Carl Kleinsteuber Dave Monsch Alan Emert Robert Hokamp Jeffrey Barnes (occasional) |
Past members | Ginny Mac [1] Little Jack Melody Dave Cameron Tim Walsh Bubba Hernandez Joseph Cripps Mitch Marine Paul Stivitts Ann Marie Harrop Arjuna Contreras |
Website | bravecombo |
Brave Combo is a polka fusion band based in Denton, Texas. Founded in 1979 by guitarist/keyboardist/accordionist Carl Finch, they have been a prominent fixture in the Texas music scene for more than thirty-five years. [2] Their music, both originals and covers, incorporates a number of dance styles, mostly polka, but also some Latin American and Caribbean styles like norteño, salsa, rumba, cha-cha-cha, choro, samba, two-step, cumbia, charanga, merengue, ska, etc, all performed with a rock/worldbeat energy.
As part of their perceived artistic mission to expand the musical tastes of their listeners, they have often played and recorded covers of well-known songs in a style radically different from the original versions. Examples include polka versions of Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze" and The Doors' "People are Strange", The Rolling Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" as a cha-cha, and "Sixteen Tons" as a cumbia. While their records may have a sense of humor, they are played straight and not usually considered joke or novelty records.[ citation needed ]
In a 1995 feature in The Santa Fe New Mexican , band cofounder Carl Finch described Brave Combo's influence as a polka band with rock styles as an earnest way to escape an increasingly corporate cultural landscape, lamenting- [3]
'Rock had been removed from the common people' he said 'and musically I wanted what I do to have depth, I started listening to polka and ethnic records I'd find at Target six for $5 — nothing could beat that. At first, I’d just buy whatever covers looked strangest but after a while I’d do research and find out what was good.' Among the best, he soon discovered, were names like Larry Chesky and his big band polka sound, Norwegian accordion virtuoso Andrew Walter (“exciting intense” is Finch’s assessment), and Eddie Blazonczyk, the “Godfather” of Chicago’s Polish community. 'All this came out of a sense of desperation'.
Brave Combo had its website at brave.com/bo, a domain hack. The domain name brave.com was purchased in 1995 by a fan of the band, who transferred it to the band in 1997. In mid-2010s, Finch sold the domain to Brave Software, which develops the web browser Brave, in exchange for bravecombo.com, which had been taken by another party, and an undisclosed sum of money. [4] [5]
They won a Grammy Award in 1999 in the Best Polka Album category for their album Polkasonic , and again in 2004 for their album Let's Kiss . [6] [7]
In naming Denton, Texas, the "Best Music Scene" for 2008, Paste magazine cited Brave Combo as the "Grand Pooh-Bah of Denton bands" and said that "Brave Combo, is in many ways the template from which all the rest are cut: eclectic and artistically ambitious, with a high degree of musicianship and a strong DIY ethic." [8]
Date of release | Title | Label | Catalog | Type | Notes |
1979 | Polkamania | Four Dots | FD1003 & FD1004 | Studio | released as two 7" discs |
1981 | Music For Squares | Four Dots | FD1005 | Studio | |
1982 | Urban Grown-ups | Four Dots | FD1006 | Studio | four song EP |
1982 | Originals | Four Dots | Studio | released as cassette only | |
1984 | World Dance Music | Four Dots | FD1010 | Studio | |
1984 | No Sad Faces | Four Dots | FD1012 | Live | |
1987 | Musical Varieties | Rounder | CD 11546 | Studio | compilation from Four Dots releases plus two new tracks |
1987 | Polkatharsis | Rounder | CD 9009 | Studio | |
1988 | Humansville | Rounder | CD 9019 | Studio | |
1990 | A Night On Earth | Rounder | CD 9029 | Studio | |
1992 | It's Christmas, Man! | Rounder | CD 3099 | Studio | contents similar to It's X-mas, Man! |
1993 | No, No, No, Cha Cha Cha | Rounder | CD 9035 | Studio | content similar to Japanese release |
1994 | The Hokey Pokey: Organized Dancing | DenTone | DT 1001 | Studio | seven-song EP |
1995 | Polkas for a Gloomy World | Rounder | CD 9045 | Studio | Grammy nominee |
1996 | Girl | Rounder | CD 9050 | Studio | with Tiny Tim – his last recording |
1996 | Mood Swing Music | Rounder | CD 11574 | Studio | rarities and singles |
1996 | Kiss Of Fire | Watermelon | WM 1058 | Studio | with Lauren Agnelli, content similar to Allumettes |
1997 | Group Dance Epidemic | Rounder | R9055 | Studio | |
1998 | Polka Party with Brave Combo: Live and Wild! | Easydisc | EDIS 7052 | Live | Grammy nominee |
1999 | Polkasonic | Cleveland International | CIR-1023-2 | Studio | Grammy winner |
2000 | The Process | Rounder Records | ROUN9065 | Studio | |
2001 | All Wound Up! – A Family Music Party | Rounder Records | ROUN8092 | Studio | with Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer, Grammy nominee |
2001 | Kick-Ass Polkas | Cleveland International | B00005O7SE | Live | Grammy nominee |
2003 | Box of Ghosts | Rounder Records | ROUN9064 | Studio | |
2004 | Let's Kiss: 25th Anniversary Album | Dentone Records | Studio | Grammy winner | |
2005 | Holidays! | Dentone/Rounder | Studio | ||
2007 | Polka's Revenge | Dentone Records | Studio | Grammy nominee | |
2008 | The Exotic Rocking Life | Dentone Records | Studio | ||
2009 | Symphonic Polkas | Dentone Records | DT1006 | Live | with the Mesquite Symphony Orchestra |
2009 | Christmas Present | Dentone Records | DT1007 | Studio | Christmas music |
2010 | Kikiriki | Dentone Records | DT1008 | Studio | |
2012 | Sounds Of The Hollow | Dentone Records | DT1009 | Studio | |
2014 | Live at Blob's Park | Dentone Records | DT1012 | Live | |
2015 | The Liminal Zone | Dentone Records | DT1013 | Studio |
Date of release | Title | Label | Catalog | Type | Notes |
1981 | Music For Squares | Stunn | Stun507 | Studio | New Zealand, content identical to US release |
1981 | I Gotta Know/Neo Limbo | Stunn | BFA 884 | Studio | New Zealand, 7" single |
1986 | People Are Strange | Rogue Records | FMST 4007 | Studio | U.K. compilation |
1987 | Polkatharsis | Demon Records | REU 1018 | Studio | U.K., content identical to US release |
1989 | Music Circus | P-Vine | PCD-2513 | Studio | Japan |
1990 | Very Early Recordings | Wave Records | Studio | Japan | |
1991 | ÉÉjhanaika | P-Vine | PCD-1800 | Studio | Japan |
1991 | It's X-mas, Man! | P-Vine | PCD-2300 | Studio | Japan |
1992 | No, No, No, Cha Cha Cha | P-Vine | PCD-2400 | Studio | Japan |
1993 | Ondo Saves The World | Tele Disc | TLCD-93001 | Studio | Japan, Kikusuimaru Meets Brave Combo |
1994 | Allumettes | P-Vine | PCD-1986 | Studio | Japan, with Lauren Agnelli |
1995 | Polkas For A Gloomy World | P-Vine | PCD-3614 | Studio | Japan, content identical to U.S. release |
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