The Bribes' "Wawona Ranch" - dizzy merry go round of divergent rock

Photo by Maddie C.

The wonderfully wonky art rocker Wawona Ranch by the Bay Area indie rockers The Bribes is a dizzy merry go round of divergent rock flavors. It maneuvers deftly with sideways ska rhythms, glammy proggy guitar licks and baroque pop art rock manifestations. Philip Toscano's vox and slithery lyrics feel like that of wistful hypnotist or raised eyed nefarious ringleader with mischievous intent. There is something deliciously underhanded here. I thought of Man Man and Sparks and Be Bop Deluxe (for some reason). 

Gosh Bless rock experimentation.

The Bribes are  Philip Toscano (guitar, vocals),
Jesse Strauss (bass), and Anthony Puducay (drums).

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Robb Donker



THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:

"Wawona Ranch" bio:

“To me, this album is a personal alchemical study set to modern pop music,” reveals singer-songwriter Philip Toscano of indie rock band The Bribes. “The subject matter is lofty, but I try to speak simply.”

The Bay Area-based trio’s latest features songs created during a time of intense change. In the last few years, Philip relocated from Chicago to California; experienced a transformative visit to his ancestral home; and processed the passing of his father. The album will be proceeded by the imaginatively-arranged, moody garage rock single, Wawona Ranch.

With The Bribes, Philip distills the majesty and drama of classical music and jazz, and the urgency of early rock n’ roll into an aesthetic that’s both earthy and elegant. For Philip, the primal punch of Chuck Berry is just as valid as the ornate compositions that makeup the Baroque music canon. “People like John Lee Hooker and Chuck Berry were unabashedly themselves—you don’t need music theory as long as you have essence and color,” Philip, who is a self-taught musician, shares.

Previously, the trio have released three albums, and toured and performed regionally in the northwest, the bay area, and beyond. The Bribes have been featured in The Bay Bridged, The Deli San Francisco, Bay Area Music Magazine, Windy City Times, WXRT Local Anesthetic, and Midwest Action. Prior to its latest album, Philip relocated The Bribes from Chicago to San Francisco, and the band is now rounded out by a Bay Area lineup, including Jesse Strauss on bass (who mixed and engineered the record) and Anthony Puducay on drums.

The album’s evocative first single, Wawona Ranch, slowly unfolds, traversing melancholy 1960s garage-ballad territory, raucous rave-up classic rock, and vaguely Eastern-flavored musical modalities. The span is like a mini Queen epic, and, lyrically, it’s a portal into an emotionally candid dialogue between Philip and an imaginary friend named Felix. “Wawona is the street I live on in San Francisco. The name is a metaphorical representation of the realizations and truth I’ve found in my nighttime walks and contemplations,” he details.