BRONCO FORTE Scores Big Win with the Doomy Stoner Blues of ‘Lightning Scars’
~Doomed & Stoned Debuts~
By Billy Goate
Doesn't matter how much you've had a dish, sometimes one particular chef just hits it out of the ballpark, bringing all the flavors to life. It takes a lot of love and that practical knack and know-how, but an experienced cook with good instincts can make it irresistible. In BRONCO FORTE we have a band that gets it right again and again on their new album, 'Lightning Scars' (2026).
The Los Angeles quartet draws from familiar stoner rock, doom, and blues motifs as their raw ingredients, excelling as true auteurs with a record that is quite listenable. There is a certain something that pulls you in. I think it's the tuning of the guitars, downtuned to just the right frequency to give you that warm, fuzzy, comforting feeling.
Everything in the world may be going to hell, but the sounds give a strange consolation. Someone else out there also senses this reality is crumbling and has some salve for the pain. These very human songs are communicated not only through relatable lyrics, but through effective tone, color, rhythm, and vocal harmonies that come together like a beautiful painting.
Powerful, too. Just listen to the brawling low-end riffage that introduces "Obvious Alias." Or the bittersweet riffage that brings us to "Cultist Canyon" (one of my favs). The dreadful low-end on "Goat Church," the sweet and sour blues of "Dusk Jacket," and the interwinging dual guitar action on "Emberwalker" have marked this as one of my favorite listens of the year so far.
This is the sound that made me fall in love with the doom-stoner scene and it's good to have it back in capable hands. This is a band I would want to hear live, that's for damn sure.
You just can't go wrong with Bronco Forte's Lightning Scars, out on Friday, April 3rd (pre-order here). Stick it on a playlist with Soundgarden, Sonic Moon, and The Devil and the Almighty Blues.
Give ear...
Lightning Scars by Bronco Forte
SOME BUZZ
After so many iterations of heavy, desert-inspired doom rock over past decades, it seems the essence of purely driving riffs, earworm harmonies and strong songwriting that defined a genre has been forsaken. Bronco Forte are a return to the stark blast that made bands like Kyuss, Alice In Chains and Soundgarden legends.
After years of creative toil and preparation, Los Angeles quartet Bronco Forte is stepping into the spotlight as a fully-formed heavy rock phenomenon, with roots in the classic heavy music of the 1970s, seasoned with a deeply modern sensibility and sonic approach. The songs on their debut full-length album, Lightning Scars, chronicle the uncertain lives of ordinary people in the cities and wildernesses of California and beyond, as the characters they depict strive to maintain their integrity in the face of a rapidly-changing world.
The band’s lyrics balance literary style and kitchen-sink realism. Their riffs are deep and dirty, conjuring up the kinds of swinging grooves that cause involuntary head-nodding. The song structures are clever without being cluttered, and the band’s judicious use of vocal harmonies brings a powerful pop sweetness that cuts like a ray of light through the deep swampy stomp of their songs. It all adds up to a fresh yet familiar take on hard rock for a new era, as they draw inspiration and energy from their musical ancestors while casting aside the weary genre cliches of the past.
On Lightning Scars, guitarist and vocalist Chris Klepac’s focused songwriting and poignant lyrics meld seamlessly with guitarist Sako Injaian’s (All Hail the Yeti) energetic riffs to create a sonic tapestry that is somehow as catchy as it is heavy. Together, bassist Jen Glomboski (White Forest) and drummer Geoff Summers (Batillus, A Storm of Light) lay down a rhythmic foundation that is as solid and unwavering as the endless expanses of concrete and asphalt that blanket the band’s home of southern California.
Lightning Scars was tracked and mixed by engineer Kevin McCombs (Linkin Park, Story of the Year) at legendary North Hollywood studio The Steakhouse – the same studio where Queens of the Stone Age recorded Era Vulgaris. From there, the band took the audio to heavy rock mastering wizard Nick Townsend (Alice in Chains, Frankie and the Witch Fingers), who cut the resulting album to lacquer on his own personal lathe. Album art from Kevin “fetusK” Bernier (Prosthetic Records, Intronaut) completes the package.
Lightning Scars will be available on LP, CD and download on April 3rd, 2026.
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