The Breton Sound took home the 2015 Louisiana Music Prize last night! Along with the opportunity to showcase their talent to a larger audience, they picked up $2500 AND a recording session with Blade Studios. Congrats! We’re big fans of the band here, you may have heard some of their music on the air. If you’ve yet to discover them, here’s a little background:
Since 2010, New Orleans natives The Breton Sound have been bringing their brand of energetic, melodic, and anthemic rock and roll to Louisiana and beyond. The band’s co-founders, singer/guitarist Jonathan Pretus (formerly of Cowboy Mouth) and guitarist Stephen Turner, have helmed the release of their first two EP’s, 2011’s Eudaemonia, and 2013’s Maps, to rave reviews. Upon the release of Maps, PASTE Magazine hailed them as one of 12 Louisiana Bands You Should Listen To.
The Breton Sound has toured throughout the southeast and mid-west, including stops at such major festivals as the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Milwaukee Summerfest, the Voodoo Experience.
The band’s rhythm section, consisting of twin brothers John and Joe Bourgeois, are no strangers to the road. John came up in the regionally popular ska band Fatter Than Albert, while Joe honed his chops touring the country in NOLA-based indie band MyNameIsJohnMichael.
But it all comes back to rock and roll for The Breton Sound. It’s more than clear on the band’s upcoming 2 EP project, Don’t Be Afraid of Rock and Roll, that these guys grew up on big, loud guitars calling to mind Oasis or Foo Fighters, soaring melodies and harmonies not far removed from old-school Weezer or Jimmy Eat World, and a little bit of face-melting guitar.
Pretus’ vocal melodies and hook-filled choruses reach for the back of the arenas, then step away for Turner (who did time in the critically acclaimed instrumental-prog band Epic) to take over with solos that sound like Muse if they’d grown up listening to Van Halen.
Joe Bourgeois’ bass moves aggressively and melodically, but with an economy that is the hallmark of a great bassist, while brother John provides an unstoppable foundation for each song, never sacrificing the feel while pulling out a fill that makes the listener rewind and wonder how he played that.
The upcoming EPs will be produced by Tom Drummond (bassist for multi-platinum New Orleans rockers Better Than Ezra), producer of the band’s first two records. Their enduring partnership is a testament to the music the band is bringing to the table, and as Drummond has noted, these are the best songs the band has brought to the table yet.
With the release of Don’t Be Afraid of Rock and Roll, The Breton Sound continues to wave the flag high for rock music and show themselves as a band who’ll keep continuing to climb.