In the third and final concert of the 2021-22 season as part of the Stars for Saskatchewan concert series presented by the Canora Arts Council, the Bromantics brought the 50s to life at Canora Composite School on March 16.
There were 81 concertgoers in attendance, up significantly from the previous show when the weather was less than ideal. As one audience member put it, “It’s amazing that they can bring this level of talent to Canora.”
The Bromantics are made up of: Gregg Gower on keys, Justin Hauck on drums, Jim Mitchell on bass/vocals, Kurt Gillett on saxophone/vocals, Rob Haakenson on guitar/vocals, and Tim Lynchuk on lead vocals.
The concert opened with an energetic version of Rock Around The Clock, originally made famous by Bill Haley & the Comets, followed by a welcome by Lynchuk.
“Thanks for coming out. This tour has been really fun, getting back to our roots in Saskatchewan. Are you ready to do some dancing?”
Other songs included: Rockin’ Robin by Bobby Day, Little Darlin’ by The Diamonds, Twistin’ The Night Away by Sam Cooke, At The Hop by Danny and the Juniors, as well as a couple of Beatles tunes, Twist and Shout and I Saw Her Standing There. They also performed Runaround Sue by Dion DiMucci, what Lynchuk described as “the saddest song in the world, all about a girl we knew.”
It seemed like everyone at the concert was smiling throughout the evening, and it was almost impossible to sit still.
Like most touring bands, The Bromantics had an unplanned break from performing for about two years. During that time, they wrote a number of original songs, and performed several for the Canora audience.
“They’re written in 50s style, including doo-wop harmonies but with more contemporary progressions, so a hybrid,” said Haakenson. “We’re all about having fun, we don’t take ourselves too serious.”
The Bromantics don’t limit the fun to just playing music. Early on in the Canora concert, Lynchuk challenged CCS students Simon Craig and his brother Jack to a game of Fussball. During the intermission, the challenge was accepted and there was some furious Fussball action.
The band was first formed in 2013. It wasn’t really planned; they were mostly just brought together by circumstances.
“I was involved in planning a roof-top concert series in Moose Jaw as a homage to the Beatles, with a band on the roof and the crowd below,” recalled Haakenson. “One of the guys in a band broke his finger. I reached out buy I couldn’t find anyone to replace him and I was running out of time. So I put a band together for an opening slot, called my cousin Tim Lynchuk to do 50s rock. Tim had never sung lead, but he said he’d try.”
Haakenson knew of a drummer, who turned out to be Justin Hauck, but had never met Kurt Gillett. He ended up cold-calling Gillett, and they had a five-piece group. Greg Gower was added to the group later.
“We played that one show and that was going to be it,” explained Haakenson. “We just had fun, and weren’t really worried about impressing anyone. But immediately there were people trying to book us for future shows and then it snowballed from there.”
All six band members are originally from Saskatchewan, and are about to release their debut album.
“It’s a 10-track LP, we just got the first track back and expect it come out some time this year.”
So far, The Bromantics have written about an album of original music, along with around four hours of cover songs which they can play at any time.
“At our larger shows we do full-scale sock hops, including swing and jive instructors,” continued Haakenson.
Group members seem to have their own special connection to the music of the 50s.
“Greg is oldest member, very nostalgic. He lived thru this stuff, like some audience members,” said Haakenson. “For me, my grandpa had a cassette tape that I remember from when I was a kid. I bet I was about four years olds and I would put it on as I went to bed at night. I would fall asleep listening to this music.”
The members of The Bromantics have been involved in in a number of different groups, but they agree that there is something special going on with this band.
“I’ve played in a number of fairly professional bands but this is probably the most fun I have ever had performing,” shared Haakenson. “Others in the band feel the same way due to the musical content, from the audience approaching us and telling us how much fun it was, and also the people I perform with. It does not feel like work when we’re performing.”
Group members say they love doing concerts in small town Saskatchewan where it’s very intimate and they can see every individual audience member, as well as meeting people after the show and telling stories. But they also enjoy playing bigger venues, including a crowd of over 1,000 at the Conexus Arts Centre in Regina.
“In Moose Jaw at our second visit to one of their venues, they actually unfastened the seating to make more room for dancing,” recalled Haakenson.
They have performed all over western Canada. Plans were in place to hit the northern states a couple of years ago, which fell through when COVID-19 hit. But now that things are opening up again, The Bromantics are expecting another American tour to come together soon.
