Vancouver based band the Real Ponchos return to Lethbridge, June 6 with their brand new album “ Since I let You Go,” which combines laid back ’70s style roots rock of bands like the Band and the improvisation of jam bands like the Grateful Dead.
They are in the middle of their tour for the new CD.
“It’s going pretty good so far. there have been lots of people, the music is getting good response and the tour van is holding up,” said guitarist/ vocalist Ben Arsenault from Toronto in the middle of a practice to the evening’s show.
Arsenault is pleased with the new CD.
“We did it in Vancouver at the Hive which is now closed. We were the last band to record there. and a lot of great Vancouver indie bands recorded there,” he said.
We recorded it in five days in July. We recorded the guitar, bass and drums live off the floor and overdubbed vocals, organ and steel guitar,” he said.
It gave the band a chance to jam, so there are several tracks crossing the seven minute mark.
“ All of these songs are songs we’ve played live, so they are all tried a true,” he said.
“I think it sounds pretty good,” he said adding the longer songs were a natural fit for the record.
“We’ve always considered ourselves a country rock band as well as a jam band in the style of the Grateful Dead,” he described.
“We like to improvise so we decided to put that on the record,” he said.
“ We like to feed off each other, so we can do that in the studio. Live, all we need is the audience so we can feed off of them,” he continued.
“There’s a different energy,” he continued.
He said it has been about a year since they last played Lethbridge.
“ We played June 5 last year, so it will be almost exactly a year,” he continued.
He said they have added Etienne Tremblay to the band for this tour. Tremblay is a Vancouver based classic country songwriter who plays with Etienne and the Po’Boys.
“He gives us a more fuller sound like the CD,” he said.
“We met at shows in Vancouver. He joined me on tour with my solo project, playing bass. We toured up to Northern B.C.,” he said.
There is a lot of pedal steel and organ on the CD.
“ A friend of ours (Mark Jenkins) plays pedal steel but is not of a touring age and so is the organ player (Jesse Gander), so Etienne will play chords and add the atmosphere of the organ,” he said.
“But it is not a total replica of the record. there are differences. Live it is probably more rootsy rock and guitar driven,” he said.
He is excited abut the show.
“ People can expect a good time, good classic sounding ’70s country rock like the Band and the Grateful Dead and some psychedelic jams,” he said.
There is no cover for the June 6 show which begins at 9 p.m.
