Indie band commits to making climb to rock music's summit

VIC VALBUENA BARENG/VIEWDylan O?Reilly, lead singer for The Bronte Run, belts out a tune during a recent performance at the Freakin? Frog club, 4700 S. Maryland Parkway. The band returns to the Freakin? Frog Friday. Advertisement

THE BRONTE RUN, IN CONCERT

* When: 9:30 p.m. Friday

* Where: Freakin' Frog, 4700 S. Maryland Parkway

* Tickets: No cover charge; ages 18 and older admitted

* Information: 597-3237

The name was born long before the band came together.

The Bronte Run is what front man Dylan O'Reilly called a longboarding hill in his hometown of Whittier, Calif.

"A longboarder would see (The Bronte Run) as too much," O'Reilly said. "It's a three-mile walk to the top."

Although the street is actually named Summit Drive, O'Reilly and a friend named the band after a nearby road. The 17-year-old O'Reilly thought it would make a great name for a band, not that he had one.

A year and a half ago, he joined Alex Adams, 18, and Alex O'Brien, 17, to form the indie rock band The Bronte Run.

The group liked the name and thought it was fitting because "we all have a skateboarding background," Adams said. Bass player Richard Cash, 16, joined the band, which has O'Reilly singing and playing rhythm guitar, Adams on lead guitar and O'Brien playing drums, in June

The members are mostly self-taught musicians, but once their interest was sparked, three of the four got involved with band at Foothill High School. O'Reilly is the only one who didn't sign up for band.

"I starting beating on stuff when I was 6 and it evolved from there," O'Brien said.

The drummer started taking lessons in middle school and joined jazz band in high school.

Adams, who now attends the College of Southern Nevada, picked up a guitar after he heard a friend play the Black Sabbath song "Iron Man."

"I always thought school band stuff was lame, but I got involved and learned a lot," Adams said.

O'Reilly said he tried taking guitar lessons when he was about 10 years old, but it bored him, so he stopped. A few years later, he picked up the instrument again and began to teach himself.

"It's a lot of trial and error," O'Reilly said. "The first four months, it was a fight to get through it."

Cash joined the band a few months ago while still learning to play bass. He said he will play with the Foothill Jazz Band during the next school year.

The guys of The Bronte Run write and perform their own music, and although their goal is to get signed by a record label, for now, the band is focused on finding good venues to perform in.

O'Reilly said it's hard getting their fans, who consist mainly of high school students, to attend shows because of age restrictions at clubs, transportation issues and curfews. Most of their recent performances have been at the Freakin' Frog, 4700 S. Maryland Parkway, which allows underage musicians to take the stage provided they don't consume alcohol in the club.

"There are four good places to play in (Las) Vegas, and three require you to be famous," O'Brien said, naming some of the best-known music venues on the Strip.

The Bronte Run recently played in a battle of the bands competition. The group came in eighth out of 36 bands, claiming second place on the night they performed.

Fans ages 18 and older may attend Friday's concert at the Freakin' Frog, with the club reverting to its age minimum of 21 at the conclusion of the concert. The Bronte Run also plans to compete in another battle of the bands contest in September.

For more information, e-mail thebronterun@yahoo.com or visit http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=199886063.