Auffenberg home at The Bronco
By Bruce Martinez
In the movies, the returning hero rides a white horse through burning gates and the credits roll. In real life, the returning hero will walk into The Bronco Saturday night and hoist an electric and an acoustic guitar, and remind us all of the good days, when "Coach" was at his surliest and even red heads had dates to the senior ball.
Saturday will see Santa Clara graduate Ryan Auffenberg playing a homecoming show of sorts when he returns to his old stomping grounds, The Bronco. Auffenberg, a 2003 graduate, has spent the last year since graduation producing his first CD, "Climb," and building a loyal following for his music in his new hometown of Chicago.
"After Santa Clara I moved back home to St. Louis and started to look for a place to record and produce the CD," Auffenberg said. "The day after post-production was finished, I moved to Chicago, got my Web site and press kit together and started playing shows."
"Climb" was released independently and is available exclusively through www.ryanauffenberg.com and at shows played by Auffenberg. The CD has remained a top seller at CDBaby, a nationally known independent music distributor, and has gained considerable music industry buzz. Songs from "Climb" have been played on WXRT in Chicago and WZVB in St. Louis. Auffenberg has also been booked into a July concert at The Sheldon Concert Hall, a venue similar in size to San Francisco's Fillmore, that often hosts national touring acts.
"He does what no one else can, combining the vocal styling of Jeff Buckley with the songwriting talents of Elliot Smith, Ryan Adams, and Conor Oberst," said Justin Little, of San Francisco music distributor IODA.
Many of the songs on the CD have been previously heard at Santa Clara. However, the production, led by Nathan Hershey of the Berklee School of Music, has seen old standbys reworked into new songs. Auffenberg's acoustic guitar still dominates, but drums and bass have been added to allow for a more rock and roll sound, more Ryan Adams and whole lot less John Mayer.
Saturday evening's show should showcase the new songs from "Climb," while harking back to the formula that made Auffenberg a Bronco favorite in his glory days as a student. Early reviews out of Chicago suggest a performer who has honed his stage presence and is ready to move into the ultra-competitive, national independent music scene.
"The live aspect has been my biggest development so far," Auffenberg said. "Playing weekly shows has forced me to focus on connecting with my audience, being a musician means reaching out to the crowd and playing off of their energy."
For Santa Clarans, this is welcome news after a year that has seen a general decline in the music scene at The Bronco and other off campus venues.
"I'm so excited to see Ryan again, he was always my favorite," senior Michael Pittman said. "I just hope he plays 'Love Sick Blues', 'Rosarito' and 'Taste of Something Real.'"