| Dylan Roche | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth Name | Dylan Anthony Roche |
| Alias | Roche |
| Born | 9 October 1974 |
| Died | 28 August 2021 |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Genres | Desert Rock, Stoner Rock, Psychedelic Rock |
| Instrument(s) | Bass |
| Years active | Late 1990s - 2021 |
| Labels | Duna, Low Desert Punk, Go Down |
| Associated acts | Brant Bjork, Vic DuMonte, Brave Black Sea |
| Website | Discogs |
Dylan Roche was a bassist from the California desert rock scene. Active from the late 1990s to 2021, he was best known for his tenures supporting Brant Bjork, Chris Cockrell and Brave Black Sea.
Biography[]
Roche's earliest known connections with music dates back to the late 1990s as he would be a roadie for Fu Manchu, credited as such on their album King Of The Road.
Preceding and surrounding the release of Keep Your Cool., Brant would form his band known as Brant Bjork and The Bros (Or The Bros) with Roche, Michael Peffer and Mike Pygmie. The quartet's first show under this moniker was on 5 May 2003 at Spaceland in Los Angeles. By the fall the band would begin touring throughout the United States and Europe from September to December, beginning with a five-date California tour that September and ending with a December tour of Europe with Mondo Generator, a band Bjork also played drums in. 2004 would see The Bros on the road with new guitarist Scott "Cortez" Silverman, commonly playing with Nick Oliveri or Mondo Generator up until Bjork would leave Mondo that summer.[1] Throughout 2004, The Bros did alternating tours of North America and Europe along with Brant's first Australian tour.
The Bros would tour with Vic du Monte's Idiot Prayer in the Spring, including Brant's first appearance at Roadburn Festival[2] while the Bros began work on a studio album under that moniker and Brant's first solo effort with a full band. The double album Saved By Magic would be released on 1 August 2005 to critical praise and comparisons to his early solo works, with the band itself touring the world heavily behind it.[3] In 2006 however, Brant would move to Barcelona (and also later meet his current wife) due to burnout with the United States at the time, leaving the band in separate parts of the world (Cortez in Belgium and the other members remaining in Palm Desert). Thus in 2006, Bjork majorly alternated touring between Australia and Europe,[4] including a return to Roadburn Festival[5] and being an instrumental player in the inaugural Duna Jam. The band's second Australian Tour would end going into the next year.
Brant would do a series of recording sessions with The Bros, though Alfredo Hernández would join as the drummer when Peffer was no longer able to tour. Somera Sól was released on 8 May with The Bros, touring Europe (and briefly in the United States) in support of both records as The Bros and intimate solo acoustic performances. Late 2008 and 2009 would see a reissue campaign of sorts from Bjork and Low Desert Punk, with reissues of Sounds of Liberation, Brant Bjork & The Operators and lastly the tenth anniversary vinyl reissue of Jalamanta. The Bros would tour Europe and Australia to support Brant's respective solo releases. However by 2009 Roche would depart from the group, dealing with a brain tumor. Brant and many others would help raise donations to help with the costs related to the sudden illness.[6]
Roche would join Vic DuMonte's Persona Non Grata in 2010, appearing on one album with the project in Barons & Bankers. He would tour Europe and perform with the band until 2013, when that project would go on hiatus. Roche would then join Brave Black Sea not long after recording their debut album, which featured a prior collaborator in Alfredo Hernández and members of Slo Burn.
Brave Black Sea would release their debut album Fragments circa 7 April 2014 in Europe. The first run sold out quickly and even with a second batch those would sell out. During it’s first week Visions Magazine called Fragments their “Album of the week”, while Classic Rock Magazine called it ‘Soulful, heavy and brilliantly played”. With records selling out and positive reviews Brave Black Sea would tour Europe that Summer, despite their UK shows being canceled. The band also made a marquee appearance at Stoned From The Underground. The next year the band would perform a handful of shows in the United States, supporting the likes of Nick Oliveri's Uncontrollable,[7] Three Days Grace,[8] Pennywise and Danzig.[9]
Brave Black Sea would go dormant largely due to Slo Burn's reunion tour in 2017 but would announce a second guitarist in Ryan Hendricks.[10] In late 2018 it would be announced that work would begin on a second album but no further posts have been indicated since.[11]
Roche would pass away on 28 August 2021, survived by his wife and daughter.
Bands[]
- Brant Bjork & The Bros - Bass (2002 - 2009)
- Vic DuMonte's Persona Non Grata - Bass (2010 - 2013)
- Brave Black Sea - Bass (2014 - 2021)
Discography[]
- Brant Bjork - Saved By Magic (Studio Album) (2005, Duna)
- Brant Bjork - Somera Sól (Studio Album) (2007, Low Desert Punk)
- Vic DuMonte's Persona Non Grata - Barons & Bankers (Studio Album) (2010, Go Down)