The Broadcast Returns to Bardot With a New York-Asheville Vibe

When Caitlin Krisko moved her rootsy rock band the Broadcast from New York City to Asheville, North Carolina, it took some getting used to. "My mom moved me to New York City when I was a freshman in high school," Krisko tells New Times while she sips a glass of wine. "New York is an exhausting place. Asheville is a lot quieter and slower, which can drive me crazy," she laughs.

Krisko met her songwriting partner, guitarist Aaron Austin, while living in New York. They decided to make the move to Asheville in 2010 when they realized it wasn't economically feasible to tour while also paying New York City rent. They recently settled on the Broadcast's current lineup, which includes E'Lon Jordan-Dunlap on bass, Tyler Housholder on percussion, and Jaze Uries on drums. "We're influenced by classic rock like Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones, and the Eagles, but we try to stay rooted to contemporary sounds," she says. Some of their modern favorites include Chance the Rapper, Sarky Puppy, and Emily King, whom Krisko describes as "today's queen of R&B and soul. She's like Aretha, and that's not an overstatement."

The Broadcast enjoyed the holidays at home after finishing its first European tour. "We played 36 shows in seven countries," Krisko says. "The audiences were incredible. It has been rumored that Europe had the best audiences in terms of a hunger for new music and new artists. It lived up to that. Some places, like Madrid, had hundreds of people. We were like, 'How did you find us?'"

But Krisko doesn't take American audiences for granted. The band is about to embark on a tour through the South. She's especially effusive in praise of Bardot, where they'll play January 11. "We discovered Bardot years ago before the area was developed. Now the area is super-built-up. It's incredible to see the transition. I grew up in the bar world of New York City, and Bardot always has that kind of party vibe. It's something sexy and fun."

Krisko is hesitant to describe what the Broadcast's live show is like to those who haven't attended the band's previous gigs at Bardot. She says, "Every show of ours is different because we feel different every day."

After this tour, the band plans to take April off to write music for a third album, a followup to last year's From the Horizon, which Krisko says was inspired by "a lot of transition in my life and a lot of transition in [Austin's] life. We got in touch with Jim Scott, who produced us out in the desert. He really worked to get the essence of the band out for that album."

The constant travel, whether to California to record an album or to Europe or around America to play shows, has been a way for a city girl to enjoy living outside a metropolis. "I love the mountains. It's easy living in the South, which Southerners hate for me to say. But all the travel with the band does keep the New Yorker in me stimulated."

The Broadcast
11:45 p.m. Wednesday, January 11, at Bardot, 3456 N. Miami Ave., Miami; bardotmiami.com; 305-576-5570.