When she answers the phone, Bambi Browning is standing in windy Joshua Tree, California. The Reptaliens frontperson is about to eat breakfast on a day off from her bandâs long national tour with East Coast punk bands Turnstile and Turnover. The night before was spent at a friendâs comfy house in the California desert, and after breakfast, Browning and her bandmates will head south to the massive Coachella music festivalânot to perform, but just to hang out, thanks to the generosity of their tour partners.
âItâs a lovely magical desert weekend,â Browning says. âWe have the best luck.â
That seems to be true going all the way back to Reptaliensâ origin story, which goes like this: Bambi was minding her own business one day when Cole Browningâformerly of Portland band Wampire and many othersâapproached her and asked if sheâd like to play basketball with him for a music video. She agreed; they played hoops and then got burritos, where Cole played her a âpoppy bratty punkâ (her words) song heâd been working on. Cole didnât have a band at the time, so Bambiâwhoâd spent time in local bands Blouse and Seance Crasher, among othersâoffered to help him start one. Before they knew it, they were writing together, and Reptaliens was born.
The band went about recording some songs and building a fan base, in Portland and beyond. Before theyâd even released an album, they caught the attention of a record label, and not just any labelâBambiâs favorite label. âThereâs only one label that I care about, and thatâs Captured Tracks,â she says of the vaunted Brooklyn-based purveyor of dream-pop. After a live show and some discussion, Reptaliens signed with them.
This time, Browning doesnât use the word luck. She does, however, call the bandâs relationship with Captured Tracks âmagical.â That magic produced Reptaliensâ debut full-length, called FM-2030, in late 2017; a follow-up, Valis, comes out on April 26.
Like its predecessor, Valis is a collection of effervescent synth-pop songs that live at the midpoint between 1980s new wave and early K Recordsâstyle twee-pop. Bambiâs vocals are airy but vibrant, while the bandâs arrangements are pastel without lacking punch. If youâre familiar with the general sound of Captured Tracks, youâll know why they snapped up Reptaliens when they had the chance.
If thereâs a clear difference between FM-2030 and Valis, itâs in Bambiâs lyrics, which are noticeably more personal these days. âOn the first record, I was kind of hesitant to explore lyrics that looked and focused inward, so I chose to write about characters,â she says. âI was just living in this lyrical fantasy land. I was kind of concerned that people would be less interested in hearing about my feelings on a personal level.â
As a result, the songs on FM-2030 were âhyper-obsessed about other peopleâs obsessions, thoughts, and theories,â Browning says, explaining that albumâs preoccupation with science fiction, cult mind-set, conspiracies, and other fringe cultural topics. Valis still contains the occasional reference to lizard men and lunar affection, but for the most part Bambi is singing about love, loss, loneliness, distance, memories, and dreams.
For her newfound willingness to bare her own thoughts and feelings, she credits touring extensively with a tight-knit band. âWhen weâre on the road, weâre just a communal living group in a van. You have no choice but to let your inner self out because thereâs no real privacy,â Bambi says. âBut itâs nice, because weâre all such good friends that itâs a safe space to have those feelings and emotions exposed.â
That safe space, of course, is reinforced by the fact that Cole is in the band (and the van). Heâs also her husband now, and Bambi credits him for her shift in songwriting perspective.
âHeâs the first person who ever believed in me. Iâve always just been like, âIâll play bass or guitar and Iâll write my own parts,â but if I ever came to a practice with a different band to nervously present a song, Iâd [be shot down],â she says. âCole is the first person to let me explore songwriting and encourage me.â
To recap, the Brownings are happily married, make music they love, are signed to their favorite label, and are growing as artists, not to mention the occasional magical weekend in the California desert. All because Bambi agreed to play basketball with Cole one day several years ago.
To say theyâre appreciative would be an understatement. âI think about it every single day,â Bambi says. âIt feels unreal. Now Iâm here with my best friend continuing to have these lucky streaks. Weâre incredibly fortunate.â