Two-time Grammy winners Brave Combo release CD May 12 at Sons of Hermann Hall

Polka is "either the dumbest, squarest thing in the world, or it's the most brilliant," said frontman Carl Finch.

Brave Combo members include (from left) Jeffrey Barnes, Carl Finch, Ginny Mac, Alan Emert, and Little Jack Melody.

Carl Finch of the Denton polka band Brave Combo can't remember how many albums the band has put out since 1979. "I can't even count them anymore because we've had so many," he said. The number is 41, and they're releasing their 42nd album called The Sounds of the Hollow on May 12 at Sons of Hermann Hall.

The band features accordion player Ginny Mac for the first time, a Fort Worth resident with a degree in finance from TCU who has been a fan of Brave Combo since she was 14.

"She kind of started hanging out," Finch said, remembering meeting her for the first time more than 10 years ago. When Brave Combo's trumpet player Danny O'Brien decided to scale back on his travel schedule about a year ago, Mac joined the band.

"Ginny's style is phenomenal," Finch said. "She's a virtuoso of the instrument. She's really open to the oddball things that we're into. You can't be a purist and be in this band. ... She's just as much a freak [about music] as we are."

The album follows Brave Combo's polka style, but Finch says it's mixed with Latin influence. It's also a themed record, with the title of the album, The Sounds of the Hollow, referring to Finch's belief that "music doesn't come from anywhere."

Brave Combo has recently been playing shows in Las Vegas as an opening act for comedian Drew Carey. Carey's a fan of the Denton band, and "out of the blue," Finch said Carey requested them to do several-night gigs at the MGM Grand.

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Brave Combo

Sat
May
12^th
8^PM

Sons of Hermann Hall
3414 Elm Street
Dallas, TX

The two-time Grammy-winning band has found ways to make their sound relevant for more than 30 years. "Playing polka, it's either the dumbest, squarest thing in the world, or it's the most brilliant," Finch said.

The Denton CD release party is Friday, May 18 at the Abbey Underground, and Fort Worth’s is Friday, June 8 at Scat Jazz Lounge.

Band members are keyboardist, guitarist, accordionist, and singer Finch; Jeffrey Barnes on woodwinds, sax, and harmonica; drummer Alan Emert; bassist Little Jack Melody; and Mac on accordion.