Biography
Despite their common classification as an alternative act throughout their short existence, Beat Rodeo readily displayed retro-rock influences that aligned them with contemporaries such as the Blasters and Green on Red. Fronted by singer, songwriter, and guitarist Steve Almaas, who had previously played with late-'70s punk outfit Suicide Commandos and country-rock group the Crackers, the Minneapolis, MN quartet came together in 1983 alongside Bill Schunk on guitar and vocals, Dan Prater on bass and vocals, and Mike Osborn on drums. Emerging from the same local circuit that produced the Replacements, Hüsker Dü, and Soul Asylum, the band put out a self-titled EP, then secured a deal one year after forming with German imprint Zensor Records, which issued the debut album Staying out Late With...Beat Rodeo in July 1984.
IRS Records granted the group a U.S. contract in 1985, prompting a domestic reissue of that first album while the quartet maintained an active touring schedule across both the U.S. and Europe. The following year brought the Scott Litt-produced follow-up Home in the Heart of the Beat on which Lewis King replaced Osborn on drums and keyboardist George Usher came aboard, yet this release marked the end of the band’s run as they disbanded soon afterward. Almaas returned to his native New York City, where he briefly collaborated with former bandmate Usher in the Gornack Brothers before releasing the little-known album Refund on U.K. independent Strike Back Records. He subsequently pursued a solo career that yielded East River Blues in 1992, Bridge Songs in 1995, Human, All Too Human in 1997, and Kingo a Wild One in 2000.
IRS Records granted the group a U.S. contract in 1985, prompting a domestic reissue of that first album while the quartet maintained an active touring schedule across both the U.S. and Europe. The following year brought the Scott Litt-produced follow-up Home in the Heart of the Beat on which Lewis King replaced Osborn on drums and keyboardist George Usher came aboard, yet this release marked the end of the band’s run as they disbanded soon afterward. Almaas returned to his native New York City, where he briefly collaborated with former bandmate Usher in the Gornack Brothers before releasing the little-known album Refund on U.K. independent Strike Back Records. He subsequently pursued a solo career that yielded East River Blues in 1992, Bridge Songs in 1995, Human, All Too Human in 1997, and Kingo a Wild One in 2000.