THROWDOWN
Orange County’s Throwdown is heading up to Montreal this Sunday for a show at El Salon with All That Remains and As I Lay Dying. The band is doing a six-week tour across the United States and Canada.
Throwdown’s drummer Ben Dussault, a Montreal native, says he is looking forward to coming back to his hometown after being away for almost a year.
He says one of the major differences he noticed between the hardcore scenes in Montreal and the United States is that the kids are more aggressive at shows down there.
“When we play shows in the U.S. there are a lot of fights, it’s a different mentality,” says Dussault. He feels the kids in Montreal are a lot more appreciative of bands when they come up because there aren’t as many shows in the city as, say, in Orange County.
The four-piece just finished recording a new record, entitled Vendetta, which is set to be released in July. For the first time in the band’s history, all of those participating in the recording process were permanent members of the band.
According to the drummer, this “gives a different feel and vibe” to the album. He adds that the new record will be a step in a different direction for Throwdown.
The best part about being in band, for Dussault, is playing shows every day. He says putting on a good show that reaches people is important. “Bands can sound really tight but be so boring to watch if they don’t touch you or if you can’t associate yourself with them or can’t understand what they are talking about.” he says.
So every night, the band gives everything they’ve got. “I just beat the sh-t out of my drums and give them something to look at,” says Dussault.
Throwdown will be playing at El Salon Sunday April 10th. Tickets are $16, show starts at 8 p.m.
The band will be back in Montreal July 3rd with the Sounds of the Underground tour at the Uniprix Stadium.
CHOKE
Choke, veterans of the Canadian punk scene, will be headlining the Smallman Tour this spring. This will be the most extensive Canadian tour the band has ever done. The Edmonton four-piece is looking forward to touring with their label-mates, and good friends, Moneen and Ghosts of Modern Man.
Choke recently released their sixth album at the end of March entitled Slow Fade or: How I learn to question infinity. For this album the band “really wanted to get into more dynamics and use them better,” says Choke’s bassist Clay Shea.
On this new record the band also tried to be less frantic. They connected songs with guitar riffs, something they’ve never done before.
According to the band’s bassist, Choke has been able to stay prevalent in the music industry over the years by “always keeping the music moving; every record has always sounded different,” he says.
“The drive to do new things, to create music as art and to switch it up, I think is what keeps it fresh for us,” says Shea.
Being with the same guys for 11 years has been a tremendous learning experience for Shea. “I’ve learned that there is probably no more satisfaction in life than waking up every day and figuring out that you are going to do what you love that day and get paid for it,” explains Shea.
He says that being able to live his passion and have people appreciate the music the band creates “is one of the most self-fulfilling things I’ve ever experienced.”
Choke will be playing at El Salon Sunday April 17th with Moneen, Comeback Kid, The Reason, Ghosts of Modern Man, Brazil. Tickets are $15, show starts at 6:30 p.m.
FEAR BEFORE THE MARCH OF FLAMES
The Colorado hardcore quartet Fear Before The March Of Flames have just started their two-month tour, which will be heading to Montreal at the end of April. The guys of FBTMOF have been getting rave reviews for their energetic shows.
According to the band’s frontman, David Marion, putting on a good show is as important as putting out a record. He says that ultimately “you want to be a band that people want to see live.”
Putting on a good show is not just “being entertaining or fun to watch, but we want to sound good doing it,” says the singer. “It’s truly easy to just go up and goof around and be cool to watch, but if you are not playing the songs right, then that’s a bad show to us.”
The band released their sophomore album, entitled Art Damage, at the beginning of fall last year. Marion says the band knew writing an album so different from their first album might cause a minor backlash from some of their listeners. “It took a while for fans to get into it,” says the singer. “When you get the record it may take a couple of listens to actually let it sink in and figure out what we are doing differently,” he adds.
The singer says a lot of hardcore bands have recently tried to become more accessible by putting out more melodic records. Marion says it’s almost become what he calls a “pop fest”.
“So we decided to do the opposite of what every band has been doing lately and just write an in-your-face, non-stop record,” explains Marion.
He says they are excited with the way the record has turned out and that working with producer Matt Ellard (Converge, Motorhead) has been an incredible experience.
Marion says he is really fortunate to sing in a band. “It’s a dream come true, I’ve wanted to be in a band, since elementary school.”
Fear Before The March of Flames play at Club Soda with Underoath and guests Saturday April 23rd.
Tickets are $21,75, show starts at 8 p.m.
SILVERSTEIN
The Southern-Ontario five-piece Silverstein will be coming to Montreal twice this spring. The band is currently putting the finishing touches on their new record, entitled Discovering The Waterfront.
The band has spent the last month or so recording their sophomore record in Costa Mesa, California with renowned producer Cameron Webb (Social Distortion, Zebrahead).
The band’s drummer, Paul Koehler, says the new album will sound a little lighter as a whole. “We have some songs that are a little more pop structured, some songs that are pretty heavy with screaming and breakdowns,” says the drummer. “It’s all over the map, we don’t try to have one particular sound throughout the whole record, we try to make every song different and unique,” he adds.
The band hopes some songs on this new record will potentially receive some radio or video play. Koehler explains there will also be a huge underlining concept to the new record. The band will be tying in artwork and lyrics which will represent “things like being in a different point in our lives, having a lot more maturity and looking at things a little bit differently and at the same time realizing no matter how sad things get, it’s not the end of the world,” he says.
The guys of Silverstein make it a point to keep a good presence in Canada. “It’s extremely important, this is where we are from,” says the drummer, “we wish we would have been able to make more of an indent up here on the last record, but with this record it’s going to be a major focus.”
Silverstein will be stopping in Montreal April 27th at La Tulipe. Tickets are $15,50, show starts at 7:30 p.m. The band is also planning to be back in town in June as headliners of a cross-country tour.
