What: Punk Night
When: Tuesday, June 20
Where: Garfinkel’s
Tickets: $10
Boys Night Out headlines the official return of Punk Night to Whistler Tuesday, June 20 at Garfinkel’s - the new stomping ground for Whistler’s ultimate anti-club night. Boys Night Out will be joined by The Receiving End of Sirens, Rosesdead, Daggermouth and Machette Ave.
"It’s all people we’ve know for a long time," said Boys Night Out frontman Connor Lovat-Fraser of his fellow bands. "Machette is more of an acoustic deal. Rosesdead is pure hardcore. Sirens is a lot more rock ‘n’ roll. There is definitely a lot for everybody."
The Juno Award nominees from Burlington, Ontario were originally labeled by the music industry as "screamo". Lovat-Fraser audibly cringes at the word over the phone. The Boys’ award-winning music is now more all encompassing.
"It just seems like such an easy buzz word right now," he said.
However, the same narrow pigeon holing is what inspired the band to musically expand their sound. After working as a full-time band, guitarist Jeff Davis began to see how saturated their music style was and out of both boredom and a necessity to integrate the bands’ other musical tastes - metal, pop, punk, country, classic rock — the group set out to record their newest album. Trainwreck, released on Ferret records in 2005, was born from a tale of love, murder, mental anguish and creative reawakening. The story was broken down into 12 sections, later 12 tracks, starting out with an eerie voiceover of a physician diagnosing a patient.
Fans and critiques alike balked at what they deemed a drastic turn around from previous works such as the Boys’ Ferret Records debut Make Yourself Sick (2003) and EP debut Broken Bones and Bloody Kisses (2002).
While Lovat-Fraser admitted some fans took their ears elsewhere when the Boys’ music didn’t meet past screaming standards, he doesn’t see Trainwreck as such a big departure from past writing adventures.
"The writing didn’t feel like we were going that astray," he says. "We put a lot more into it consciously. We weren’t afraid to step outside of the genre…. We are not screaming as much. We are just not as angry anymore. Sure bitter and jaded, but just not as angry. Anger is limited. We have a lot more fun with our music. It leaves more creative ground open to explore."
New territory includes more rock ‘n’ roll influences along with softer notes.
Trainwreck producer Machine, whose credits include Lamb of God, King Crimson, Clutch and Armor For Sleep, was extremely pleased with the final product.
"Boys Night Out, they’re young kids, so they took their Warped Tour and emo and metal influences, some of the classic rock that’s influenced them, and in 2005, made a real, legit, relevant, today rock record," Machine said in a release. "I don’t know about you, but for me, that’s badass."
Along with Warped Tours, the Boys’ credits also include a Best New Group nomination at the 2006 Juno Awards, a Galaxie Best Rock Group of the Year win at The Indie Awards and non-stop tours in North America and the United Kingdom.
"People can expect a party plain and simple," Lovat-Fraser said of the Whistler show. "A full party assault."
Machette Ave joins the party as well, just coming off a tour with City and Colour, Dallas Green from Alexisonfire’s new band.
Advanced $10 tickets available at Willies. Doors 9 p.m.
