Who: SNFU, Day Glo Abortions, Sidesixtyseven
Where: Garfinkel’s
When: Sunday, Jan. 30
Two’s company and three’s a mosh when punk legends SNFU, Day Glo Abortions and Sidesixtyseven take the stage this Sunday in one the biggest coming together of punk bands in Whistler’s long distinguished history of Punk Nights.
And it was a total fluke. The Sidesixtyseven/SNFU show had yet to be confirmed when the promoter got a call from the Day Glo Abortions, who were looking to play in Whistler the same night before embarking on a tour of Australia. After some consultation with band managers, a deal was hatched that put all three bands on the same bill, the first time that Day Glo Abortions and SNFU have played together since the Killing Technology Tour of 1987.
Because of the size of the show, the promoter was forced to move the event from The Boot to the larger venue offered by Garfinkel’s.
Jesus Bonehead, the frontman for the Day Glo Abortions is looking forward to it.
The first time they played in Whistler a decade ago, they brought their equipment to an after-party on Alta Lake Road that the police finally broke up at 4:30 a.m. by cutting the power. Since that night Bonehead says he has a new appreciation for Whistler.
"That was our introduction to party central," he said. "I didn’t know much about Whistler. It’s got this reputation as the Disneyland of the North, but there’s more to it, all the people who live there, and there are a lot of great people.
"When The Boot finally closes, we’ll be coming back that week as well because that was a great place, and has a lot of great memories for us. It’s the end of an era, which we were happy to be a part of."
The Day Glo Abortions just released their eighth album after 26 years, titled Holy Shiite! It was recorded at ESP studios in Toronto in just five days on the same soundboard that Alice Cooper used, with the band members recording together instead of laying the tracks down separately. The final result is an album that’s been favourably compared to the band’s first album, Feed Us a Fetus , and it went number one for a month on Canadian College Radio. They backed it up with a cross-Canada tour in the fall, playing at 32 venues from Halifax to Victoria in a 36 day period.
"We’re really proud of it, it’s straight up Day Glo Abortions, with the wail of guitars, and a voice screaming in your face," said Bonehead.
"If we crash on the Sea to Sky Highway on the way there, I’ll die being proud of the last album we did."
SNFU has also released a new album, In The Meantime And In Between Time , that’s been getting solid reviews from coast to coast. A reviewer at www.punknews.org, the Rolling Stone of punk music, even wrote "the first five tracks on the record are together some of the most distinctive punk rock released in 2004."
Not bad for a band that’s been kicking ass since 1982, almost as long as the Day Glo Abortions.
Sidesixtyseven are mere pups compared to guys like Bonehead and SNFU frontman Chi Pig, but their brand of skate punk has its own growing legion of fans on the west coast. Their second full-length album is expected in the summer, and they will be releasing a video they made while touring last year.
To share the same stage with Day Glo Abortions and SNFU is a dream come true.
"We’re totally stoked, to play with these two bands is quite an honour," said Sidesixtyseven frontman Ian Roberts.
"I lived in Whistler for a couple of years, and I’ve seen both bands play up there and I know what it does to the town, it just goes crazy. We look up to these guys, and part of the reason we do what we do is to meet our heroes and maybe be able to play some shows with them."
Although they are unmistakably punk, and have been regularly featured on Punk Night, there’s some heavy metal in there as well. You might have already heard them in skate, snowboard and sled videos like Fathom Transmissions, Underexposed, Appetite for Destruction and Roops of Hazard.
"We grew up listening to that kind of (heavy metal) music as well as punk, and when we first got together as a band in Vancouver, we were kind of under the heavy metal wing. When we played shows, we had to play that kind of music, it couldn’t be all punk. We’ve definitely kept some of that style musically," said Roberts.
Getting your name out there is tough, but with punk getting more radio play and MuchMusic running a weekly punk show, it’s easier than it was a few years ago.
"Of course the more channels there are to get your music out there, the more bands there are fighting for those spots, but we always believed that if we worked and kept at it, it would pay off and we’re seeing that happen. Hey, we’re opening for Day Glo Abortions and SNFU, things are going well."
On any other night, Sidesixtyseven could be the headliner in Whistler, but Sunday they’re going to be the opening act. The Day Glo Abortions, the most recent addition, will go second, while SNFU will wrap things up.
Every fan of punk, past and present, will want to be at this show, so get your tickets early. You can get tickets in advance at the South Side Board Company in Creekside or the Electric Daisy in Whistler Village. Tickets are also available at the door, which will open at 8 p.m.
