Benny Shears and the Bad Beat

Benny Shears and the Bad Beat are a three-piece garage-rock band from Calgary, Alberta. Heavily influenced by past and present decades of music, ranging from delta and Chicago blues to the British invasion to post-punk and the era of modern garage-rock, Benny Shears & co. plan on driving that tradition of soulful rock. Adding blues elements as the White Stripes and Black Keys have done, Benny Shears & co. constantly aim to write rock songs they can proudly call their own. Combining screaming tubes, expressive vocals, thumping bass, and playful drums is what they enjoy.

They've been working hard writing material and have just finished recording their 5 song Basement Tricks EP, which is due out in April, in a preemptive strike to spread their music around Calgary. The band has plans to start playing shows extensively to build their following and provide support for recording a full length album next winter, which they're already focusing on writing all new material for.

Coming from dark alleys and darker cellars, the members of Benny Shears and the Bad Beat formed the band under the call of guitarist/vocalist Gary Dobko in August 2010. Gary decided to enlist his friends Cale Zebedee on bass and James Pantuso on drums knowing they were both biting at the reins for a steady project to be a part of. Since then the band have played what gigs they could get their hands on, like the Olds Rock 104.5 Star Search and a charity concert at the Blind Beggar Pub.

Now that they've got the material, the looks, and the chops, they're sniffing out gigs starting with one on March 30 2011 at Vern's Bar.