Boy&Gurl

Unrated Music had a chance to catch up with Calgary duo Boy & GurL on December 7th at Rock The Kettle:

For 3 years now, Boy&GurL have played Rock the Kettle at the Cardel Theatre, a benefit concert for the Salvation Army which is quickly becoming a tradition for the Calgary-based duo. “It’s a great turnout and it supports a great cause,” says Crystal McGrath, the GurL of the pair. “It’s just always been a great experience for us.” The Salvation Army isn’t the only charity this generous band supports. They also show support for the Boys and Girls Club and the Canadian Breast Cancer Society.
Boy&GurL just released their newest album, Love Crimes, their first full-length album as a band. Although the two have both previously released solo albums, their work as a team is incredibly important to them.
The pair released an EP in 2009 titled Loves Parallel, which featured 6 original tracks, before they released a CD as a band. “I don’t think we really decided (to be a band),” says McGrath. “I think it just kind of happened… And I think sometimes, that’s how the best things happen.”
Two people working so closely with one another are bound to have problems, but McGrath and Jarred Nicklen, the Boy of the duo, find it easy to move past any issues that may arise. “We’re the same person. At the end of the day we have the same goal, so I think that’s what keeps us together, and that’s what makes it work.” says Nicklen. With collaboration low on their list of band-related problems, a lack of communication from outside parties becomes an issue sometimes. “I think everything is an obstacle, it’s just a matter of how you deal with it,” says McGrath. “Everyone faces the word no, it’s just a matter of if you let no stop you. But no answers I would say, is the biggest obstacle. Any person that you work with or that you’re trying to get a hold of, with no answer, is the biggest obstacle.”
“I think it may just be the nature of the business. I think this business is more of an artistic business, and it’s not always a ‘business’ business.” says Nicklen
The pair, who are clearly on the same wavelength with most things, also agree that a New Years’ resolution is a silly concept. “I never make resolutions. I think every day you can make a change, so why does it have to be on January 1st?” says McGrath.
Boy&GurL are currently promoting their new album Love Crimes. Their single “Around Again” is on the BDS Canada CHR Top 40 list at the moment, with more hits to come.
- Erin Alyse Burke

A number of months ago I introduced you to Boy & Gurl, an up-and-coming Canadian band, and this weekend I had an opportunity to meet up with Jarred & Crystal again to see what they have been up to.

The three of us made our way over to a new coffee shop in downtown Vancouver to catch up. Crystal & Jarred basically ordered the smallest coffees known to man- although in their defense they didn’t realize that a “small” at this coffee shop literally meant like 6 ounces. They then proceeded to ruin their coffee by adding copious amounts of Sweet & Low… forgetting that the cup they actually had was basically made for a child. It was really quite funny (they still drank it!)

As we caught up on random stuff and sipped our coffee, Jarred entertained us with a story about how he’d just used Crystal’s razor this morning to shave his chest, to which she responded that she used his deodorant before leaving the hotel. Apparently they share each other’s deodorant all the time since Jarred thinks that Lady’s Speedstick works better than those made for men and Crystal has an affinity for Old Spice.


Diving into the interview, I wanted to see what these two have been up to since we last spoke:

What have you guys been up to since we last spoke?

We’ve been writing a ton for a new record that we’ll be recording in the fall with Russell Broom (who has worked with such Canadian greats as Jann Arden and Emm Gryner). We have also been practicing for our tour, which we are currently on! We just played a show in Kamloops at The Commodore and will be on tour throughout BC the rest of this week, ending with a bang at Vancouver’s Gay Pride celebration. In addition to all that, we have also been playing a lot of shows, festivals, etc… such as the Sun & Salsa festival in Calgary.

Lastly, we just remixed our song Harder To Breathe and it’s available as a free download if you sign up for our mailing list at www.boyandgurl.com

So what can you tell us about your forthcoming album?

It’s definitely more pop-y. Basically a good way to describe it would be rock, pop and soul all wrapped into one. With elements of Keane, Coldplay, Katie Perry & Kelly Clarkson, it’s very dramatic- kind of drama-pop, if you will. One of the songs is very Evanessence “Immortal” - so it’s got a healthy mix of different influences and promises to be a really great listen.

For a sneak preview of some of the new songs, tune into Canadian Music Radio (canadianmusicradio.com) where we just performed three songs live, two of which are from the new album!

So you mentioned that the album is being produced by Russell Broom - how did you guys get hooked up with him?

Basically we sent Jake Gold from Canadian Idol an email and he passed our stuff over to Russell. We’ve been a really big fan of Russell for a long time and after speaking with him knew that it was going to be a great fit.

When should we look for your new album available for purchase?

We’ll be wrapping up recording by the end of this year and would like to have the album out and available to the public by early next year.

Working with Russell, do you think you would have the opportunity to collaborate with any currently well-known Canadian artists? Or is that something that would interest you?

Absolutely, especially the opportunity to perform live with some other artists. We love collaboration because you learn so many new things from each other. We’d love the chance to work with them!

In the interim between now and when your album is released, who are some musical influences from the Canadian scene that you would recommend to your fans?

Sarah Slean for sure. We just saw her live again and it was fantastic. Sarah’s awesome and we would definitely recommend her. Serena Ryder is another fantastic artist, along with Tegan & Sara, Rufus Wainwright and Lights.

To catch Boy & Gurl, they will be performing at:

July 29 @ The Camby in Nanaimo, BC
July 30 @ The Fresh Cup in Sydney, BC
August 2 @ Vancouver Pride (in the parade on the Winners/Homesense float)
August 9 @ Sunday Summers in the Park- Park 96, Calgary, AB

- Homorazzi.com

Today I had the opportunity to sit down with new and upcoming band, Boy & Gurl. The band- made up of singer/songwriters Jarred Nicklen and Crystal McGrath- formed about 6 months ago and have been busy, busy, busy ever since. Having already released their first EP: Loves Parallel , they are now hard at work on their first full album, with all new songs, due to release later this year.

Currently living back in her hometown of Calgary, Crystal has been involved with making music for years. Prior to joining Boy & Gurl, Crystal released a solo album titled “I” - available on iTunes and Amazon- it’s is definitely worth checking out. With inspiration coming from the likes of Ani DiFranco, Elton John, KT Tunstall and The Pretenders, her music is full of great vocals and fun melodies. If you like artists like Michelle Branch and Vanessa Carlton, you’ll probably love Crystal.


The other side of Boy & Gurl, Jarred Nicklen, is originally a prairie boy from Saskatchewan. Also living in Calgary, Jarred released a solo album in June 2008 as well as another single in July 2008. The album, Chemical Rising, is available on iTunes or from his website and follows a more melodic track, focusing on a more acoustic approach and poetic lyrics. Taking inspiration from artists like Tori Amos, Sarah Slean, Rufus Wainwright and James Morrison, his smoky voice, strumming guitar and piano melodies result in a well-put-together and toe-tapping album that makes you want to sing along.

Together, Jarred & Crystal produce a marriage of their two sounds. Loves Parallel combines the clear vocals of Crystal with the smokiness of Jarred’s deeper tones to create songs heavy with interesting melodies and a juxtaposition of two distinct vocal qualities. The message they aim to deliver is one life and the different perspectives of every situation, which is part of the reasoning behind their name. In every situation- whether it’s love found, love lost, or any one of life’s other stories- there are always multiple ways of looking at things and different perspectives. Boy & Gurl want to make music that tells the stories of these different perspectives and is easy to relate to, no matter who you are. They are off to a great start with a number of gigs already under their belt as well as radio & television appearances- all of which can been checked out from their website.


Boy & Gurl will also be hitting the road this summer with a Western tour. Vancouver dates are July 24th in North Vancouver and July 26th at the Backstage Lounge on Granville Island. More concerts will be held on Vancouver Island and Kelowna.

In addition to their great music, Jarred and Crystal have both been heavily involved in charity work. Crystal has been involved with Toys For Tots and acted as their spokesperson in Atlanta, Georgia. Jarred wrote the theme song for the Calgary Scope Society and the two of them together were recently involved with a charity concert for the organization as well. They are also very strong supporters of gay rights and will be part of Vancouver’s Pride celebration later this summer.

The two are well-matched with an equal love of their music and the business aspects of their careers, each enjoying the marketing, planning, organizing and promotional needs of being a burgeoning new band.

- Homorazzi.com