The Balling Jacks
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The Balling Jacks

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Music

The best kept secret in music

Press


"The Balling Jacks ready to giv'er"

The Balling Jacks are on a mission to live up to their name.

Balling the jack is a phrase from the jargon of railroad workers and simply means going at top speed. It has also acquired the meaning in gambling circles of risking everything on a single throw of the dice or turn of a card.

Embarking on their first cross-Canada tour on the heels of their self-titled album and first full-length release, The Balling Jacks are prepared to do just that by finishing the tour in Toronto and setting up home base in an attempt to make a living off music.

"We are trying to take it to the next level. In the end we want to make our income from the music, that's the goal," says guitarist, keyboard player and bassist Tyler Stewart.

"We've always realized we need to be in a bigger market if we are going to make it."

The current incarnation of the band, originally hailing from Nelson, BC, has been together for a year and a half but it's members all have musical backgrounds spanning the better part of a decade.

According to the band members, their sound ranges from 60s-like rock n' roll to modern alternative with heaps of blues-driven solos and funky bass lines.

"We are a melting pot but rock is the main source," says Stewart. "For the most part we keep our style similar but we tend to switch it up once in a while to keep things interesting. We want to be more than just a standard rock band."

The lineup is rounded out by Oliver Heywood-Jones on bass, mandolin, guitar and vocals, Steve Brockley on guitar, vocals and harmonica and Dan Gibbs on drums.

The rock quartet originally formed in the summer of 2004 as The Lucid Dream but when two original members left, the current formation was born.

Organization for the cross-Canada tou began with the first booking on April of this year and to this date not all shows are confirmed, thus the life of a Canadian indie rock bad.

"It takes patience to call someone up that you've never spoken with and convince them that you are a legitimate band and it will be worthwhile for them to book you," said Stewart.

The Balling Jacks first take to the stage in the Bow Valley Tuesday and Wednesday night this week at the Banff Rose and Crown, only to return to play at Canmore's Drake Inn on Sept. 15 and 16.

"We work hard and giver s%&t every night whether there's 50 people or 500 people there," say Stewart. "If there is only four people on the dance floor and they want to rock out, we'll rock out."

-Kevin Duncan, Banff Crag and Canyon - The Banff Crag and Canyon


"Indie Love Radio"

"With a sound that pays tribute to it's roots, yet remains refreshingly original, The Balling Jacks are bringing Rock back to fans of Independent Canadian Music from coast to coast!" - Tim Cassidy - www.indielove.ca


"Dave and Chuck Show"

"I think The Balling Jacks are a really cool band. And that one guy ate a lot of grilled cheese sandwiches." - Dave Armstrong - www.daveandchuckshow.com


Discography

The Balling Jacks - July 2006

Photos

Feeling a bit camera shy

Bio

The Balling Jacks play rock n' roll in it's purest form. No silk scarves or mod haircuts or bullshit. Vintage rock sounds to make people rise to their feet and feel good about listening to raw, fiery songs written about the human experience. Full of fresh twists and turns on stage and not content to let songs become stagnant, they take their material and reshape it live into a whole new animal. Thick grooves, fuzzed-out guitars and impassioned vocals. Experience it for yourself.

Formed in Nelson, BC back in 2005, The Balling Jacks did some dates around Western Canada and developed a larger appetite for grabbing the attention of the nation and beyond. Eager to make that happen, they pounded away on the local stages of Nelson, developing new tunes and refining their live show. That winter saw them enter the studio to self-produce and record a full length album which they released in the summer of 2006 before hitting the road across Canada. They played with friends and strangers, met piles of crazies, slept in the beat up Chevy van - only to be awoken by the cops - and made it to Toronto. They have now settled into their new launch pad, from which they plan to shoot their loads of rock n’ roll into the ears of the world.

Look for them on the road this spring and summer around Ontario, Quebec and elsewhere.......with fresh new songs and more determined than ever before.