The Give 'Em Hell Boys

I promise friends and neighbors, I am not in the back pocket of the Canadian Ministry of Country Music. No, my dad was not secretly from Saskatchewan, nor do I have a maple leaf tattooed on my ass, stimulating a secret desire to push Canadian country. It just happens to be that many times when I roll up my sleeves and delve into the infinite stack of albums to review, I’ll be damned if here in 2012 it hasn’t been many of the Canadian ones making the cut.

The Give ‘Em Hell Boys are a get your elbows swinging and your knees knocking “okay let’s go!” good time fun-loving country band. Barn Burner is a wild-assed frolic through country and bluegrass laced with punk undertones, with moments of great playing and songwriting, and a fun time throughout.

The Give ‘Em Hell Boys do a few things on this album that traditionally would be deal killers. Like what? Like pulling off poor renditions of Southern inflections in their singing, or I don’t know, covering New Order’s hot dance club song “Bizarre Love Triangle”. Though the instrumentation is always pretty good, this album is pretty consistently sloppy, with players walking all over each other and spats of timing issues.

All of this is atoned though by approach. This is a silly, fun-loving band that never takes themselves too seriously. And by conveying that fun vibe and taking a gutsy, blue collar approach to their music, you not only listen through the flubs, at times you find them endearing. And that “Bizarre Love Triangle” cover? That may be the best song on the album. It and a a cover of Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game” may garner all the attention at first, but the meat of Barn Burner is blazing original honky tonk numbers about drinking, sin, and redemption.

the-give-em-hell-boys-barn-burner Even the songs that start off slow turn fast after the first few bars. Despite some moments of wonkiness, when you listen to the individual parts, the instrumentation on Barn Burner is superb.

There’s some songs and moments where every single person in the band is playing as fast and as hard as they can making a punk-esque blaze. But other times The Give ‘Em Hell Boys lay back and give you moments of surprising compositional brilliance, especially in the two cover songs. They also surprise you with excellently arranged and performed 3-part, and sometimes 4-part harmonies. Trumpet, accordion, and a slew of guest players give Barn Burner a fleshed sound, and in a few songs like “Play Hank Williams At My Funeral” I can hear a slight Acadian influence in the music.

I know I called some of the sloppiness on this album endearing, but what really intrigues me about the Give ‘Em Hell Boys is what they could become if they got just a tad sharper. Everything here is in place: the writing, the singing, the playing and the approach. This is one of those prototypical first albums that speaks to tremendous potential. What’s creating the parity in the “punk gone country” world is so many of the bands are taking the same dark approach. The Give ‘Em Hell Boys have a dark streak too, but they do it with a sly grin, yet don’t cross that line into hipster-ific sarcasm either. It’s the Jason & The Scorchers approach, but with more players and more twang for a full, more country sound.

I really enjoy listening to Barn Burner, and really excited to hear what The Give ‘Em Hell Boys have to offer in the future. Until then, I will be wearing my copy out.

1 3/4 of 2 guns up.
- Saving Country Music

I promise friends and neighbors, I am not in the back pocket of the Canadian Ministry of Country Music. No, my dad was not secretly from Saskatchewan, nor do I have a maple leaf tattooed on my ass, stimulating a secret desire to push Canadian country. It just happens to be that many times when I roll up my sleeves and delve into the infinite stack of albums to review, I’ll be damned if here in 2012 it hasn’t been many of the Canadian ones making the cut.

The Give ‘Em Hell Boys are a get your elbows swinging and your knees knocking “okay let’s go!” good time fun-loving country band. Barn Burner is a wild-assed frolic through country and bluegrass laced with punk undertones, with moments of great playing and songwriting, and a fun time throughout.

The Give ‘Em Hell Boys do a few things on this album that traditionally would be deal killers. Like what? Like pulling off poor renditions of Southern inflections in their singing, or I don’t know, covering New Order’s hot dance club song “Bizarre Love Triangle”. Though the instrumentation is always pretty good, this album is pretty consistently sloppy, with players walking all over each other and spats of timing issues.

All of this is atoned though by approach. This is a silly, fun-loving band that never takes themselves too seriously. And by conveying that fun vibe and taking a gutsy, blue collar approach to their music, you not only listen through the flubs, at times you find them endearing. And that “Bizarre Love Triangle” cover? That may be the best song on the album. It and a a cover of Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game” may garner all the attention at first, but the meat of Barn Burner is blazing original honky tonk numbers about drinking, sin, and redemption.

the-give-em-hell-boys-barn-burner Even the songs that start off slow turn fast after the first few bars. Despite some moments of wonkiness, when you listen to the individual parts, the instrumentation on Barn Burner is superb.

There’s some songs and moments where every single person in the band is playing as fast and as hard as they can making a punk-esque blaze. But other times The Give ‘Em Hell Boys lay back and give you moments of surprising compositional brilliance, especially in the two cover songs. They also surprise you with excellently arranged and performed 3-part, and sometimes 4-part harmonies. Trumpet, accordion, and a slew of guest players give Barn Burner a fleshed sound, and in a few songs like “Play Hank Williams At My Funeral” I can hear a slight Acadian influence in the music.

I know I called some of the sloppiness on this album endearing, but what really intrigues me about the Give ‘Em Hell Boys is what they could become if they got just a tad sharper. Everything here is in place: the writing, the singing, the playing and the approach. This is one of those prototypical first albums that speaks to tremendous potential. What’s creating the parity in the “punk gone country” world is so many of the bands are taking the same dark approach. The Give ‘Em Hell Boys have a dark streak too, but they do it with a sly grin, yet don’t cross that line into hipster-ific sarcasm either. It’s the Jason & The Scorchers approach, but with more players and more twang for a full, more country sound.

I really enjoy listening to Barn Burner, and really excited to hear what The Give ‘Em Hell Boys have to offer in the future. Until then, I will be wearing my copy out.

1 3/4 of 2 guns up.
- Saving Country Music

I usually hate country music. There, I said it. To be more specific and less crass, I normally have a great disdain for the culture surrounding the majority of country music and I’m usually just apathetic towards the music. There is always an exception to the rule however and on a local scale, that exception is The Give ‘Em Hell Boys.

The Give ‘Em Hell Boys bring to the table a great blend of country music and punk rock attitudes. One aspect of country that I’ve always loved, is the heartfelt song writing and The Give ‘Em Hell Boys have this in spades, with their latest track “Forsaken” being an excellent example of this. Give ‘Em Hell Boys are also unafraid to honor the tradition that their music is rooted in. Hank Williams was the Woody Guthrie of country music and in case you didn’t know Woody Guthrie is the fucking shit so the fact that Give ‘Em Hell Boys openly honor Mr. Williams is pretty great, especially considering that the majority of bands never take the time to learn where the music they play comes from.

I often hear people talking about how Edmonton is on the verge of being put on the map for its underground music and if that prophecy comes to fruition, it will be in large part due to bands like The Give ‘Em Hell Boys. They are uncompromising in their approach to their art, they give respect where respect is due, they play their asses off every single time they set foot on a stage and they are all kind folks who I’m sure will serve as great ambassadors of the Edmonton music community wherever they go. If you’ve never heard of The Give ‘Em Hell Boys, check the links below and if you already love the Give ‘Em Hell Boys, keep supporting them because they deserve it.
- Where's Ernie?

I usually hate country music. There, I said it. To be more specific and less crass, I normally have a great disdain for the culture surrounding the majority of country music and I’m usually just apathetic towards the music. There is always an exception to the rule however and on a local scale, that exception is The Give ‘Em Hell Boys.

The Give ‘Em Hell Boys bring to the table a great blend of country music and punk rock attitudes. One aspect of country that I’ve always loved, is the heartfelt song writing and The Give ‘Em Hell Boys have this in spades, with their latest track “Forsaken” being an excellent example of this. Give ‘Em Hell Boys are also unafraid to honor the tradition that their music is rooted in. Hank Williams was the Woody Guthrie of country music and in case you didn’t know Woody Guthrie is the fucking shit so the fact that Give ‘Em Hell Boys openly honor Mr. Williams is pretty great, especially considering that the majority of bands never take the time to learn where the music they play comes from.

I often hear people talking about how Edmonton is on the verge of being put on the map for its underground music and if that prophecy comes to fruition, it will be in large part due to bands like The Give ‘Em Hell Boys. They are uncompromising in their approach to their art, they give respect where respect is due, they play their asses off every single time they set foot on a stage and they are all kind folks who I’m sure will serve as great ambassadors of the Edmonton music community wherever they go. If you’ve never heard of The Give ‘Em Hell Boys, check the links below and if you already love the Give ‘Em Hell Boys, keep supporting them because they deserve it.
- Where's Ernie?

New Order‘s ’80s club sandwich, Bizarre Love Triangle, is one of my Top 100 songs OF ALL TIME. Ergo, one of my favourite covers is The Give ‘Em Hell Boys‘ country-punk cover of BLT, which is now available on the local band’s new LP, Barn Burner.

The four Hell Boys — and one gal — will be releasing the 14-track album on Thursday, Aug. 2 at The ARTery, 9535 Jasper Avenue. The Cavalry and James Renton of Fire Next Time will open. Tickets are $10 at the door.

Barn Burner also features a blazing cover of Chris Isaak‘s Wicked Game and 12 original cuts about drinking, dames and death, including Me & The Whiskey, Gypsy Woman, Play Hank Williams At My Funeral, and the banjo bonanza, Bad Bad Man. - Edmoton Journal

New Order‘s ’80s club sandwich, Bizarre Love Triangle, is one of my Top 100 songs OF ALL TIME. Ergo, one of my favourite covers is The Give ‘Em Hell Boys‘ country-punk cover of BLT, which is now available on the local band’s new LP, Barn Burner.

The four Hell Boys — and one gal — will be releasing the 14-track album on Thursday, Aug. 2 at The ARTery, 9535 Jasper Avenue. The Cavalry and James Renton of Fire Next Time will open. Tickets are $10 at the door.

Barn Burner also features a blazing cover of Chris Isaak‘s Wicked Game and 12 original cuts about drinking, dames and death, including Me & The Whiskey, Gypsy Woman, Play Hank Williams At My Funeral, and the banjo bonanza, Bad Bad Man. - Edmoton Journal

Barn Burner
The Give ‘Em Hell Boys
Independent
giveemhellboys.com

The title of this album, Barn Burner, is no quaint cliché. The Give ‘Em Hell Boys appear to mean it literally. There is fire from the get go from this high energy floor stomping country/bluegrass quintet.

The band members are: Quinn “San Quentin” Clark, Charles “Reverend Charlie Scream” Biddiscombe, Brayton “Rooster” Farmer, Lindsay “Bootsy Cline” Thompson, and Keegan “Doc” Proctor. And I think these may be my favourite stage names to date.

Standout tracks include North Saskatchewan Blues (which I’m sure was my undiagnosed suffering from several years ago), Come Lately (wherein they employ mariachi mood-setting trumpets) and Wicked Game, in no small part because I lost my Chris Isaak cassette, but also because they turn a heart wrenching ballad into a rollicking gallop.

Even though this album is a few years old, it came to our attention after the Boys did a mini tour of BC this fall, and it’s a worthwhile addition to your dance party rotation. If you see the Give ‘Em Hell Boys on the marquée you may as well leave the high heels at home. Oh, and the attitude, and the fancy drinks.

LV Nash - BC Musician Magazine