Poor Judgement

op punk is alive and well in Oshawa, Ontario and Poor Judgement makes a strong case for such on their debut EP, The Fallout. Over the course of its five songs, Poor Judgement makes a strong debut that should prove to be an exciting one for fans of punk from the 2000’s.

Opening with the crunching chords of “Running In Circles”, the album starts off with a bang by opening with one of the hardest rocking songs on the album. The sound is driven by power chords, palm muted chugging and semi-rapped vocals creating a song that is both fun and exciting. Quite similarly, “Disarray” follows a similar form but feels a touch darker and heavier while the closing track, “Bittersweet”, uses a similar energy while also embracing a sense of spaciousness, making it among the strongest on the record.

While the fast-paced songs are good, Poor Judgement flex their songwriting skills on “Love Is Blinding Me” and “A Month Ago”. The songs both slow things down and, for the most part, ditch the power chords in favour of ambient guitars. The latter of the two is especially impressive as it builds from a melancholic ballad to a frustrated headbanger in a manner that demonstrates excellent songwriting along with a raw sense of energy that brings the song alive.

While they don’t bring anything new or unexpected to pop punk, Poor Judgement delivers a fun first record. The Fallout is a straight shooter and gives the listener a solid idea as to what the band is all about, making it a very fun record. - Garrod Harris

Oshawa, ON-based pop-punk band, Poor Judgement released their EP, The Fallout earlier this year. Today, we are happy to premiere the official video for “A Month Ago”, which was directed by Trent Vallance. Trent shares,

“The video just kind of happened. Their energy on stage was great and made it flow so perfectly”

Care to introduce yourself to our readers?

What’s up?! We’re Poor Judgement; a four piece pop-punk/alternative band founded in 2016. We’re based out of Oshawa, just outside Toronto, Ontario. We have all have been friends for 10+ years and have been playing music on our own for just as long. It wasn’t until a couple years ago that we decided to bring it all together and start something. In the summer of 2017, we began recording our debut EP titled, The Fallout. It was just released earlier this year on January 20th and we are stoked to finally share a piece of us with everyone. The Fallout is something that comes from pushing past difficult situations in your life or overall “falling out” of situations with people in our lives; it’s something we all experience!

A common question is where our name comes from? So, Poor Judgement actually comes from something we tend to carry as individuals and yes that is, poor judgement. We naturally have an urge to judge based on what we see and hear, rather than what we actually know. We’re all about pushing past negativity in your life and focusing on what matters, and lastly not allowing the opinions of others to stop you from obtaining whatever it is that you want to do in life. What does Poor Judgement mean to you?

Tell us a bit about your music and writing style.

We like to describe our music as in-your-face punk, emotional ballads and relatable- lyrics. Its heavy hitting and upbeat, but we also have that more chill side to us, ya know? When you listen to our tracks you’ll notice we have a lot to say and usually each song tells a story. The story of our EP is essentially a story of the conflict, the decisions, the breakup, the realization and the closure. We write music in hopes that someone will be able to relate to it, just like we do. As for our writing style, I think we’re still trying to figure it out, honestly. Our ideas come from multiple places, whether it starts with a beat, a solid lead riff, or a catchy melody. All of our songs have been written in different ways, but we’re cool with it!

Do you have any upcoming shows? For someone who has yet to see you live, how would you explain your live performance?

We have a couple upcoming shows in our area and the rest are still TBA. We’ll be supporting LETDOWN at The Moustache Club in Oshawa on March 31st and on April 21st we’ll be at the Opera House in Toronto! As for our shows, we love to put on a good one. High energy all the way through and capturing. Energy is everything to us because it feeds through to the crowd. If everyone feels involved and a part of it with us, that’s all that matters. We like to have a good time.

If you were asked to suggest only one of your songs for someone to hear, which would it be?

If we had to choose one of our songs for a new listener to hear, it’d be Bittersweet. It’s the last song off of our EP and by far the most dynamic. It’s got the in-your-face aspect which is seen through a catchy verse melody and a hard-hitting chorus, as well as the emotional side through the chill rolls in the bridge to the soft lyrics and melodies that bring it back up to a killer ending. We feel it’s the type of song that will make you want to go back and hear the full EP!

Canadian Beats is all about Canadian music, so who are your current favourite Canadian bands/ artists?

There are so many amazing Canadian artists and bands that influence us- the list is endless. To start we are huge fans of Alexisonfire, Billy Talent, The Hip, Matt Good, Crown Lands, Dizzy, Finger 11, Three Days Grace, Rarity, The Glorious Sons and so many more upcoming acts. - Jenna Melanson

Poor Judgement is an alternative/punk rock band out of Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. The band consists of four friends that went to school together and have been close ever since. Poor Judgement just released an absolutely killer five track debut EP, The Fallout. The Fallout is filled with upbeat, hard-hitting instrumentals and emotion-filled vocals that accentuate’s Poor Judgement’s potential to make it big in the alternative/punk rock music scene!

As I usually do with most bands/artists that I write about, I had the chance to chat with the members of Poor Judgement. A four piece band, Ryley Robertson (drums vocals), Cameron Smith (bass), Angelo Aivalitois (vocals/rhythm) and James Hack (lead guitar) became friends in school over a decade ago and never looked back. Upon talking with the band, I was given insight into the backstory, the origin of their name, and the details of this debut EP! “It wasn’t til’ after high school that we really started to give it a shot. We’d all played music separately for years but finally brought it all together. Poor Judgement derives from something we all tend to carry as individuals – poor judgement. The natural urge to judge based on what we hear and see, rather than what we actually know. It’s about pushing past those in your life whom don’t promote positivity and to not listen to the ones who judge you and tell you ‘you can’t.’ Poor Judgement is exactly what you think it is.”

The Fallout begins with the fast paced, punk inspired song, “Running in Circles.” The song starts with strong chords and quick drumming that is evident in many punk songs today, making it one of the hardest rock songs of the EP. “Running in Circles”, as well as the rest of the album, touches on personal topics that discuss the ups and downs of life. The song is all about the difficulties of being in a relationship. What will make listeners fall in love with this song is the way that Poor Judgement wrote lyrics that are so relatable and so fun! “So this is it, it’s over now, I’ll pack my bags, and I will get the fuck out, like you told me to, how could I forget, my mind is so confused, my heart is full of regret. How could I not see, you used me like a tool, to fix your problems, how could you be so cruel? You said you loved me, that’s what I heard, but actions speak louder than words!” Sure, the song speaks on a pretty sorrowful topic, but the way Poor Judgement was able to incorporate the upbeat instrumentals makes it an instant fan favorite.

Something I enjoy in particular about The Fallout is that the Poor Judgement put slower, heart-rendering songs in between their hard-hitting punk rock songs. I always get discouraged when a band puts a bunch of fast-paced songs in a row and follow it up with a bunch of slower songs. Poor Judgement kept my attention fully on the music by throwing variety into the EP and changing up the style and flow of each song. “Love is Blinding Me” and “A Month Ago”are two songs that may not be considered “head bangers” but they will surely capture the attention of the crowd. Poor Judgement strayed away from their typical heavy hitting instrumentals and put focus on the melody of the guitar. Both songs start off with instrumentals and vocals filled with passion and emotion and segue into a full band jam session. I can’t help but get a vibe similar to bands like Brand New and Citizen and I love it!

The EP ends with “Bittersweet”, my favorite song on the EP. This song goes back to the heavy instrumentals and powerful chords that are present in “Running in Circles” and “Disarray”. Poor Judgement shows off each of their band members talents on this song. “Bittersweet” is filled with passionate lyrics and face melting instrumentals that highlight just how serious this band is about their music.

When I asked about the EP, the band stated “we tend to describe this EP as a story of the conflict, the breakup, the realization, and the closure. Essentially, The Fallout derives from moving past hard situations and the overall ‘falling out’ of situations with people in our lives. Something we ALL experiences as individuals. This is something we feel everyone will hopefully be able to relate to in some way, whether it be lyrically, emotionally or just for the love of music.” For their debut release, I think Poor Judgement hit the nail on the head in terms of what their goal was. The Fallout perfectly describes the negative situations that many people go through in life while keeping in tone with the fun punk rock that so greatly influenced the band. I can’t wait to hear more from Poor Judgement. Now we just have to get them to play a show in the US!

If you’re a native of Canada, or feel like taking a trip to catch an awesome band perform, Poor Judgement has two shows coming up. Make sure to give the band a follow on all social media platforms and check out their Spotify!




The Horshoe Tavern – Toronto, Canada – March 21st


The Mustache Club with Letdown – Oshawa, Ontario, Canada – March 31st - Dan Acree