Ultimate Interviews

Ultimate Interviews

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Howzat - Rough Cutz - Album Review

Photo Courtesy of Howzat
1. Haze
2. Storm
3. House of Love
4. Catching You
5. Stand Up (F.T.B.)
©2016

Produced by Rainer Wiechmann & Howzat
Recorded & Mixed at Mole Studios London, ON. Canada
Mastering by Siegfried Meier, Beach Road Mastering
All Songs Written by Kevin Rudy & Greigg Fraser

Purchase CD 






Kevin - Photo Courtesy of Howzat




Kevin Rudy (Vocals), Dave Buland (Drums/Vocals), Greigg Fraser (Guitar/Vocals) and Dale Penny (Drums/Vocals) are London's very ownHowzat

The five track EP was released this past April and since then it's been garnering positive reviews from fans and local radio stations alike.

The songs were written by vocalist Kevin and guitarist Greigg. Listening to the disc is essentially a tease of what Howzat is about and what they have to offer.

​By the time you get to track five, you want to hear more. I found myself hitting repeat on numerous occasions to listen to the songs again.

Each of them have extensive musical backgrounds. Picking up instruments when they were just teenagers. The dedication and hard work as paid off, which is evident with the release of their first album.

The influences vary between bandmembers, as do their musical resumes.


Greigg - Photo Courtesy of Howzat
Kevin started Howzat back in 1999, as an acoustic act with guitarist Greigg Fraser. A few years later, in 2013, they decided to plug in and kick out pure rock and roll that they love to play.

Greigg is no stranger when it comes to performing. He's had the opportunity to
 rub shoulders with some of Canada's greats such as Rush, Kim Mitchell, Rik Emmett and more.

Dale currently plays with two other original bands outside of Howzat. He's also performed in tribute bands honouring Rod Stewart, Black Sabbath and Bryan Adams.

Dave studied music in his native land France, and toured throughout Europe before moving to Toronto in 2004. He keeps busy performing with various bands and getting involved in other projects.

Dale - Photo Courtesy of Howzat
To find out more about Howzat, you can read full biographies on their website HERE

With this much star power, it's undeniable that you're going to hear something special from this band. With that, let's get to the cd shall we?

'Rough Cutz' kicks off with 'Haze'. Right from the get go, it's a great rock and roll tune. If anything, it's an inkling of what its fellow trackmates are going to sound like.

It has everything you want in an album opener. Rock solid drums, heavy bass, pure guitar, and clean, straightforward lyrics.

​Kevin, Greigg, Dale and Dave come together as one solid band, with each of their individual talents shining through a wonderfully produced track.


The second song off the EP is 'Storm'. The accompanying video begins with the band performing the song in what appears to be an auto junkyard. After the first chorus, you find them on stage with full lighting and crowd participation. Most likely what a typical Howzat show would be like.

The song is catchy and all around a great rock tune. 

Recently it reached #4 on Q108 Kingston Radio Top 25 chart of Indie Artists.


Watch video for 'Storm'.

Following 'Storm', is 'House of Love'. It's also their newest video. 

A visually fun video. The silhouettes of the band on a colourful background along with the lyrics and animations appearing throughout the song.


Watch video for 'House of Love'.
The infectious flow of the song is thanks to the interplay between Greigg's catchy guitar riff and Kevin's clean vocals. The guitar solo is solid with the bass and drums keeping everything in line.

Dave - Photo Courtesy of Howzat
The EP continues with more solid rock with the track 'Cathing You'. It would be a great song to hear them perform live. You can hear the chemistry between the bandmembers, and it's evident that they clearly are enjoying themselves and having fun. Would be the right sort of song to hear on mainstream radio.

The disc ends as great as it began. 'Stand Up (F.T.B.)' closes out their debut album. The track is a little heavier than its predecessor. It consists of guitar grunge sounds mingling with stabs of  bass and drums. Rounded off with the familiar strong vocals by Kevin.

The Howzat ride comes to an end after 'Stand Up (F.T.B)', but fortunately for YouTube you can find a treasure trove of live videos, including the band doing covers by Iggy Pop, Alice Cooper, Doucette and Kings of Leon to name a few.
For a debut album it contains everything you want as a music lover. Blistering guitars, thundering bass and drums and confident, yet not cocky, vocals. If you're a fan of AC/DC, Def Leppard, Van Halen, Poison, Skid Row,  or the dozen other bands from that genre, you're bound to enjoy Howzat, I highly recommend listening to 'Rough Cutz' and checking them out live when you can.
As a bonus, on Howzat's Official YouTube channel, I found a track that unfortunately is not on this disc. 'Smile'. Judging from the upload date, it's a few years old, but it shows a softer, acoustic side of Howzat that is easily appreciated. The guitars and vocals are gentle, a 'from the heart' song that instantly drew me in and has since become a favourite as well.​

I had a great time listening to this album and hoping to get the opportunity in the near future to see them live, which will be followed by a review. 
Kevin Rudy, Dave Buland, Greigg Fraser, Dale Penny
Photo Courtesy of Howzat
Howzat is continually touring so be sure to check them out when you can. You can keep up to date on everything Howzat on their social media sites.

Official Howzat Facebook Page
Official Howzat Website
Official Twitter 

To purchase your very own copy of 'Rough Cutz' head on over to Howzat's Official StoreAll photos courtesy of Howzat.

Also Published on Kaoticnotes.com 




Sunday, July 24, 2016

Destroyer - Kiss Tribute

It may have been hotter than hell downtown at Kitchener's City Hall yesterday, but that didn't stop Canada's Longest touring Kiss tribute Destroyer from putting on an amazing show. Despite the sweltering heat, they were all extremely accommodating to the crowd who surrounded them for numerous photo and autograph requests.

The band closed out Kitchener's annual 'Rock and Rumble' event Saturday afternoon. Folks gathered at City Hall for two days to enjoy music, craft beer and food from some amazing food trucks. They were also there to share in the admiration of motorcycles that were on display, as well checking out the tables set up by some local home business owners.

Shortly before 4pm, they took to the stage, for what would be their 1,130th show. Although it was my first time seeing Destroyer, by their second song I was hooked. Destroyer has indisputable passion that it takes to successfully portray the legendary band in all their full costume glory.  

They were there to rock, and despite the extreme heat wreaking havoc on their instruments, occasionally knocking them out of tune, they still gave 100%, making sure to play some of the all time crowd favorites. 


So who are Destroyer? Calling Southern Ontario home, they have toured extensively over the last 22 years.

Ian Kurz shines as the Starchild. His posturing is dead on, not to mention, his appearance, his voice and guitar skills to round off the full package.

The Peterborough native channeled Paul Stanley in all ways. Vocally, Ian did justice to the Kiss songs. Coupled with his guitar playing as well as mannerisms that made you feel like you were seeing Paul himself. 

Ian is no stranger to the live music scene. He's played at some of Toronto's hotspots, like The Opera House & Rockpile, performing his own original material. He's also had an original song on the Top 50 chart. His single 'Linger' knocked out fellow Canadian musicians, Nickelback & Three Days Grace. 

​You can find more of Ian's original music on his official YouTubechannel and Reverbnation page.

​Ian's Official Website can be found HERE



Donning the cat makeup that Peter Criss made famous and the seat behind the drumkit, is Windsor native Michael Chichkan.

Michael did an outstanding job throughout their whole set.

​Besides his talent at drumming, Michael also has a great voice, which was evident during the 1974 track 'Black Diamond' as well as backing vocals for a few other tunes.

It's always refreshing to see a drummer who can deliver that strong, heavy sounding beat, all without flaying arms and over exaggerated showmanship.

Michael looks right at home behind his drumset and was very approachable after the show with many fans who wanted a photo with him and/or autograph.

​During his fourteen years with Destroyer, he has done the Catman justice.


With the eight inch dragon head platforms, studs, chains and leather bat wings, Moe Rotondi's Demon is flawless.  

Complete with tongue wagging, growling vocals, intimidating stares and strolls around the stage, Moe could have easily passed for Gene's double. He also managed to flick as many picks into the crowd as possible, making many kids, and adults smile. 

Moe started Destroyer back in 1993 and has perfected the onstage persona of The Demon. Along with is bandmates they've recreated the icon bands' music and stage shows over the last couple of decades.

At a full Destroyer show, you can expect to see full pyrotechnics, huge Kiss sign and Moe spitting blood.

Last fall, Moe was inducted into the Windsor Music Hall of Fame.  Congratulations to Moe for that honour.



Rounding out Destroyer and stepping into the spacesuit to portray Ace Frehley's Spaceman role, is Michael Moodrey.

Being a huge fan of Frehley's, I was skeptical to see if  he could pull it off. I was instantly impressed with Michael's playing, singing and mannerisms on and off stage.  His guitar solos were spot on, singing was great and movements duplicated Ace's.

At one point, during the anthem 'Rock and Roll All Nite', Michael was down among the crowd, posing for photos all while continuing to play.

Following in the platform footsteps of his bandmates, Michael was extremely generous with his time after the set to meet the crowd.

While he may be the newest member of Destroyer, he is fantastic to watch and listen to.

The setlist ranged from early beginnings of Kiss right up to the title track off 1998's 'Psycho Circus'.

Classics like 'Cold Gin', 'Shout It Out Loud', and 'I Love It Loud' had the crowd pumping fists in the air and singing along.

​ 'Strutter', 'Detroit Rock City', 'Black Diamond', 'I Was Made For Loving You', 'Lick It Up' and 'Rock and Roll All Nite' were also included much to the delight of the crowd.

The only negative thing was that it had to end so shortly after it began. I will definitely be looking forward to checking them out again soon for the full production of a Destroyer show.
Much thanks to Ian, Michael, Moe and Michael for being very friendly, posing for photos with my son, and for putting on an amazing show for us Kitchener fans. See you all again soon!

To view more photos from their show, be sure to check out our Flickr album HERE.
Some videos from show on our YouTube Channel HERE.

To stay up to date on where you can see Destroyer, follow them on Social Media at:
Official Facebook Page
Official Twitter Page
and on their Official Website

Also posted on Kaoticnotes.com