THE WILD! at The Mod Club in Toronto, Ontario – 6 June 2017
Photo and Review by DeadFly Media
I begin this professional critique with the following statement; “Fuckin’ A” that was fun!
I was introduced to The Wild! last year by my friend Chris, to whom I refer as Professor Creepy. No reflection on him. He’s awesome. He just loves horror films! He lives in Helsinki, Finland and has been responsible for much of my music education. He often sends me videos on Facebook with a “You’re gonna love this” message. He’s usually right. He sent me “Roadhouse”. The video is filled with classic components; tattooed bad boys, smokes, booze, hot chicks, guns and just general goofing around and partying. It is the perfect accompaniment to a sound that is punk, blues, southern rock ‘n roll and 80s influenced metal all rolled up into one. God Bless America.
Except that they are fellow Canucks! The God Damn Wild Boys (GxDxWxB) hail from Kelowna B.C., Canada! Comprised of band members Dylan Villain – lead guitar & vocals, The Kid – rhythm guitar, Lucas ‘Boozus’ – bass & vocals, and Reese Lightning – drums. They “… believe in music with conviction. THE WILD! is a mixture of what the blues feels like, rock’n’roll sounds like, and punk-rock smells like.”
They are paying their dues. The white van taking them across Canada broke down in Manitoba on their way east. Dylan’s Uncle Norman (who just had heart surgery!) saved the day and got them to Winnipeg to get a rental. And the band played on…
I walked in to The Mod Club on a rainy Tuesday, June 6th, and was met by a sea of plaid shirts, baseball caps, some toques and a lot of impressive mountain men beards! The Wild! was 1 of 3 opening bands for CKY, and the band that I came to see.
They swaggered on to the stage and launched right in to “RoadHouse,” which immediately had fists pumping in the air and heads banging along to it. Quick mention of the “fucking van” and that it did not stop their determination to reach Toronto, was well received by the crowd as they launched into “Livin’ Free”.
“Ready to Roll” is a particularly catchy tune; a combo Bullet Boys and Jackyll. Six months after its release, it is still on heavy rotation around here! It sounds familiar and fresh all at once.
Bravado, camaraderie and audience interaction remained consistent and strong right through to the last song, the fast-paced, debauched “Party ‘Til You’re Dead”. (Complete set list below)
What elevated this gig from perhaps a stereotypical or run of the mill show to a killer one, was the genuine enjoyment that just exploded from the stage. These guys love what they do and you can feel it. They’re there to have a good time and they want us to have a good time right alongside them. This was a full-on classic rock ‘n roll show, replete with synchronized guitar choreography, standing on monitors, egging the crowd on with “Come on motherfuckers, make some fucking noise”, Toronto mentioned 50 times, an impressive beer funnel drink-off between Boozus and the Kid, poses, guitar/drum faces; the whole shebang.
I like to get feedback from our photographer as he is a prog rock guy and does not know some of the bands that we are seeing these days. “Great energy” was his short but widely grinning reply when asked what he thought after their set.
The Wild! is touring their newest CD, Wild At Heart, with a bunch of different bands through July. Go see them. Support live music. Buy some merch because they have badass t-shirts and CDs. Even under normal circumstances bands rely on those sales to get by. Imagine having to cover the added expense of a shot transmission and a replacement rental?! Follow them online (FB in particular) – they post videos and behind the scenes stuff! Go have a fun, balls out night. Go Wild!
http://www.thewildrocknroll.com/
Setlist
- Roadhouse
- Livin’ Free
- Ready to Roll
- Banger
- Deuces
- Slow Burn
- Rattlesnake Shake
- What About You?
- Six Hundred Sixty Six
- Party ‘Til You’re Dead
