It's been two years since North Bay-based band Break The Trend released their three-song EP Talk is Cheap. In that time, bass player Pat Pharand left but they've continued to record music. On September 8th the band released their first full-length album, Casualties and we've been listening to it all week.
Before we dive into the music I wanted to quickly note how much I liked the cover art. Fortin Images has created a moody, dystopian eye-catching cover which is beautiful and disturbing at the same time. The amazing orange colour paired with the smoky gas masked clad individual is pretty memorable.
Break The Trend, Casualties Tracklist
With eight tracks, Casualties comes in at just under 33 minutes and takes us through an emotional journey of survival, betrayal, addiction and more. My favourite tracks are Fight Your Reality and Fight Another Day, Cocaine and Hey Darlin'.
Finishing the record with the song, Hey Darlin', a previously released track, was a great idea. It's an energetic, positive, upbeat party track to end the album and it's already grabbed the band some radio play. It's the story of attraction, the dances we do when something is new and the promise of something to come. It's got great guitars and a super catchy chorus.
Overall I like it, it's got a positive message to keep going, the lyrics are relatable and it makes me want to move my head along while I'm listening. All good things.
Break The Trend are John Fournier on lead vocals and guitar, Alex Lajambe on percussion and vocals and Lucas Mullins on lead guitar. The guys have spent some time in many of our favourite Toronto haunts like The Horseshoe Tavern, The Bovine and Lee's Palace where they'll be performing on September 21st - it's $7.00 at the door.
