HARDBALL Kicks Off Western Canadian Tour (BC, AB) + Out Now! Explosive Debut S/T Album Will Ignite A Grunge Revolution
Tour Dates:
Aug 4 - Vancouver, BC - Astoria - w/ Paul is Dead
Aug 5 – Squamish, BC – Peckinpah
Aug 9 – Nelson, BC – Kootenay Co-op Radio – w/ The Tarholes
Aug 10 – Edmonton, AB – The Buckingham – w/ Take Sides, Pizza Bath and Umi Yokai
Aug 11 – Calgary, AB – Modern Love – w/ Pizza Bath, Cope and Wallpaper
Aug 12 – Oliver, BC – Firehall Brewing - Fantastic Firehall Festival
Aug 26 – Salmo, BC – Hogkegger Fest w/ Rad Dog
Back standing: Jeremy Head (Drums), Front L-R: Jamie Black (Bass), Scott Budgie (Guitar/Vocals), Photo Credit - by Kaila Hald
Vancouver’s Hardball is ready to take you on a grunge journey of dirty riffs and speedy shredding with their debut self-titled album, which is now streaming in full at the following links:
Spotify - https://sptfy.com/Oz8v
Bandcamp - https://hardball.bandcamp.com/album/hardball
Lyric video - “Worried As Shit” - https://youtu.be/rza3NATHCsk
The ten tracks deliver a heavier, punkier version of modern grunge with huge-sounding drums, and over-the-top heavy, layered guitars. Lyrically, vocalist/guitarist Scott Budgie says it helps him to think of the most distressed or agitated he’s ever felt in his life and channels those feelings of utter frustration, and confusion into his writing. There’s often some absurdity in there too as he thinks laughing at things that are too terrible to face is a coping mechanism for a lot of people. Artistically, the album covers a lot of different, but related themes. In Budgie’s mind, it’s a concept album, but it’s admittedly the most incoherent concept album of all time. It’s a deep dive into his own psyche, unturning all the different stones that maybe should have been left alone, all the while worrying about being too self-indulgent in the process. He goes on to comment on the release:
“We are really excited to finally get this album in people’s hands. There have been terrible periods of development hell and sessions of re-tracking the same parts over and over trying to get the vibe just right. It’s been a long, and at times aggravating process to get it to where we’re truly happy with it. We’re all perfectionists, especially Jeremy, who acted like the in-band producer throughout most of the process. I feel as though we created something innovative and contemporary while still honouring our heroes from the ‘90s alternative rock and ‘80s punk scenes. We’re having our cake and eating it too.”
Hardball is comprised of former Poles frontman and Vancouver local Scott Budgie, as well as Okanagan residents, drummer Jeremy Head also of The Motion Picture, and bassist Jamie Black. The album is a joint production between recording engineer Matt Roach of Rain City Recorders in Vancouver, BC (Baptists, Misery Signals, Comeback Kid) and mix engineer Felix Fung of Little Red Sounds in New Westminster, BC (Needles//Pins, Girlfriends and Boyfriends, Mode Moderne). Every Song was mixed by Felix Fung at Little Red Sounds, except for track 9. I/O, which was mixed by Jeff Black at Black Note Productions.
The self-titled album was released on July 21st, 2023 on all major streaming platforms via Distrokid, as a digital download through Bandcamp, and directly from the band on 12” LP, and compact disc. It is recommended for fans of Hüsker Dü, Flipper, and The Melvins.
Track Listing:
1. Just A Tree (3:55)
2. Worried As Shit (2:21)
3. NRA (2:33)
4. In The Mail (4:16)
5. Me And You (2:47)
6. Chili (5:55)
7. Talk To Me (5:25)
8. Ian’s Song (2:36)
9. I/O (3:18)
10. Open Air (9:47)
Album Length: 42:57
Album Recording and Live Band Lineup:
Scott Budgie - Vocals, guitars
Jeremy Head - Drums, guitars, synth, backing vocals
Jamie Black - Bass, backing vocals
More info: Facebook.com/hardballmusic | Instagram.com/hardballbc
"Punishingly heavy and powerful, the band members go absolutely musically berserk on this one, throwing everything they’ve got against the wall, with the song’s intensity matching the weight of its message. Gun control is an issue we hear about in the news virtually every day. HARDBALL have stepped up to the plate here with a representation of the anger many of us feel about these societal challenges." - V13
"Vancouver’s Hardball are sharing their self-titled full-length, which will take you through the grunge journey of dirty riffs and speedy shredding." - New Noise Magzine
"The more I listen to this album the more I fall in love with it. I was a huge Nirvana fan in my youth and this scratches that itch and then some. It has elements of all three of their albums whole also bringing plenty of their own sound and creativity to things. There isn’t a bad track on the album and I’d recommend it to anyone! 9.5/10" - Overtone Magazine
"if you do like Nirvana – then you might have a new CD to purchase!... the opener ”Just A Tree” in true grunge mode. If you on the other hand take ”Me And you” we’re in for more of a party hard rocker with a slight punk vibe. Still some grunge in it, maybe mainly for the lead vocal of Scott Budgie who sounds very much like Kurt Cobain at times. This band is furthermore more interesting to listen to, musically, compared to Nirvana. Hear the hard-working guitar playing in ”Worried As Shit” for example. Same in the quite grungy ”Talk To Me” with good variation between intense and softer parts, plus nice riffing guitars. All in all, yes: quite grunge oriented but still more than that. Well worth checking out if you’re into this type of music." - Melodic.net
"HARDBALL is a trio from Vancouver that tries to revive this period through realistic, harsh songs and a thick and hard sound. Their first album is without doubt the most beautiful tribute to the nineties scene that we have been able to listen to for a very long time" - Metal News Fr
"HARDBALL brings to their music, a claw, a rather distressed and tortured atmosphere. And then around the compositions, something struck me: the emotion. It is palpable all the way, feels right away, because it feels like Scott is literally living this music. Any grunge or nostalgic fan of this era should have an ear, because this album is inspired." - Olivier No Limit - Soil Chronicles
"The riffs are sharp, the bass pumps the blood to the most inaccessible parts of the body and the drumming is truly outstanding. Above all, Hardball brings a sound that sounds quite melancholic and – typically grunge – is an indictment for a lot of things in the world that are firmly out of whack. Whether there is still an audience waiting for a grunge band, we cannot say for sure, although we assume that good music always finds a way. And to be honest, we are pleasantly surprised by this debut album." - Musika
