Introduction: Mad Ones from Canada
Music for your good times and bad, Mad Ones have been fortunate to play weird gigs all over the world from Serbian raves to roller rinks in Alberta, they play their own specific and ever evolving version of rock n roll. Count on memorable live shows and finely-crafted studio albums from this Toronto based 3-piece featuring Andrew DeVillers (vocals/guitar), Russ Fernandes (bass/vocals) and Jesse L. Bellon (drums/vocals).Last Forever, the band’s fourth studio album is out now on all digital streaming platforms via Fortune Stellar Records.
Interview with Andrew from Mad Ones:
The last few years have been hard for the band. Who helped you through the valleys? The last few years have been hard on everyone. We are not alone and definitely empathize with anyone else who lost a loved one during this strange time.For us, losing our dear friend and bandmate of the past 5 years, Adam Balsam, last October was extremely hard, just as it was looking like we could resume touring and release the new record.Mad Ones’ Russ Fernandes and I have been leaning on each other, as always and newcomer Jesse L. Bellon has brought a lot of levity and friendship at the most crucial time. My wife Shiloh Harrison of the band HotKid was been a complete rock and the musical community surrounding our Fortune Stellar Records Label have been incredible, especially José Contreras of By Divine Right who is helping produce our new record. Was it always clear to you that you wanted to continue the band? I can’t even remember if it was a conscious decision, we stumbled numbly into the booking commitments that were already planned, and the album was already coming out so we felt like we had to do something to honour all the hard work Adam, Russ and I had put into the record…but quickly we realized that performing and writing new material was some of the only peace we were finding, which made continuing a necessity. In Canada the distances are very long. How do the tours there work for you?Yes they are a little insane, in North America in general. We have learned to sometimes book tour dates around festivals when possible and do things like fly to the other end of the country then do stuff in neighbouring provinces as opposed to driving the whole stretch. Focusing on certain regions at different times of the year is key as well. In the early days of the band we drove 28 hrs straight to play in Austin, Texas…have I mentioned that we love playing in Europe?! In Europe you have made a name for yourselves in the meantime. How many EU tours will you play this year? We will hit 6 EU countries this fall supporting Mad Ones “Last Forever” LP. Then we hope to be back next year twice on the next album, revisiting the places in central and eastern EU that have been so great to us and then come back and try some more stuff in western EU and UK that we haven’t done yet. You have collaborated with Eamon McGrath. How do you know each other? I am a big fan of Eamon’s music and work ethic. We have been friends since 2016 when he first started booking Mad Ones in EU. We have a lot in common, he has helped book a bunch of great bands and I run a record label and book tours as well. So it’s always great when we get to talk about recent successes or challenges we might be facing. Musically, Adam had been drumming with Eamon and I’m glad they got to work together before he passed. Do you have any regrets? Our 3rd album was actually called “Regretless” hahah! Maybe I have a few, but then again maybe too few to mention… What are you looking forward to? It feels like everything has taken on more gravity and levity simultaneously… I’m looking forward to the future and excited for each and every upcoming show and any chance to play or record. Sept. 24 - Feldbach, Austria - Glam Sept. 25 - Kecskemét, Hungary - Kilele Music Club Sept. 26 - Budapest, Hungary - S8 Underground Club Sept. 27 - Ljubljana, Slovenia - Prulcek Sept. 28 - Salzburg, Austria - Narrencastl Sept. 29 - Dortmund, Germany - Subrosa Sept. 30 - Stuhr, Germany - Vereinsheim TV Stuhr Oct. 1 - Brussels, Belgium - Rock Classic Bar Oct. 2 - Antwerp, Belgium - Borger Bottles Oct. 3 - Mannheim, Germany - Kurzbar Oct. 5 - Berlin, Germany - Wild At Heart Oct. 7 - Klagenfurt, Austria - Das Wohnzimmer Oct. 8 - Prague, Czech Republic - Cafe Na Pul Cesty
