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 before its official release on July 21st via its premiere on New Noise Magazine HERE.
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 will be available 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.
Digital pre-save (Spotify, Bandcamp) – Linktr.ee/hardballbc
Lyric video – “Worried As Shit” – https://youtu.be/rza3NATHCsk
