CD release show article
May 29 2004
Brett Lambert
Edmonton Sun
When you're in a band called The Casanova Playboys, you'd better be the real deal. So the big question is, are they as big with the ladies as their name would suggest?
"Definitely!" says drummer Zack Action. "When we came up with the name, we had to think of something that would actually reflect the band."
The local band has five members, with Jamie Star on vocals and guitar, Cody Hype on guitar, Nathan Broadway on bass, Williem Vegas on keyboards and Action on drums. Their stage names represent who they are.
"I get things done," says Action. "Im action now, not later!"
"Uh...uh...I really like movies," says Broadway, laughing.
"Vegas works best, it's shiny and slick" says Vegas.
These heartbreakers will be playing Red's tonight for the CD release party of their debut album, Ladies and Gentlemen... Defining their sound is a nearly impossible task, as the album is all over the place, going from ska to punk to metal to emo and others.
"Maybe alternative rock is the easiest," says Broadway.
Despite the fact that these guys are self-proclaimed Casanovas, much of the album's lyrics deal with the many frustrations and heartbreak women bring to their lives.
"There's nothing else to sing about when you're 21," says Star. "In order to become a Casanova, you have to experience rejection.
The next album will be overcoming that and about adoring girls, like Danko Jones or something!"
CD review
May 30 2004
Brett Lambert
Edmonton Sun
Mothers, lock up your daughters - The Casanova Playboys are ready to rock and serenade the ladies at the same time!
The Local rockers had their CD release party at Red's last night for Ladies and Gentlemen ... and if this album is any indication, it should've been one entertaining night. Defining this band's sound is a tough one since the fivesome made a mish-mash of everything in their record collection. The press release says 'Post-grunge with pseudo-emo," but that simply doesn't cut it.
The album opens with Fone, a bouncy ska tinged number, shifts gears towards an aggressive chest-thumper, Around the Way. Later comes the keyboards; these guys love the keyboards just as much as the doors. Then comes the "screamo" where frontman Jamie Star screams about being wronged by the ladies (wait a sec ...s I thought the ladies loved them?).
It's all over the place and that's what makes it a fun listen, but if they were able to find a focus, that could have been the difference between a pretty good album and a great album.
For now, enjoy the mish-mash.
Casanova Playboys article
August 19 2004
Phil Duperron
Vue Weekly
With a name like The Casanova Playboys, you’ve gotta do things big. Being relatively new to Edmonton’s thriving music scene and in a hurry to make a name for themselves, they wanted to host a showcase to draw as much attention as possible. But drummer Zack Action figured just getting a wide range of local talent on the bill wasn’t enough.
Since their keyboardist Williem Vegas (Action’s cousin) lost his mother to cancer a few years ago, they decided to throw a massive fundraiser for The Alberta Cancer Foundation. So two months ago, Action picked up the phone and got to work on the project.
“I’m one of those people that can’t really sit in one place for too long. So I needed something to work on and this seemed really, really cool and it’s gonna be for such a good cause, so why not do it?” says Action.
Not only would they be able to get behind a good cause and get a roomful of people to check them out, but it was a unique opportunity to foster new friendships within the musical community.
“A lot of bands will just form and play for two years and meet everyone that way. I was like, ‘Why don’t I just call everyone?’ It’s such a faster process,” he says.
“It was like a crash course in Sales 101 and marketing because I was just cold-calling people and trying to explain it to them.”
With the venue and bands gladly on board: there was only one more thing Action needed to make his dream into reality—cold hard cash. You see, along with a gig featuring 10 local acts, Action wanted to put together Edmonton Rocks Against Cancer, a compilation CD featuring those acts and two more to boot, so he hit up local businesses like Bioware and Pipeline Surf Co. to cover the pressing costs.
“The best part about is there’s major diversity on it,” says Action. “It’s gonna be a really good introduction to the Edmonton music scene if you’ve never seen any of these acts.”
Edmonton Rocks Against Cancer • with At Arms Length, Chick Maggot, Difinity, Lost Action Heroes, The Phi Effect, Portal, Sierra, Stereo Therapy, Uncle Outrage, and The Casanova Playboys • Red’s • Sat, Aug 21 • 4pm (all ages)
CD review
August 26 2004
Dave Alexander
See Magazine
Free advice to anyone looking to "make it" in the music biz: if you want to inspire excitement about your band, never describe its sound as "something vaguely post-grunge and pseudo emo rock."
Edmonton five-piece The Casanova Playboys are more ambitious than this murky blurb from their website. They write catchy songs that bounce through different genres that are anchored in guitar-driven rock. There are indeed shades of grunge and emo, but there's also pop-punk, ska, even hard rock. The musicianship is there, the songs are layered, and the production by Vancouverite Jonathan Fluevog (presumably the son of shoe God John Fluevog) brings out the hooks.
The problem is that the group lacks identity. Yes, of course your music can't be categorized, maaaan, but it needs focus. The Playboys don't sound as playful as the name implies, and the album cover and title don't help solve the identity crisis, unfortunately. Despite the adjectival "vaguely" and "pseudo," though, the songwriting has potential. Pick one of those voices in your collective heads and lock it down,lover boys.
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