The Perpetrators

Playing the blues is about paying your dues and there's no question the members of the Perpetrators are paid up in full.
the Winnipeg-based trio belts out a muscular form of the genre that, over the course of a tune or two, gives a collective nod to both Hound Dog Taylor and John Lee Hooker, the blues rock attack of a vintage British blues band a al Cream and the nasty delivery of a young Johnny Winter.
In the midst of pulling a five-nighter at Blues on Whyte, that combination of grit and groove was more than enough to keep a sizeable crowd on side for at least two sets Wednesday.
Tight and commited to creating acound of their own, guitarist/vocalist Jason Nowicki, drummer/singer Scotty Hills and bassist Ryan Menard have been pounding it out as the Perpetrators for three years now. Before putting this unit together, each member cut his teeth by taking directions and learning licks from a few veteran western Canadian bluesmen.
"Jason and I used to sit in the original Times Change blues club in Winnipeg listening to Big Dave McLean when we were fifteen years old," says Menard who lived in Edmonton in the late '90's when he did a two-year stint with the Rockin' Highliners.
"We'd order a pop and split a plate of fries and hear three sets until two in the morning. The waitress wasn't making anything off of us."
Although not necessarily together on the same tours, the three players later worked with west coast bluesman Nigel Mack, who could at times offer an eager young musican 80 shows in 90 nights.
By late 2000, Nowicki and Menard knew it was time to do their own thing. After putting out the call for Hills, who was living in Saskatoon, the group began making quick inroads and lasting impressions around the prairie blues circuit.
Today, the band can insert 20 original tunes into a three-night set. Many are found on the Perpetrators' self-titled debut from 2003 and a handful will appear on a followup album to be released this fall.
The sentimental lyrics of "One Year Ago," which are set on buzz-saw guitar effects, and "Garmonbozia", which sounds as though George Thorogood was sitting in with the North Mississippi All-Stars, were two originals that won hearty rounds of applause.
Dipping into the blues songbook for the ages, the Perpetrators also tackled and pinned a number of classics including "What'd I Say" and "Rock Me Baby."
"Things are going our way, we've got lots of festival work this summer but the one show we're really looking forward to is backing Howlin' Wolf's guitarist, Hubert Sumlin at the Winnipeg Jazz Festival," said Menard. With his bandmates, he backed Big Dave McLean on his latest recording, "Blues from the middle."
The Perpetrators play Blues on Whyte through Saturday.
- May 14, 2004 - Edmonton Journal

The Perpetrators
Tow Truck
By David Barnard for Exclaim! Magazine
"From Winnipeg, this three-piece house wreckin’ unit are Canada’s strongest contender to join the many bands currently lumped onto the alt-blues bandwagon. In truth though, the Perpetrators have more in common with older groups like the Flaming Groovies or the Pretty Things, mixing up their sound with blues, country, surf instrumentals, garage punk and doses of psychedelic funk and electronic experimentation. Tow Truck, their third self-released CD, is the first to really capture the variety and quality of the Perps’ live show. Famous for their instrumental boogies, they throw a curveball right away, leading off with a surf instrumental Link Wray would have been proud of. The songs are deceptively clever tales about the simple things in life: relationships, life on the road and getting loaded. Guitarist J. “Howik” Nowicki is a distinctive vocalist, with a strong tone of irony pervading his delivery. Nothing gets too serious as a result. Newest member Chris “MAMA” Bauer (drums) adds a punk-ish thump at times, such as on the furious “You’re Gonna Kill Me” and the goofy “Happy Friday.” Ryan Menard holds down the bottom end; he’s an economical player that mainly stays out of the way while providing the recording with its rhythmic thrust. Junior Kimbrough would be proud to know his North Mississippi trance blues have found a new home in Winnipeg. The only thing topping this CD would be to experience them live. (Independent) "


- Exclaim! Magazine

"A perpetrator is a doer, and The Perpetrators, well, they do it all. While first and foremost a bad-ass boozy blues disc, The Perp's Tow Truck is a heavy duty rig that can also pack the punk, carry the country, and ride the rock. The trio's affinity for diversity is evident right from the get-go, starting off surfer-style with The Z-Rays Cured My Hangover and moving into the AC/DC-like Moving Right Along. From there The Perps blast through garage rock-a-rolla (You're Gonna Kill Me), crazy cool cow-punk (R. Cowboy), straight-up country (Honeypie) and greasy grunge (Tow Truck). Lesser bands might drop the ball juggling this many sounds, but the Perps make sensible chaos. Josco, an old tymey tribute to the Times Change(d) and its top-dog, sounds incredibly comfortable sitting next to the ferocious fuzz-rock of Toe Stub. Bang your head and clap your hands."

A+

-Jared Story, Uptown Magazine, August 2007 - Uptown Magazine

Press Release : The Perpetrators “Tow Truck” CD Release Tour

The Perpetrators spent the heart of a Manitoba winter in their favorite place to be at such a time – in Bedside Studio recording “Tow Truck,” the follow-up to the Western Canadian Music Award-winning and Juno and Maple Blues nominated, “the gas and the clutch.” As summer draws near, the band is in its other favorite place - on the road, putting on the best show they can for whoever’s there.

Eager to document their recent musical growth spurt, July will see the boys recording a live album at ground zero for Winnipeg’s thriving roots music scene, Times Change(d) High & Lonesome Club. The second half of the year takes them across Canada (again) and over the pond for their second European tour.
- The Perpetrators

The Perpetrators "the gas and the clutch"

Rating: A


"After releasing a rockin' debut that wouldn't have
been out of place on the Fat Possum label (in fact,
it's arguably better than most of that imprint's new
signings), the Perps hit the road hard, stopping just
long enough to record this outing in a few quick
sessions at Bedside. The result is a bluesier effort
that heralds both the band's past and its present. The
past in the low-down, gutbucket sensibilities these
guys have honed in years of playing, the present in
that Jason Nowicki, Scotty Hills and Ryan Menard are
now at the height of their powers. They don't just
love this music, they live it."


- - John Kendle, Uptown Magazine

April 14th, 2007

WINNIPEG FREE PRESS "TOW TRUCK" CD REVIEW BY ROB WILLIAMS

Anyone who has seen a Perpetrators live show knows the local trio isn't strictly a blues band. Oh sure, they can bash those familiar 12 bars into the ground, but they can also duke it out with the best rock bands around.

They take the roller-coaster frenzy of their live show and channel in into their third album, kicking things off with a surf-rock instrumental and ending with a frantic jam. In between, vocalist-guitarist Jason Nowicki, bassist Ryan Menard and drummer Chris Bauer dabble in country-blues (Honeypie), fuzzed-out garage (You're Gonna Kill Me), avant-psychedelia (Toe Stub), back-porch country (Josco) and even some distorted boogie-woogie (Happy Friday).

Their experimentaion with sounds and genres doesn't mean the end of the kind of music for which they are best known. Blues remains the foundation of much of the material, especially on tracks like I Can't See, Baltimore, Movin' Right Along and Call Me.

Tow Truck finds the Juno-nominated group moving from blues-rockers to blues-adventurers, which ain't no crime at all. See for yourself tonight and tomorrow when they release the album at Times Change(d).

(4 1/2 Stars) - Winnipeg Free Press

VUE "TOW TRUCK" CD REVIEW BY EDEN MUNRO

The Perpetrators' third album opens wide up with the crazy surf-riffing of "The Z-Rays Cured My Hangover." It's surf music, all right, but the kind of out-of-control soundtrack that you'd expect to accompany a dangerous ride through shark-infested waters while you're dripping blood. The disc closes tight at the end with the title track, "Tow Truck," a grimy, grungy, grease-covered groove that creaks and groans while the three Perps scream until you can practically hear their vocal cords ripping and tearing.

The sonic landscape between those two bookends veers from the sort of roadhouse blues that usually comes from a stage protected by a chain link fence kind of joint to the pedal-to-the-metal stomp of "You're Gonna Kill Me" to the old school country of "Josco" to the crazy, carnival-rodeo sounds of "R Cowboy" to the apocalyptic wonderland of "Woman of My Dreams."

There's a lot of ground covered on Tow Truck, and the album is a fine example of just how good the blues can be when the players are pushing and pulling the music, stirring it up constantly to keep it from stagnating. It's nice to hear a band that continues to evolve naturally instead of chasing the latest musical fad. The Perpetrators do what they do not because it's the cool thing, but because that's who they are. And that's what makes them so damn cool.

eden@vueweekly.com - Vue Weekly

Big Dave Mclean's 'Blues from the Middle', on Stony Plain, featured his electric backing band in a setting that perfectly captured the Muddy Waters style that McLean works so well. On their own, this cd shows a re-constituted Perpetrators trio that is one of the hottest bands working in Winnipeg right now and their style takes us into Nu-Blues territory. By that i mean high energy, riff-laden new songs that borrow sounds instead of songs. R.L. Burnside is often credited with providing the starting point here, in his work with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. But fear not, blues fans, these young players don't wish to start by obliterating history, just creating within it,"12,000 Miles opens the CD with a classic Hound Dog Taylor lick that will transport you to alligator heaven. Jason Nowicki plays that guitar, Ryan Menard, an ex-Rockin' Highliner(winning a Maple Blues Award nomination)plays bass and Scotty Hills is on drums although they've been known to switch instruments on stage. They all sing. Dave McLean returns the favour on harp and Grant Seimens helps out on organ. The twelve songs are all originals with "1/4 to 5" particularly noteworthy for new sounds. "Look at You" and "Garmonbozia" are also highlights. "Six-Pack" shows they've learned their Burnside lessons very well indeed. I hope this band stays together to develop some of the ideas here, they show great promise.
-John Valenteyn
- Toronto Blues Society

Big Dave Mclean's 'Blues from the Middle', on Stony Plain, featured his electric backing band in a setting that perfectly captured the Muddy Waters style that McLean works so well. On their own, this cd shows a re-constituted Perpetrators trio that is one of the hottest bands working in Winnipeg right now and their style takes us into Nu-Blues territory. By that i mean high energy, riff-laden new songs that borrow sounds instead of songs. R.L. Burnside is often credited with providing the starting point here, in his work with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. But fear not, blues fans, these young players don't wish to start by obliterating history, just creating within it,"12,000 Miles opens the CD with a classic Hound Dog Taylor lick that will transport you to alligator heaven. Jason Nowicki plays that guitar, Ryan Menard, an ex-Rockin' Highliner(winning a Maple Blues Award nomination)plays bass and Scotty Hills is on drums although they've been known to switch instruments on stage. They all sing. Dave McLean returns the favour on harp and Grant Seimens helps out on organ. The twelve songs are all originals with "1/4 to 5" particularly noteworthy for new sounds. "Look at You" and "Garmonbozia" are also highlights. "Six-Pack" shows they've learned their Burnside lessons very well indeed. I hope this band stays together to develop some of the ideas here, they show great promise.
-John Valenteyn
- Toronto Blues Society

Bluesy, rough 'n' ready, rockin' and rollin' songs about girls and beer and beer and girls. The Perpetrators have been a local force for at least four years now and that's too long for them to toil as a not-so-well-kept secret. With this album the band now has a full-length calling card for its raucously joyful rough-hewn sound, which is equal parts Replacements, NRBQ and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Bass, guitar and drums - and fun. These guys could - and should - stand tall against any of the latest darlings of the New Americana indie scene. So get out on the road boys - it's calling. - John Kendle - Uptown Magazine

Millions of two-bit rock bands think they can play the blues. And usually they can - badly. That's because most rock bands don't understand that there's more to the blues than 12 bars, a I-IV-V chord sequence and some lyrics about how your baby done left you. It is obvious The Perpetrators are not one of those misguided outfits. This superlative trio reminiscent of The North Mississippi All-Stars have obviously spent muchos quality time listening, learning, soaking, practising, playing and living the blues in all its many varieties and permutations.Iin other words, they get it. And they deliver it in spades on their stunning, self-titled debut disc. With drumbeats that shuck 'n' jive like a juke joint on a Saturday night, basslines as thick as a handful of Mississippi mud and guitars that growl and howl like a junkyard dog, these dozen tracks find the boys equally adept at choogling boggie-rockers (12,000 miles), funky hip-swivellers (One More Day), electrified Delta stompers (Crappy Job, Look at You), acoustic folk-blues ballds (Stay Strong), Texas gutbucket sizzlers (Garmonbozia) and hypnotic john Lee Hooker-ish workouts (Six Pack). Put it all together and you've got 44 minutes of blues that's rougher, tougher and stronger than any major-label release we've heard this year. And a disc that can show all those two-bit rock bands a thing or two about playing the blues. 4 1/2 out of 5 stars - Darryl Sterdan - The Winnipeg Sun

Bluesy, rough 'n' ready, rockin' and rollin' songs about girls and beer and beer and girls. The Perpetrators have been a local force for at least four years now and that's too long for them to toil as a not-so-well-kept secret. With this album the band now has a full-length calling card for its raucously joyful rough-hewn sound, which is equal parts Replacements, NRBQ and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Bass, guitar and drums - and fun. These guys could - and should - stand tall against any of the latest darlings of the New Americana indie scene. So get out on the road boys - it's calling. - John Kendle - Uptown Magazine