The Remedials Report Card By Ronatron

Hey kids! Well, it took awhile to finally receive this Report Card but it was well worth the wait. The Remedials thought it might have been lost in the mail or thrown in the recycling bin with the rest of the unpaid bills… But, that was not to be the case and once the Report Card was posted the good and/or bad Remedials held their breath and trembled as they read their performance review. Hey, at least there were a lot of pictures though just as The Remedials like it! Yay pictures!

Here’s what Mr. Ronatron had to say about The Remedials:

The Remedials at The Cobalt
No matter how old you get, and no matter how old you think you are, there will always be a first for everything. Some could be great experiences, like your first concert, or some could be horrible, like your first relationship (depending on how you look at it…). That was my exact thought when The Remedials asked me to come out to The Cobalt to watch them play. I’ve never been to The Cobalt before and for those of you who don’t know, The Cobalt is one of Vancouver’s premiere underground venues. And when I say underground, I don’t mean folk music. It’s mainly hardcore-punk and metal. The closest I’ve ever come to punk was the Van’s Warped Tour back in the 90’s, so it’s been a while, but in retrospect, I did have a good time at those summer festivals.
First things first, I did enjoy myself and I don’t know why I was so nervous in the first place. I guess it’s safe to say that this experience was like my first kiss, sloppy but very pleasing. I got there a little early and got a chance to talk to some of the guys in the band, who were both very nice and gracious. We had a normal conversation about music, friends, and the whole works. Afterwards, when Alex finished editing all the pictures, he realized he knew the band. Turns out they all went to the same high school back in the day. Small world isn’t it! As a matter of fact, from what Alex recalls all of them played in several different bands.
In 2004, Gabriel Gill (Guitar/Vocals), Wayne Degerness (Bass/Vocals) and Lionel Cloutier (Drums/Vocals) decided to form a three-piece punk band called The Remedials. Their dedication to their work spawned two studio albums, two live albums, a DVD, songs on several punk compilations, along with radio and podcast airplay. All of these accomplishments weren’t unnoticed by others as they now have a solid following and fan base.
As soon as they started there set, I couldn’t help but notice how loud their music was. Like I said before, it’s been a while since I’ve been to a punk show so I had to adjust my ears so they wouldn’t bleed (They might have cranked up the volume meter to 11…and for those of you who don’t know, that was a Spinal Tap reference). Along with the heavy sounds, they also had the punk rock mentality with the power stance and fast paced head banging. They sound an awfully lot like Rancid, NOFX, and The Ramones, three of my all time favourite punk bands, so it was no surprise that they were all about the music. There were absolutely no breaks in between songs, except for a few beer swigs (and when I say a few, I mean a lot), and the bass lines were not only melodic, but very technical. All three of them laid their voices down on different songs, so it created a nice balance that kept each track interesting.
Their loud, punk-rock attitude transcended onto an eclectic crowd. There were aging punk rockers, young hipsters, as well as some pretty girls at the show, so I guess music has no boundaries when it comes to defining what punk rock is. However, a punk show wouldn’t be a punk show without a mosh pit. Even though it was a small venue, it didn’t stop three courageous (drunken…) men from kicking and flailing their arms to the sounds pumping throughout the speakers. At one point, one of these inebriated young chaps fell over. It goes without saying he was a little pissed, but I, however, found it quite amusing and quickly jotted it down in my notepad. I don’t know what it is about our society, but people seem to always laugh at other’s misfortunes, take America’s Funniest Home Videos for example. There is always at least one video of someone nutting themselves, and you don’t know why, but the laughter is just too overwhelming and eventually tears start forming. OK I may have gotten a little sidetracked, so we shall get back to the music.
Most of their songs have quite a bit of profanity, something my mother would have disliked but something my teenage self would have admired. One song caught my attention above all others. It wasn’t the catchy bass line, it wasn’t the hard hitting snare drum, nor was it the fast paced power chords. It was the lyrics. It was all about drinking and it goes a little something like this, “I like to drink/ I like to f*ck/ I like to f*ckin’ drink.” It’s simple, but effective. I think they just captured what everyone loves into one simple song. They ended the night on a short but sweet note with their song “12345.” They essentially just counted to five and then thanked the crowd for coming out. What surprised me at the end was that they not only thanked the crowd for coming out, but the press as well! I’ve never been thanked for coming out to a show before, so it was nice to hear that praise amplified over the entire venue.
For more information on The Remedials, feel free to visit their myspace as well as their website. If you love punk rock, then you’ll absolutely love these guys.
© Ronatron 2008

Here’s the LINK to the review on Ron Cheng’s Ronatron site just incase you thought once again The Remedials made this up, but considering how many words there was it’s just not possible and this guy can write. And as a super-deluxe visual bonus you’ll get to see all 9 of the snazzy pictures taken by Alex Ramon from the show there as well! Don’t forget to keep checking Ronatron’s site for more show, album reviews and pictures of bands playing in and around Vancouver!

Wow, that was pretty in-depth analysis of The Remedials performance and a Spinal Tap reference no less how appropriate for this band! Good Job! No wonder it took so long to get published, somebody unlike The Remedials did his homework! Of course, The Remedials would like to thank Ron Cheng and Alex Ramon who braved the seedy part of town to see them at Vancouver’s legendary and historic punk rock venue The Cobalt! They didn’t have to worry too much about being there (hopefully they didn’t catch anything in the bathroom…) as The Remedials woulda had their backs and thrown down if it had come to that. Luckily, it didn’t which was great for The Remedials as they probably woulda gotten their heads kicked in except for maybe Wayne who has gotten up after being hit by a van and not hit by a van while in a another vehicle but hit by a van while crossing the street on his skateboard. So unless you’re Rocky Balboa or Chuck Norris, Wayne’s getting up after any amount of haymakers/roundhouse kicks are thrown. As for the rest of The Remedials, well before any altercations took place Lionel was probably passed out in the gutter somewhere and Gabe had already taken the prettiest girl home.

READ more music reviews by Ron Cheng here:

Ronatron / Ronatron MySpace

SEE more photos by Alex Ramon here:

Alex Ramon / Alex Ramon Flickr

“If you love punk rock, then you’ll absolutely love these guys.” Ron Cheng, Ronatron – “The Remedials At The Cobalt” Show Review