BBQ Pope: "Winters of my Youth"
by Emily Brower
photos by André Varty
BBQ Pope, the independent garage psych punk band based out of Toronto, Canada just released their newest single, “Winters of my Youth” with a B side titled, “Before and After”. The band consisting of members Reid Millar, Sean Hackl, and Duncan Briggs, keep things old school by only recording to analog tape and releasing all of their songs on cassette tapes, but still stay modernized by releasing their music onto streaming sites. BBQ Pope draws from a strong Southern Californian surf punk influence and are a cross between FIDLAR and The Frights.
“Winters of my Youth”, starts off with a slow melody, but soon gives you no room to breathe and makes you want to hop into the center of a mosh pit to just thrash around. With a vibe that combines the angst of SWMRS and the placidity of Mt. Eddy, you can’t help but feel right at home. With lyrics, “Texting you at 2am / Cause I just want to be your friend” and “Waking up at 9am / I start to glance over our texts / Some things were said, some things were read”, BBQ Pope are not only relatable, but catchy and satirical.
The B side, “Before and After”, embodies a different tone and has an intro similar to, The Police’s “Every Breath You Take”. With monotone vocals and a slow bass line that you just wanna bob your head to, the stylistic variety that BBQ Pope are capable of is portrayed throughout these two songs. The grit and honesty of every note played is the change we need to see in today’s music industry where record labels take pride in mediocre music destined for top 100 success.
For such a young band, these two singles are a promising start to the future work of BBQ Pope. The culmination of heavy punk sounds and moments of tranquility are an admirable approach to the songwriting process. “Winters of my Youth” and “Before and After” can be found on Bandcamp, Spotify, Apple Music, and other music streaming sites.