The Perpetrators kregen het in 2005 voor mekaar om als enigste band uit Canada hun opwachting te maken op het befaamde Chicago Blues Festival.  Het album "The Gas and the Clutch" werd bedolven onder de Awards en bleek de geschikte opvolger voor het in 2003 verschenen debuutalbum . Het logische gevolg van al die huzarenstukjes kon niet uitblijven ... supporting act voor Taj Mahal, Los Lobos, Magic Slim, Sleepy LaBeef en op de affiche met ondermeer Louisiana Red, Kenny Brown & Cedric Burnside, Downchild Blues Band. Niet alleen Hubert Sumlin is onder de indruk van the Perpetrators, zelfs in die mate dat hij het niet kon laten om de jongens uitvoerig te bewieroken ... "These guys know what I'm talking about ... when we're playing I can feel the Wolf looking down and smiling" maar natuurlijk ook Wim Vermeijen van het Belgium Rhythm & blues Festival en het kon dan ook niet uitblijven ... het trio is dit jaar van de partij op Europa's grootste blues en roots gebeuren.(11/12/13 July '08, zie concertkalender) 

 De blues/rock liefhebbers kunnen zich dan ook verwachten aan een (vrijdag) avondje bluesy, rough n' ready, rockin and rollin' songs about girls and beer and beer and girls. Bass, guitar & drums ... and fun... meer moet dat niet zijn! Fans van the British blues à the Cream, de jonge Johnny Winter, Stevie Ray Vaughan, JB. Hutto, Hound Dog Taylor  mogen zeker niet op de afspraak ontbreken. "Blues for people who hate Blues" ... from Motorhead to Johnny Cash en Neil Young wiens "Are you Ready for the Country" op het album "The Gas and the Clutch" zelfs een blues/ rock jasje aangemeten kreeg. Vorig jaar gaven "Howik" Nowicki (guitar and vocals) Ryan "ODL" Menard (bass, vocals and "scrap-tastic" guitar), Chris "MAMA" Bauer (drums, vocals & guitar) hun handels en keurmerk van "high - energy houserockin' band of good - time music" en  "Road Warriors" nog wat meer glans met het onvolprezen " Tow Truck" . De instrumental  "The Z - Rays Cured My Hangover" linkt nog voorzichtig richting surf en rockabilly maar met "Movin' Right Along, pretty baby", "Call Me", "Baltimore"  en in het bijzonder met  "You're Gonna Kill Me"  worden alle blues / rock registers opengetrokken.

Dirty roadhouse blues guitars with electrifying slide, meat and potatoes bass and chops on the skins along with smokey vocals ....dit belooft een uiterst gezellige "Happy Friday" te worden. "Carly Song" kan rekenen op een ferme streep mondharmonica, "Honeypie", "I Can't See, the reason you wanna be with me", Josco" en "I Saw Your Leaving" kleuren lichtjes alt. country / americana, "R. Cowboy" en "Toe Stub" hebben nog wat punkrestantjes onder de vleugels maar effenen ongetwijfeld het (blues) pad voor "The Woman Of My Dreams"....Bang your head, clap your hands for .....The Perpetrators !  (SWA) Met dank aan Heather Shaw.

English version

Back in 2005,The Perpetrators succeeded in being the only band from Canada on the critically acclaimed Chicago Blues Festival! Their Album “The Gas and the Clutch” came home with tons of awards and was a real fine successor for their stunning Debut! As logical reaction to all this the band became supporting act for a series of big names like Taj Mahal, Los Lobos, Magic Slim & Sleepy LaBeef and shared their stage with bands like Louisiana Red, Kenny Brown & Cedric Burnside or the Downchild Blues Band. Blues man Hubert Sumlin (Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters) takes it even and step further and praises the band …"These guys know what I'm talking about ... when we're playing I can feel the Wolf looking down and smiling. But also in Belgium this band raised some eybrows. Wim Vermeijen from the Belgian Rhythm & Blues Festival is impressed by these guys, enough to invite them on this years edition of the biggest blues and rotos happening in Europe. (11/12/13 July)

Lovers of blues rocking music are treat real fine cuase The Perpetrators are out for an evening of Rough ‘n’ Ready, Rockin and rollin' songs about girls and beer and beer and girls. Bass, guitar & drums ... and fun...that’s the way it is with these canadian guys. Especially fans of the Cream, early Johnny Winter, Stevie Ray Vaughan, JB. Hutto or Hound Dog Taylor can’t miss out on this appointment! "Blues for people who hate Blues" ... from Motorhead to Johnny Cash and Neil Young, whose "Are you Ready for the Country" is restyled into a blues track on this album. Last year "Howik" Nowicki (guitar and vocals) Ryan "ODL" Menard (bass, vocals and "scrap-tastic" guitar) and Chris "MAMA" Bauer (drums, vocals & guitar) took their brand of "high - energy house rockin' band of good - time music” and "Road Warriors" to another level with the critically acclaimed “Tow Truck”. The instrumental "The Z - Rays Cured My Hangover" still smells a bit like surf and rockabilly but once you get into "Movin' Right Along, pretty baby", "Call Me", "Baltimore” and especially "You're Gonna Kill Me” there’s no stopping these guys playing the blues.

Dirty roadhouse blues guitars with electrifying slide, meat and potatoes bass and chops on the skins along with smokey vocals if that is not a perfect recipe, then I really don’t know it anymore? On "Carly Song" one is witness to some great blues harp while "Honeypie", "I Can't See, the reason you wanna be with me", “Josco" en "I Saw Your Leaving” do lean a bit towards alt.country and Americana. Punky edges can be found on "R. Cowboy" en "Toe Stub” but these are merely messengers for the blues in "The Woman Of My Dreams" Bang your head and clap your hands for .....The Perpetrators!

Patrick Van Hauwaert (Mr. Blue Boogie)

Albums :

• The Perpetrators (2003)
• The Gas and The Clutch (2005, WCMA Blues album of the year)
• Tow Truck (2007)

Compilations
Winnipeg: The High & Lonesome  Years, Vols I and III (2002 and 2004) 
Guess Who's Home - tribute to The Guess Who (2005) 
We Best Choose to Pick the Blues - tribute to Big Dave McLean (2005)