SNOWSHOE ARE BACK AND WE HAVE THE EXCLUSIVE!
The Snowshoe saga continues! The Canadian punk supergroup that suddenly formed, imploded, and bizarrely settled their differences in the wrestling ring, have reunited! They call it the “Fuck Covid Tour”, or for tamer markets, simply the “We Really Mean It This Time Tour”. We had the opportunity to chat with all three members of the band:
- Billy Sol Hurok (formerly of Dirty Slush) – guitar, vocals
- Irving Cohen (formerly of Dead Bird on a Wire) – bass, vocals
- John Y. Schmenge (formerly of the Schmenge Brothers’ Sons) – drums
LeBrain: You guys had a pretty serious fallout in 2018, leading to the infamous 2019 wrestling match in the parking lot of Deke’s Palace. Why reunite at all?
BILLY SOL HUROK – Simple answer to that. We need the money.
IRVING COHEN – That’s pretty much it. Covid wiped us out financially. Of course that was the “plandemic” all along wasn’t it? Make us all broke, living on credit from the banks. Slaves!
JOHN Y. SCHMENGE – Would you fucking stop it Irv?
BILLY SOL HUROK – This tour is going to be a lot of fun…not. Me, I don’t give a shit about vaccines and conspiracies. Irv on the other hand…
IRVING COHEN – Don’t you dare call me a conspiracy theorist or I’ll knock you the fuck out in this interview, I don’t care!
BILLY SOL HUROK – Irv’s not even the worst. Sure he’s antivaxx, but on the other hand Schmenge over there is so pro-vaxx that he got shot 10 times.
JOHN Y. SCHMENGE – 11 times. I got boosted again for the tour. I’m gonna be Superman on that fucking stage.
IRVING COHEN – You see?
LeBrain: You guys must really need the money. Back to the music, Eternal Winter is an album you recorded but never released. We’ve received the tracklist and it looks awesome! [see bottom] Any chance of it coming out for real this year?
BILLY SOL HUROK – Simple answer to that too. We need the money.
IRVING COHEN – That would be a yes.
JOHN Y. SCHMENGE – CD, vinyl, cassette, and 8-track. I’ve been on the internet a lot and 8-track is coming back. I insisted we release on 8-track, limited numbers. I’m having my car stereo guy put an 8-track deck in my Tesla so I can hear it as it was intended: with a break in the middle of every third song.
LeBrain: Wait…you guys are broke, but John drives a Tesla?
BILLY SOL HUROK – Irv and I are broke. John made a killing painting houses during the winters in Churchill Manitoba. He figured out a formulation for the paint not to freeze. His painting business runs 12 months a year. He was on Dragon’s Den and everything.
IRVING COHEN – Arlene even hit on him after the show.
BILLY SOL HUROK – After giving him a cool million for 50%.
LeBrain: So, John, obviously money isn’t a motivation for you. Are you doing it for the love of music?
JOHN Y. SCHMENGE – No. I love music but I hate these two assholes even more. I’m doing it for the Guinness’ Book of World Records.
LeBrain: Cool! What record are you going for? Loudest band? I hear that record was set by your former tourmates Inushuk in Thunder Bay at Deke’s Palace.
JOHN Y. SCHMENGE – No, no, no. I’m going for the vaccine record. Not only am I going to collect as many shots as I can, but I want to be the first Canadian to get one in every province.
IRVING COHEN – I’m not even going to comment. Keeping my fucking mouth shut as long as it gets us back on the road.
BILLY SOL HUROK – Right, so let’s talk about that. We start where we left off: Deke’s Palace in Thunder Bay, then we work our way west, then back east through Thunder Bay playing the Palace again, all the way to the east coast…
JOHN Y. SCHMENGE – There’s a place in New Brunswick called Tim’s 8-Track Heaven that I can’t wait to check out!
BILLY SOL HUROK – (Grumbles) …and then we actually go back through Ontario to Thunder Bay once more, playing the tour closer at Deke’s Palace for our third stop there.
LeBrain: Why three stops at Deke’s Palace?
BILLY SOL HUROK – Well you know the old saying, right? The only thing cheaper than the beer at the Palace is the women! Also the owner, Deke Williams, owes us. Three gigs is the least he could do for us after what happened last time.
LeBrain: What happened last time?
IRVING COHEN – Food poisoning. That’s the real reason I lost that wrestling match to Bill, was food poisoning. Bill ate McDonalds, I had salad bar. I have a really grainy video on my phone. There was some shady activist looking guy hanging around the salad bar. They cheated and Deke set it up. I rest my case.
BILLY SOL HUROK – You lying fucking conspiracy theorist piece of shit!
LeBrain: Woah, woah, woah! Take it easy guys, or you’ll never make it on the road! Let’s end it here and…
IRVING COHEN – (To LeBrain) Fuck you too, media! (Punches LeBrain in jaw)
ETERNAL WINTER – Final Track List (8-track tape version)
The entire original 2018 recordings, newly remixed, with one new song recorded in 2022!
Program 1
-
- Lock Up Your Sheep / Irving Had A Little Lamb
- Rolling Through the Hay River, NWT
- Eat My Poutine, Putin (beginning)
Program 2
-
- Eat My Poutine, Putin (end)
- I Love Hating Your Guts
- Snoeshow
- Thunder From the Tundra (beginning)
Program 3
-
- Thunder From the Tundra (end)
- Blowed Up Real Good
- The Smell of 1977
- Yellow Popsicle (beginning)
Program 4
-
- Yellow Popsicle (end)
- Touch My Dink in the Ditch (The Legendary Klopeks cover)
- Current River Blues
- Three Bloodthirsty Women From the Land of Always Winter
- We Cairn A Lot (Inukshuk cover)
Hmmm….
LikeLiked by 1 person
Total nonfiction man!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Friggin salad bar man….every time! Great live shot but I think those people at the front of the stage were photoshopped in. lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
Did you spot yourself? You’re hiding behind an amp stack on the far right. Trying to avoid paying these guys. AGAIN.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m outed as a sleazy manager! Beautiful!! Lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow! Sign me up for the 8-Track. Nothing better then a fade out, a click and a fade back in of the song playing. What a day, two of Canada’s great bands in one day on WordPress…Snowshow (lebrain) and Inukshuk (aaron).
LikeLiked by 1 person
What a coincidence! That could not have been pre-planned at all.
LikeLiked by 1 person
No, not at all!! :-)
LikeLiked by 1 person
ALL HAIL SNOWSHOE!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Man, even I knew to avoid the salad bar at the Palace. Yeesh! Lol Also, I have my 8-track on pre-order. From Japan. It’s very expensive.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow Japanese 8-tracks! I don’t even think Tim’s 8-track Heaven has one of those!
LikeLike
They’ll sell out fast. Did you know they’re big in Japan?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Actually no I didn’t, the band punched me in the jaw before I could ask further questions!
LikeLike
Again? Man, that gag’s getting old! Lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah, tell me about it lol. I’m getting tired with it too!
LikeLike
Haha
LikeLiked by 1 person
Judging from the interview, I would see these guys live just to see if a fist fight breaks out on stage.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m sure it would — my jaw is still killing me!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ouch!
LikeLiked by 1 person
8-Track song list. Tim’s reach knows no bounds.
LikeLiked by 1 person
He’s now entered a whole new universe!
LikeLiked by 1 person