THE SHRUGS

Hailing from the punk music Mecca of Windsor, Ontario, The Shrugs play a ferocious brand of punk music. They are led by the charismatic Nick Shrug – whose parents’ unfortunate accident with a cuisinart led to the financing of the band. Nick is bright, creative, driven and more than a little odd. He designed the band’s look, which includes monocles, bow ties, and berets (because the fezzes kept falling off). Bassist Joey is an angry, introspective sort, while paternal twin brothers (same mother, different fathers): diminutive Julian and the problematic Tee-Tee, hold down the guitar front. Rounding out the crew is “normal,” Doug Shrug – who may or may not be the brains behind this hapless bunch. But always remember, they aren’t a garage band – they are a carport band!_______________________________________________________ ______The Shrugs can’t buy a break: they bicker; their equipment fails them; their slick Italian manager, Tony (aka “Ahole”) thinks nothing of booking them in Tierra del Fuego the night after a gig in Philadelphia; their ex-bass player, Angelique, is a mannequin; and the girls don’t show up for strip poker night - but as long as the PBR is flowing, the garage music is cranked, and they have each other, they’ll be okay because they’ve got the spirit of rock and roll within them. ____________________________________________________________ _Nick Shrug – only child of the founders of the Chicken on a Stick fast food chain, Nick spent much of his childhood in the barnyard on the family’s surprisingly modest farm in the Mennonite country outside of Windsor, Ontario. Hours alone with only his faithful animal friends helped develop young Nick into a lonely and introspective fellow. Upon his parent’s untimely accident, he sold the family business and embarked on a quest of self-discovery. School pal Doug suggested they form a band and the rest is history. Nick is interested in philosophy, flavored tea, smart and sweet girls, and saving the world – not necessarily in that order. The leader of The Shrugs – he wears his monocle, bow tie and beret proudly as the band brings the entire world to its knees. ____________________________________________________________ _Doug Shrug – Nick’s childhood (and only) friend. Doug had the idea to have Nick invest some of his new money in musical gear, and that led to the forming of the band. Doug seems dull in person, but he’s really not, really. Nick takes his advice very seriously, and one might even say Doug is the puppet master. Doug grew up in a cabin without running water, one of eleven sons of a failed hippie cult leader and his pygmy wife, which somewhat explains the drummer’s aversion to wearing clothing. His band mates have grown used to Doug’s sly sense of humor – he has been known to put epoxy glue on toilet seats, broken glass in hamburgers and release weasels into beds at most inappropriate times. Doug’s hobbies include flying kites, promoting world peace, free form jazz dancing and helping Nick with his checkbook. ____________________________________________________________ _Julian Shrug – Discovered by Nick in Windsor’s notorious red light district, while performing with his twin brother, Tee-Tee, the diminutive guitarist survived a childhood spent moving from apartment to trailer to apartment to shelter to trailer again. Many of his earliest memories were of cold nights sleeping in the car in front of the local lounge while his mother made her rounds. Hearing the jukebox blaring Hank Williams, Buck Owens and Bobby Bare made him realize how much he wanted to be a rock musician. He left home at age 11 and roamed the streets – falling in with disgraced local punk legend Teddy Goon of Teddy and the Goons fame, who introduced him to hot chocolate and jai alai. Playing a modified bazouki, the teenager played uncredited on several cuts on some of The Goons last critically panned album of covers of other peoples covers - “Oxymoron.” Reunited with his brother in The Shrugs, Julian enjoys wearing white knee socks with shorts and shooting pigeons. ____________________________________________________________ _Tee-Tee Shrug – Perhaps the most infamous Shrug, jovial Tee-Tee shared the same rough upbringing with his paternal twin brother Julian for many years. However, whereas Julian’s father was a postman, Tee-Tee’s was a wealthy manufacturer of ladies undergarments and as such (seemingly confused by the tykes long hair) arranged for Tee-Tee to be placed in a strict Catholic home for wayward girls, where he spent several blissful years on his knees. Upon adolescence, his identity was confirmed and he was apprenticed out to a local guitar rocker to learn the heavy metal trade and perhaps make his way in the world. Several years repeating Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy and Queensryche licks left him feeling he could make it on his own – so he left his employer and took the streets. In Windsor’s underground, he met Julian, and after a brief stab at marriage, the two worked up an act that was to bring them to Nick’s attention. Tee-Tee likes to engage in Judo with women, antiquing and pouring massive amounts of whiskey down his throat. ____________________________________________________________ _Joey Shrug – The newest member of the band, Joey has considerable experience playing with some of the top punk rock acts in the world, most recently Loverboy. When Nick and Angelique (The Shrugs’ former bassist) had a romantic falling out, and she left the band to pursue acting and modeling endeavors, Joey was the first and only bass player to show interest in filling her formidable high-heeled shoes. A long time fan of the band, Joey has been the subject of much scrutiny and police interest since a series of strange fires have occurred just after Shrug gigs. In a bizarre coincidence, The Shrugs carport burned down just after his first weekend with the band. Raised by two lesbian dominatrixes, Joey took to the bass as a way to channel unhealthy urges, and it has been nothing but fun and success ever since. He enjoys lounging in pajamas, smoking unfiltered cigarettes and foxy boxing._____________________________________________________ _______Check out the Shrugs hot video clips and more song downloads at theshrugs.com This profile was edited with Thomas' myspace editor™ V2.5