Formed in 1979 by Ottawa-born Ron Chenier, the singer/guitarist, joined by his brother John on drums, recruited players and began honing their chops doing small clubs in and around the Toronto area. The band quickly graduated to the 'B circuit', touring the eastern-Canadian/US areas for the next year and a half.The group took their heavy approach to music into the studios and cut the independently released ROUND ONE in the spring of '79.Raucous and raunchy, the band's sound was dominated by raw guitars with little in-studio tampering. Produced by the Cheniers' brother Normand and done on the proverbial shoestring budget. Songs "Too Late", "Madness" and "Who Did You Love" showed the band's penchant for writing hard
driving, simple, yet complex songs.Fist returned to the road and toured practically every corner of the eastern half of the continent for the next year. The band was signed to a deal with A & M in the summer of 1980 and quickly returned to the studio. They emerged from Toronto's Amber Studios that fall and released HOT SPIKES. The band hired George Semkiw to engineer and produce. The only difference between HOT SPIKES and its predecessor was the new album caressed them gently. Backed by songs like the anthemic "Rock n Roll Suicide" and lead-off track "Money", a song about the hustle and bustle of society's drive for materialism, HOT SPIKES showed a maturity, harnessed by Semkiw's experience. Other notable cuts included "Lord I Miss You" and "Teenage Love Affair", intended to garner the band radio play. The tours continued, with FIST seeing practically every province and state over the next year.The band regrouped, and with a new release, FLEET STREET in '81. "Double Or Nothing" again showcased Chenier's talent for writing slick, driving guitar riffs, while "Thunder In Rock" was easily the year's best tune on the radio waves. With the clever addition of a sax solo, "Thunder" is probably most synonymous with Fist's music, if any song is at all. However, other killer cuts included "Open The Gates", the title track and "Evil Cold". Backed by the album's success, the group took the show on the road again, this time playing outdoor festivals with the likes of Heart, Motor Head, Krokus and the Scorpions. Despite the record's success though, critics of the day were still finding it hard to accept heavy metal as a legitimate music form.The band took some time off following the tour's end in 1982 and didn't re-emerge until IN THE RED in '83. FIST toured and then went back into the recording studio in 1984 to record the album DANGER ZONE. This album was released on Cobra Records an independent label which specialized in the metal genre, their signing of Fist seemed a marriage made in heaven. But despite the harnessed intensity of numbers like the title track, the album failed to garner enough interest in the group to keep them together, and they called it quits in '86.The band got back together in '91 for a series of dates on the Ontario circuit, which led to a full reunion and a new album in 1993 called REIGN OF TERROR. Released on MaGaDa Records, Fist again had landed a deal with an independent metal label. A criss-cross tour of the continent. In 1995 FIST released a second album on Magada Records called Loud Loud Loud.Though Fist was by no means a household name, they were known in the circles of head-bangers as deliverers of straight forward, but well-crafted metal and the occasional melodic number toned down to show their versatility. But even their ballads didn't bring tears to your eyes. Heavy metal has always been an acquired taste. And though non listeners would have trouble understanding this, it's generally harder to make a good metal song than it is to program some software and come up with one of today's 'hits'. It should also be noted that heavy metal enjoyed a short stay atop the 'flavour of the day' ladder, and Canadian acts in particular found it tough gaining the respect some of them truly deserved. But aside from a few others, such as Coney Hatch and Anvil, there weren't many others teaching Head-banging 101. And in a school so socially isolated, Fist truly is in a class all their own.By Dan Brisebois
www.canadianbands.comToday, Fist is based out of Winnipeg, Manitoba. In 2006, they released their newest album, "Bolted Door", and are soon to begin rehearsals for an upcoming European tour.
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The Thunder Is Back
After a decades absence, real rock and roll returns with the release of Fists new Cd, BOLTED DOOR. Fist tore up the charts before the classic rock format existed. Heart-stopping rockers like Hot Spikes, Double Or Nothing, and their metal anthem, Thunder In Rock paved the way for many of todays heavy acts. They were on the forefront of the Canadian rock scene, touring the world with the likes of Triumph, Kim Mitchell, Molly Hatchet, Krokus and Motorhead to name a few.Frontman & founder Ron Chenier ( Ronch ) explains it was simply time to bring metal back to the airwaves, and peoples ears. We have got nothing against the young bands, and there is some great rock and roll out there right now, but they dont have the Thunder of Fist!Cheniers signature licks on Pressure , Right In It, and Nothing To Say prove that hard rock never really went out of style. Fist is back to reclaim their throne. Calm Before The Storm takes you on an emotional ride, while Out Here On The Desert is a foray into the heat of war and controversy.We might be dinosaurs, but think about it. No one was louder, and no one was bigger, Chenier said. Fist WAS heavy metal before the term was in fashion, and now we are back! On the album BOLTED DOOR lies a collection of gems you havent heard for a very long time.Although they are all new tracks, they are reminiscent of when rock lived on its own merits. Thank the Rock and Roll Gods, Fist is back!. The suggested singles are Tracks 1- Pressure, 2 - Right In It, 3 - It Aint Easy.Written By:
Dan Brisebois
