On the Run
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SHAKING JUDY Songs for Apollo (independent) Pierrefonds’s second-best-kept secret (the first being Bombay Choupati): a bar band for boys and girls, with muscular riffs and rhythm, quality vocals and melodies with heart and soul.
– Montreal Mirror, Vol. 22 No. 43
Shaking Judy live at Cafe Campus
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SHAKING JUDY will rock you hard and pleasure you all night long.
If you like the feeling of getting a melody tattooed into your brain, or the fine balance between heavy riffs and moments of serenity, then look no further.
Shaking Judy came together by accident in the summer of 2003. Rob Hutcheson and Joe Allen met through mutual friends and spent the summer hanging out, drinking, and playing acoustic guitars by beach bonfires in the Quebec Laurentians. The musical chemistry between them was obvious from day one. The duo quickly left the sandy watersides to perform at some of Montreal's more respected pubs and bars. After recruiting Jer Turowetz, a talented local percussionist, the crowd reaction was heightened with every gig they played. The energy and charisma was undeniable and
the sound was captivating to everyone who caught them live. The move to a heavier, electric setup was inescapable.
After testing the waters, the addition of eccentric bass player, Mike Shetzer, finalized the lineup. Their infectious style remained but was enhanced by the newly formed rhythmic section's penchant for exciting and intricate layering. Under the name of Shaking Judy (a reference to both Jer and Joe's mothers...ask us if you really want to know) the group won both the Paul Edward's Battle of the Bands and the McGill University PGSS competitions during the summer of 2005. The fan base that was growing alongside the evolving band was demanding more from the quartet than just a kick-ass live show.
The changeover from 2005 to 2006 was spent at the new Apollo Sound Studios. A tremendous amount of planning went into the project and fortunately, the excess of hours afforded by their engineer and producer Richie Vincent resulted in an emotionally reflective 5 song EP appropriately titled "Songs for Apollo". The recording, an eclectic mix of original titles, accurately portrays the band's frame of mind at that time.
The CD's release coincided with the completion of "Back Alley Romance," a film co-written by Joe and co-directed by a longtime friend of the band. Upon hearing Shaking Judy's demos, the owner of the set location (Montreal's own seedy strip club Cabaret Sin City), demanded that the band play at his bar in return for giving up the film location for free. The result: one ridiculously packed launch party, dozens of naked dancers, a slew of CDs sold, and possibly a couple of newly contracted STDs. The Shaking Judy crew hasn't stopped since. To celebrate the completion of their first CD, they took a much-deserved trip to Australia to surf, party, write new songs and play guitar on the beaches and in the bars just as they did in the beginning. Since their return home, the band has been developing further, injecting extremes of melody, complexity, aggression, and emotion into their new songs. With a bunch of new material and plans for videos and tours, Shaking Judy is rocking out harder than ever.
