Not too shabby for four kids from Newmarket, Ontario who met in elementary school and aren't even 16 years old yet! (Like The Who once sang, the kids are alright.)
All big fans of 311, Rage Against The Machine, The Deftones and Beastie Boys, Serial Joe have - in scant few years - crafted their own unique blend of a groovalicious drum and bass foundation, HUGE guitars, killer vocals and aggressive attitude.
Ryan Dennis can instantly capture his audience in a live setting, and girls are already taping his photo to their school lockers and bedroom walls. Drummer Dan Stadnicki possesses a natural ability and precision far beyond his years. Jon Davidson provides driving, cement-heavy grooves on bass - heavy like cement. Ryan "Stever" is a solid, rockin' guitarist. And they love to kick it out live.
So what makes for a good Serial Joe show?
"A good mosh pit!" says singer/guitarist Dennis. "Lots of crowd interactions It helps us get more loose onstage We play a lot better."
In one case, they pretty much set the joint on fire sort of. While shooting the video for "Skidrow," at the Ramsterdam skate park in Toronto, their smoke machines set off the fire alarms - and a troup of firemen arrived in the big red trucks.
"It was weird," recalls Dan. "They had axes and everything."
Earlier this year, Serial Joe signed a deal with Aquarius/EMI, and they recently completed their second record (and first full-length album), Face Down. Produced by ex-Skinny Puppy member Dave "Rave" Ogilvie (Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails, 54o40), Face Down was recorded at Metalworks studio in Mississauga and Bryan Adams' Warehouse studio in Vancouver in March. Since the Joes are all still in high school, it was cut in only seven 13-hour days - during the March break!
Raging rock energy meets a sense of youthful innocence and conscious lyrics on new tracks like "Mistake" (the first single and video), the melodic "Down" and the angst-fuelled "Outrage." Elsewhere, Ryan commits to an anthem-like rap in "Deep," while "Shallow" and "Should've Been Mine" shred the amps and burn the riffs. Face Down simmers and shimmers with barely contained chaos; it's a purposeful, rich and heavy album.
"Mistake" hits the radio and MuchMusic this month, and debuts right here on the EdgeFest site today! The album is scheduled for release on June 15.
Serial Joe have spawned a clutch of fan websites; interest is high enough to support the gathering of such fun facts as: Dan loves cats, and has two, named Snowy and Poopookitty; Ryan starred in an Our Lady Peace video, "Superman's Dead," and has appeared in cereal commercials, too; Jon lived in Malta for a year; and Ryan "Stever" wishes he could stamp his autograph instead of wearing out his wrist when the fans come calling.
Fun is fun, but the bottom line is, Serial Joe are about the music, and they're good at it.
"At the beginning, it was fun," says Dan. "Then we got more serious."
"We're taking this seriously," says Ryan. "Like, we want to do this. It's not, like, just a fool-around thing for us."
They've only just begun.