From the ashes and talent of his former band, as well as past members of Shook Ones and Swear Jar, Kenny is moving forward with his new hardcore project Rest Easy and their scorching new EP Sick Day, which dropped in February via Mutant League Records.
Recorded in North Vancouver with Tim Creviston [Misery Signals, Youth Fountain], the much-buzzed-about debut had an impressive team of experienced music professionals behind the release, including Paul Miner (Thrice, Death By Stereo] and local director Kyle Pigeau who directed the video for “Bad Idea.”
Kenny says that from the very beginning, Paul captured the specific sound and energy they had in mind and envisioned for these songs.
“We just had a rad team behind all of this – a lot of great people worked on this EP,” he says. “I’m 40 and all I listen to is mid-90s to early-2000s punk rock, so that’s definitely influenced the sound. A lot of the current pop punk and punk rock is just too like…it just sounds too glossy and sugary. We asked Paul to basically take the soul of a Lifetime or Kid Dynamite record and put it in these songs – and I think he did.”
He says that there could be a full-length on the horizon as well as another EP, but like every other band in the world right now, they’re waiting to see how the live-music situation unfolds.
“We’re going to the label next week to talk about a full-length, but I don’t want to put a full-length out and not be able to tour on it,” he says with a deep breath. “A lot of my friends kind of got a shitty deal when this pandemic hit – Broadway Calls put a new album out, Comeback Kid, I Am the Avalanche did too…they couldn’t really do anything after they put those albums out.”
And while he’s excited about what the future holds for the new band and music, Kenny’s not totally sure what’s in store for his wrestling career.
“I still love it but I’m pretty banged up,” he admits. “Now that I’m 40, I’m on the verge of needing to retire if I want to protect myself.”
To some, a wrestling-punk rock career and life may seem a bit random, but according to Kenny, there are more similarities between the two areas than you might think.
“They have a lot more in common than people think,” he says with a laugh. “A lot of the time, at this independent level, you’re booking your own tours, you’re selling your merchandise. They both don’t pay really well so if you need to walk out with some money to pay the cell phone bill or whatever, you need to push the shirts and get out there and meet the fans and connect.”
“Both are hard work, but both are really rewarding.”
