The Flatliners are a Canadian punk rock band from Richmond Hill, Ontario. Since their formation in 2002, the band has been a growing influence in the Toronto punk/ska movement, with consistently well-received albums and live shows.

History

The band self-released its debut album, '' Destroy to Create'' in 2005; after signing to Stomp Records, it was reissued on July 19, 2005. It saw the band mix punk rock with

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

, and was promoted with a Canadian tour. In March and April 2006, the band went on the Frostbite Tour alongside

Death by Stereo Death by Stereo (also referred to as D.B.S.) is an American hardcore punk band formed in Orange County, California circa 1998 by frontman Efrem Schulz. They are well known for their energetic performances and intricate guitar work. Their name ...

Bigwig Bigwig may refer to: *Bigwig (band) * Bigwig (''Watership Down''), a character in the novel ''Watership Down'' *BIGWIG (library organization), an interest group of the Library Information and Technology Association, a division of the American Libr ...

, and

Big D and the Kids Table Big D and the Kids Table is a ska punk band formed in October 1995 in Boston, Massachusetts when its members converged in college. Their first release was on their own Fork in Hand Records label, but have since teamed with Springman Records and ...

. They appeared at the Ska Weekend festival at the end of April 2006. In October 2006, they went on a Canadian tour with Much the Same, and then embarked on a short US tour alongside Time Again,

Against All Authority Against All Authority (often abbreviated -AAA-) is an American punk band, formed in Florida in 1992. Playing in a ska punk style, their business practice follows a stringent DIY ethic. History Against All Authority was founded in Cutler Ridge ...

, and the Know How. The Flatliners signed to Fat Wreck Chords in April 2007; they would distributes the band's next release in every country bar Canada, where it was handled by Stomp Records. Following this, they appeared at the Wakestock festival, toured the US West Coast with No Use for a Name, and performed on the two Canadian dates of the

Warped Tour The Warped Tour was a traveling rock tour that toured the United States plus three or four stops in Canada annually each summer from 1995 until 2019. It was the largest traveling music festival in the United States and the longest-running touri ...

. Their second album, '' The Great Awake'', was released on 4 September 2007. In September and October 2007, they went on a Canadian tour, prior to joining up with

the Toasters The Toasters are one of the original American second wave of ska bands. Founded in New York City in 1981, the band has released nine studio albums, primarily through Moon Ska Records. History Englishman Robert "Bucket" Hingley relocated to New ...

, Saint Alvia Cartel, and the Peacocks. A music video for "Eulogy" was posted online in November 2007. They ending the year with a US tour with

A Wilhelm Scream A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes ...

. In February and March 2008, the band appeared on the Fat Wreck Chords Tour, alongside NOFX and No Use for a Name. Following this, they went on a US West Coast tour supporting the Loved Ones and a Canadian tour with the Rebel Spell. In May 2008, the band performed at the

Groezrock Groezrock was an annual music festival that took place in Meerhout, Belgium. It started as a small rock and pop festival with one stage and a few hundred people attending, but evolved into a large punk rock/hardcore punk festival, with attend ...

festival in Belgium, which was followed by a Canadian tour with

Strike Anywhere Strike Anywhere is an American punk rock band from Richmond, Virginia. Formed in 1999 after the demise of frontman Thomas Barnett's previous band, Inquisition, they took their name from the Inquisition song "Strike Anywhere". Their music is cha ...

Hostage Life Hostage Life was a Canadian punk band from Toronto. History Formed in 2002, Hostage Life released its first EP, ''Sing for the Enemy'' on Toronto's independent punk rock label, Underground Operations, home to such bands as Closet Monster and ...

, This Is a Standoff, and Carpenter. Following this, they appeared at the two Canadian dates of Warped Tour and the Cutting Edge Music Festival. They toured with Less Than Jake,

Reel Big Fish Reel Big Fish is an American ska punk band from Orange County, California. The band gained mainstream recognition in the mid-to-late 1990s during the third wave of ska with the release of the gold-certified album ''Turn the Radio Off''. Soon af ...

, and the Real Deal in September 2008, and supported NOFX on their Canadian tour in October 2008. They ended the year with an appearance at

The Fest The Fest is an annual music festival in Gainesville, Florida, United States, organized by Tony Weinbender, formerly of No Idea Records. It is a predominantly punk rock and pop-punk festival, though there are also a good number of indie rock, ...

in Florida. In March 2009, the band appeared at the

Harvest of Hope Fest Harvest of Hope Fest was a charity fundraiser and music festival that provided financial support for the Harvest of Hope Foundation which benefits migrant and seasonal farmworkers. The three-day event took place in March 2009 and 2010 at the St. ...

, and then played Groezrock in Belgium soon after. Following this, they went on a tour of Europe with NOFX;

Snuff Snuff may refer to: Tobacco * Snuff (tobacco), fine-ground tobacco, sniffed into the nose ** Moist snuff or dipping tobacco ** Creamy snuff, an Indian tobacco paste Media and entertainment * Snuff film, a type of film that shows a murder Literat ...

appeared on three of the shows. In May 2009, they went on a Canadian tour with

, leading up to an appearance at the S.C.E.N.E. Music Festival. They then appeared on Warped Tour again; coinciding with this, they released a split with the Snips. Between July and September 2009, the band toured across Europe, which included an appearance at the

Reading and Leeds Festivals The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend. The Reading Fe ...

. Shortly after this, they played a few shows with Strung Out and Pour Habit, leading up to a performance at

in October 2009. Around this time, they released the ''Cynics'' 7-inch vinyl record. They ended the year supporting the Dropkick Murphys on their headlining tour of the US. On February 9, 2010, ''Cavalcade'' was announced for release in two months' time; its artwork and track listing were posted online. In March 2010, they went on an Australian tour with

No Fun at All No Fun at All (often abbreviated to just NFAA) is a Swedish punk rock band. History The band formed in the summer of 1991 in Skinnskatteberg. The group initially consisted of Mikael Danielsson (guitar), Jimmie Olsson (Singing, vocals, Drum kit ...

and then went on a North American tour with Broadway Calls and

Cobra Skulls Cobra Skulls are an American punk rock band originally from Reno, Nevada, United States, but later based in the San Francisco Bay Area. They have released three studio albums, five EPs, and three 7" splits. History Cobra Skulls were formed in R ...

through to the following month. Preceded by "Carry the Banner", ''

Cavalcade A cavalcade is a procession or parade on horseback, or a mass trail ride by a company of riders. The focus of a cavalcade is participation rather than display. Often, the participants do not wear costumes or ride in formation. Often, a cava ...

'' was released in April 2010. It received rave reviews from numerous critics. Shortly afterwards, the band performed at Rockfest in Belgium. In August 2010, the band went on an East Coast and Midwest tour with the Mighty Mighty Bosstones and

Teenage Bottlerocket Teenage Bottlerocket is an American punk rock band formed in Laramie, Wyoming in 2000. The band was formed by twin brothers Ray and Brandon Carlisle, following the dissolution of their previous band, Homeless Wonders. The band's music is heav ...

. The band toured almost non-stop from 2006 to 2019, starting out as the opening band for artists such as

Joan Jett Joan Jett (born Joan Marie Larkin, September 22, 1958) is an American singer, guitarist, record producer, and actress. Jett is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and for earlier founding and per ...

, Dropkick Murphys, NOFX and Less Than Jake. They have also appeared in numerous festival lineups, including the

, the

, and

Riot Fest Riot Fest is an annual three-day punk rock music festival based in Chicago, Illinois, at Douglass Park. It is known for booking reunions, guest performances, and full album performances. Riot Fest remains one of the largest independently owned m ...

. Their fourth album

Dead Language An extinct language is a language that no longer has any speakers, especially if the language has no living descendants. In contrast, a dead language is one that is no longer the native language of any community, even if it is still in use, l ...

was nominated for a 2014 Juno Award in the category of Metal/Hard Music Album of the Year." Their 2017 release '' Inviting Light'' did equally well.

Discography

Studio albums * ''Destroy to Create'' (2005) (Union Label Group) * ''The Great Awake'' (2007) (Fat Wreck Chords) * ''

'' (2010) (Fat Wreck Chords) No. 54 CAN * ''

'' (2013) (Fat Wreck Chords) * ''Inviting Light'' (2017) (Rise Records, Dine Alone Records) * ''New Ruin'' (2022) (Fat Wreck Records, Dine Alone Records) EPs and singles * ''Demo'' (2002) (Drive Studios) * ''Sleep Is For Bitches EP'' (2007) (Union Label Group) * ''Cynics 7" '' (2009) (Fat Wreck Chords) * ''Monumental 7" '' (2010) (Fat Wreck Chords) * ''Count Your Bruises 7" '' (2011) (Fat Wreck Chords) * ''Caskets Full 7"'' (2013) (Fat Wreck Chords) * ''Resuscitation of the Year 7"'' (2015) (Fat Wreck Chords) * ''Nerves EP'' (2016) (Dine Alone Records) * ''Mass Candescence EP'' (2018) (Dine Alone Records) Splits *''Run Like Hell 7" Split w/ The Snips '', Paper & Plastick (2009) *''Under the Influence Volume 16 7'' Split w/ Dead To Me '' (2011) *''Southwards/Meanwhile In Hell 7" Split w/ ASTPAI '' (2012) *''Calutron Girls/Dagger 7" split w/ Make Do and Mend'', Rise Records (2013) Compilation appearances *''Who Said Ska's Dead?'', Cresswell Records (2003) *''Like Nobodies Business'' (Spill Your Guts), Pezmosis Music Productions (2005) *''We Don't Die We Multiply'' (There's A Problem), 3rd Generation Recordz (2006) *''Like Nobodies Business II'' (...And the World Files For Chapter 11), Pezmosis Music Productions (2006) *''Ska Is Dead 3'' (Open Hearts and Bloody Grins),

Stomp Records Union Label Group is a record label based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was formed through the merger of the smaller labels Stomp Records, 2112 Records, and Tyrant Records. Mayday! Records was later created as a genre imprint. Stomp Records was ...

(2007) *'' All Aboard: A Tribute to Johnny Cash'' (

Cry! Cry! Cry! "Cry! Cry! Cry!" is the debut single by singer-songwriter Johnny Cash. The song was originally released in 1955 and reached number 14 on the Best Sellers charts. Background In 1954, before the release of the song "Cry! Cry! Cry!", Cash signed ...

), Anchorless Records (2008) *'' The Songs of Tony Sly: A Tribute'', Fat Wreck Chords (2013) *''Fat in New York'', Fat Wreck Chords (2013) *'' Division of Spoils'', Fat Wreck Chords (2015) *''Sea Shepherd Benefit vol. 2'', Uncle M Music (2017)

Videography

*"Fred's Got Slacks" (2005) *"Broken Bones" (2006) *"Eulogy" (2007) *"This Respirator" (2008) *"Carry the Banner" (2010) *"Monumental" (2010) *"Count Your Bruises" (2011) *"Arrhythmic Palpitations" ( Dead to Me cover – 2012) *"Birds of England" (2013) *"Tail Feathers" (2014) *"Resuscitation of the Year" (2015) *"Indoors" (2017) *"Performative Hours" (2022) *"Souvenir" (2022) *"Rat King" (2022)

References

External links

*
Official Myspace pageInterview with ChangeTheRecord.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flatliners Canadian punk rock groups Fat Wreck Chords artists Musical groups from the Regional Municipality of York Richmond Hill, Ontario Musical groups established in 2002 2002 establishments in Ontario Rise Records artists Dine Alone Records artists