Guts of The Ice - An Exploration of "Puck" Rock/Hockey-core #8: The Boils' Greg Boyle & Eric Endrikat (The Orange & The Black)
The Boils at Wachovia Center, 2006-07 (SOURCE: DAVE "Sausage" Walling)
Not entirely unlike Wrestle/Wrassle Rap or Basketball Rap, there's, apparently, a whole sub-genre of hockey-themed Punk/Hardcore—oftentimes, referred to as "Puck" Rock or Hockey-core. Yes, I've been a die-hard fan of Punk/Hardcore for 15+ years and I, too, only first heard about Puck Rock within the last few weeks. Although, once I started diggin' around, I discovered about 10-15 bands at the forefront; this was, then, gradually narrowed down to 10 "front-line" bands, which will be chronicled here over the course of coming weeks. The "top-scoring" bands we selected include: Crippled Youth, SLAPSHOT, The Hanson Brothers/Nomeansno, Two Man Advantage, The Boils, D.O.A. THE ZAMBONIS, Pansy Division, The Hextalls, and THE RAMOMS' "Gritty Is A Punk" flexi-disc. We sent out a short 6-question interview form to all of the aforementioned bands, received some back, heard a few choice words, and still have yet to hear from a few more. We'll be running those interviews, as well as features, profiles, etc. in the coming weeks. EDITOR'S NOTE: be warned, while I'm a casual hockey fan, I DO NOT claim to be an "expert" on the sport, nor will I EVER claim to know "everything" about hockey-themed Punk/Hardcore. Now, let's just try to have some fun and learn more about the sub-genre together!
The Boils are one of the most revered Hockey Punk/Oi! bands here on The Eastern Coast of these United States. The Boils were originally active from 1995 to about 2008 and have since reunited for a number of "one-off" shows in 2012, 2017, and as recently as 2019. They were once featured on the Vans Warped Tour and toured with the likes of The casualties, Oxymoron, Forgotten, Dead Empty, and Lion's Law. Through the years, The Boils' various line-ups and iterations included Greg "Boil" Boyle/Spider-Greg, Dave "Sausage" Walling, Jon "Johnny! Boil" Boyle, Warren "Correct" Andersen, Mike "TheBoss" Bardzik, Jeff Berman/Divided Heaven, Bert "The Unfillable" Stranix, Eric Endrikat, Mike "Mikey" McKee, and Chris Endrikat. Following The Boils' dissolution around 2008 after their Flyers-sanctioned Hockey Anthems; The Orange & The Black EP, Greg Boyle, Eric Endrikat, Chris Endrikat, Mike Bardzik & Warren Andersen went on to form a similarly-minded Oi! band called THUNDER & GLORY, who released three projects between 2013-17. Often referred to as "the longest-running Boils member, who never appeared on any recordings," Eric Endrikat was, also, in a short-lived band with Greg Boyle in-between The Boils/THUNDER & GLORY called Battledriver. Endrikat is currently an active member of two Philly-based Punk/Oi! bands, Legion 76 & Sweet F*ck All/F.A. Dave "Sausage" Walling from Six Feet Under Records linked us up with both Greg Boyle Eric & Endrikat, via email and you can read our comprehensive Guts of The Ice interview below.
Sincerely,
Matt "The Witzard" Horowitz
Puck Rock/Hardcore Purveyor
01. How did you first get into both hockey and Punk/Hardcore music?
Greg Boyle: Hockey came later for me than Punk Rock. I grew up watching football with the family and with friends. So, Punk Rock was something that came along in middle school/high school. In middle school, I heard some Dead Kennedys, Dead Milkmen, [and] some Sex Pistols. I had already been into Slayer, Testament, D.R.I. [and] Megadeth, working my way through all that. But Punk was unknown to me. And Dead Kennedys-type stuff blew me away. Sex Pistols, I feel like I just listened to them 'cause, like, I was supposed to, it was part of the Punk 101 training course. But even as a kid, I never really thought much of them.They're sorta like, "poster" Punk to me, there really isn't much in there. Around the same time, I feel like The Clash is much more relevant. And, of course, the first wave of real Punk/Oi! bands, The Business, C*ck Sparrer, Ramones, Blitz, Exploited, CRASS, Conflict, Misfits, an' all.
Years later, The Boils covered "Submission" for a Radical Records [Sex] Pistols covers comp. [Never Mind The Sex Pistols Here's The Tribute]. We blew it. Our cover was NOT good. But there were some quality songs on it: Niblick Henbane, Showcase Showdown, Lower Class Brats, Submachine... damn, I wish we hadn't blown it. Oh well.
Eric Endrikat: So, for me, it was the opposite. I grew up playing hockey and didn't get into Punk until middle school and, then, really started getting into that world when I got to high school. I went to a small private school for middle school, so outside of my brother and a few friends, I didn't really know too many people who were into Punk. After middle school, I went to a public high school and that really opened things up for meeting people, who were into the same stuff and, finally, being able to go to shows. I think, it was freshman year when I first went to a real record shop; I think, Noise Pollution and I bought the Harry May 7-inch from The Business and I Wanna Be A Punk from Blanks 77.
My parents' record player got a lot of use after that. My friend, Jack, gave me a copy of a Boils record, at some point, after I found out that this sh*t existed locally. Philly bands like The Boils (obviously, before I joined the band) and Violent Society blew my mind. I ended up starting a band with Jack and my brother, Chris. We were recording with Mike Bardzik, at the time, and that was really my entrance into, eventually, joining The Boils. Wild times joining a band like that at 16/17-years-old. Greg, Mike & [Dave] Sausage definitely taught me a lot and that built the foundation for the other music I've been able to play over the years. Haven't laced up my skates in years, but the guitars and records are still getting some use.
02. What made you decide to combine hockey and Punk/Hardcore stylings through music?
Boyle: It took a while. In the early days of The Boils, my brother, Jon, played drums. In the family, he was the "hockey guy." I never really embraced it the way I did football. But, eventually, thanks to him, I developed enough of an appreciation for it that we wrote the song "Bullies" for our album, From The Bleachers, about the old school Flyers team from the 70's. We had started having more fun with our lyrics, mixing sports/drinking lyrics in with the traditional social/political-type messages we had adhered to in previous releases.
Local sports radio started playing "Bullies," had us on for a few interviews, and Flyers' management contacted us to write a song for the team. When we did interviews for it, I had to defer to my brother and our drummer, Mike [Bardzik], when hockey questions came up, as they were the true hockey fans. I was just sorta winging in from a casual fan [standpoint]. We got free [tickets] for a few years, which was pretty awesome. But the best moment for me was drinking with Wayne Simmonds at a strip bar under The El in North Philly.
Endrikat: I wasn't in the band when [From The] Bleachers or Hockey Anthems were written, but I joined right before Hockey Anthems was released. I played a few shows and, then, jumped into doing the music video for "The Orange & The Black" with the rest of the band. I still have never seen the video, which is, probably, a good thing because I remember having a ridiculous haircut back then. After that, The Flyers asked us to do the music for one of their TV commercials for the "Back with A Vengeance" campaign that they were running. The songs were only a minute long and it was, basically, Greg just saying, "back with a vengeance" over and over, but seeing the final product, which was players getting laid out on the ice with our music playing, was pretty great.
03. For fans new to the "Puck" Rock/Hardcore sub-genre, which release(s) from throughout your discography would you recommend starting out with?
Boyle: Great question! From The Bleachers (2005) would be my only recommendation, released on TKO Records. It was recently pressed on vinyl by Six Feet Under Records. It was when we found our groove; definitely, the mix of Oi!-type stuff, Street Punk, short/fast bursts of Violent Society-styled Hardcore Punk was on-point. That album is near-perfect with a few tracks I could shave off, but, damn, there's, like, over 20 songs on it. You might be into World Poison (1999,) if you really like us; originally, released on Cyclone [Records] and, then, later, re-released on Thorpe Records. Pride & Persecution (2001) was an album that, originally, was gonna be released on Cyclone, but they went under after The Boils/Oxymoron/Forgotten/Dead Empty tour.
So, TKO released it with some track variations from the one that was almost released on Cyclone. Then, Six Feet Under released the original version on vinyl, I think. All in all, I would pass on Pride & Persecution, although Sucker from [Oxymoron] might argue with me that "New Majority" is worth the album alone. When The Sun Goes Down (2002) was our debut on Creep Records. It's OK. It laid the groundwork for us, at the time, when it came out. There's some good and bad 7-inches, the split with Violent Society (1996,) probably, the best. I always liked the Disorderly Conduct split (2000,) but, I might've just really been into their side of it. We did an EP around the song we did for The Flyers games, "The Orange & The Black."
Endrikat: Uh, say, Greg... was it "PUNK" Rock or "PUCK" Rock? Blew, blew, blew it. I have to agree with Greg, though, From The Bleachers would be my pick, too. Hockey Anthems is a fun one, but, I think, Bleachers is a better representation of who The Boils are, while still covering sports.
04. Aside from your own band's music, what other hockey-themed groups, releases, singles, etc. would you recommend, as well?
Boyle: I always felt like Two Man Advantage was the real deal with hockey-type Punk music. Dropkick Murphys (DKM) did "Black & Gold," but, really, let's be honest, the song isn't that good. I love those guys, they're family, but, let's be real here, it's not one of their better songs. And because of The Murphys, Flyers management made us put an accordion in our song. So, that's where they really aggravated us. But, when we had our meeting with The Flyers, we were allowed to leave to call our lawyer, which we didn't have, so I just called Matt [Kelly] from DKM for advice.
Endrikat: Two Man was always the go-to for me. Everyone should, also, probably, go find a copy of "The Penalty Box" by Dave Schultz.
05. If still active, what are the future plans for your band? If currently inactive, do you have any immediate plans for any special re-issues or a proper reunion/comeback?
Boyle: Pretty inactive, although, we never had an official "break-up." Some years ago, we switched gears and played as THUNDER & GLORY, releasing a 10-inch [Living In The Crossfire] on Contra Records & Longshot Music. I have a few things to deal with in life, so, band stuff is, probably, on hold for some time. But, with THUNDER & GLORY we had started a YouTube channel (Battledriver Music) and I'll be posting some Boils [videos], and other [videos] I have from bands we played with, so, Follow us if you like! Updates on new [videos] will be on the THUNDER & GLORY Facebook page.
Endrikat: My brother and I talked Greg into agreeing to a Boils show last year, but that's, probably, the last one for a while. Like Greg said, we never really "broke up," but we moved on. THUNDER & GLORY was and still is a great project, that 10-inch is one of my favorite records that I've been a part of. Life got busy for all of us, though, and we haven't really had time to do much. Hoping that things can start back up, at some point, and we can get back into the studio.
06(A.) Can you walk us through the scenario of how "Bullies" from 2005's From The Bleachers led to your Flyers-sanctioned Hockey Anthems EP and "The Orange & The Black?"
Boyle: Sure, we did "Bullies" for From The Bleachers just as a fun thing to do. I sent the CD to WIP Sports Radio here in Philly, to the morning show, where they did a lot of stuff tied in with local people active in the sports community. They ran with the song, playing it on-air, and inviting us to interviews in the studio. Flyers marketing was listening and Angelo Cataldi, who we owe a big debt of gratitude to, linked us up, and The Flyers had us down for dinner and talked to us about writing a song ("The Orange & The Black") specifically for The Stadium.
They did several reviews of the song, we did it a number of times, but the final version was something we felt good about playing live. They had us play at the stadium once, it didn't go well. We played in some bar in The Stadium during intermissions and let's face it, Punk Rock, especially, the type we played, isn't really for mainstream appeal. The crowd loved "The Orange & The Black and our cover of AC/DC's "Dirty Deeds [Done Dirt Cheap"]... but, otherwise, "Blood On The Fields," "Dominate," "Bed of Whiskey"... they didn't like it.
And, yeah, they, probably, should have had [us] play Bon Jovi covers or something. The crowd looked at us like they were very unhappy. It wasn't good. But we got free Luxury/Box tickets for a couple years, it was nice. We ate a lot of chicken tenders and drank a lot of drinks. It was great. But, then, the third season, we showed up and our seats were regular seats in The Nosebleed Section. We got the hint, they were tired of us. But they still play the song, which is nice. If they ever win The Cup, maybe, we'll get invited to play the parade, that would be really nice.
Endrikat: That show at The Stadium was rough. They definitely didn't fully understand that we weren't a cover band, so us filling the requested two-hour set didn't really work out. In addition to "Dirty Deeds," we played "Nice Boys" by Rose Tattoo and "You Can Get It If You Really Want" by Jimmy Cliff, at least, five times each. It was a fun drunken night, but was, probably, best to leave the music for the wins.
06(B.) As life-long Flyers fans, how has it been having your song "The Orange & The Black" repeatedly played Home Games post-win since 2007?
Boyle: It's great. My Pop-Pop, who passed away in 2019 at 99-years-old, a World War II vet of Iwo Jima, always enjoyed hearing it over the television. It was the best thing with all of this. I like hearing it over the TV, it's good.
Endrikat: It was crazy to be able to walk into a band and get to experience all of that. I just wanted to play Punk Rock; didn’t really expect any of that to be a part of the equation. It's nice to hear they're still using the song, I still get texts from my friends about it when they’re at Home Games.
06(C.) So, did Eric ever appear on any officially released Boils recordings? Or should fans just seek out post-Boils bands, Battledriver and THUNDER & GLORY to hear Eric on the axe?
Endrikat: I was never on any official Boils records, just mostly played live. We did record a bunch of music for a record that never got released. Only a few of those songs ever got finished, though, and we released them as a four-song demo under a new band name called Battledriver. That one doesn't exist online, as far as I know, but we should, probably, get it up there, at some point. Battledriver didn't last too long and that, eventually, morphed into THUNDER & GLORY, which is what we have been concentrating on most since The Boils went on hiatus. Other than that, my other main band is Legion 76. That one has definitely occupied most of my time over the last few years.
Boyle: So, Eric & I had recorded what would have been the full-length follow-up to From The Bleachers, but we bailed on it and never finished it. Four of the songs that would've been on that Boils full-length became a one-off demo we did under the name Battledriver (I later used the name for my YouTube page, as an homage to the lost project.) It was a four-song CD that barely made its way out of Philly. Eric & I, then, went onto to do THUNDER & GLORY and Eric's main focus ever since has been his own band, Legion 76... Cheers and thanks for the questions and, especially, for the interest in having us!
