The music scene in Bathurst has seen tremendous growth over the past few years. With venues like Southside Lounge and now Black Pug Live offering a home for bands who want to showcase their creativity with original music, it’s no wonder the talent pool is as vast and diverse as it is.

King Cod fits comfortably in that mold. A three-piece high-energy hard rock band with Chris Nini on guitar/vocals, Gary Hachey on bass, and Greg Scott on drums, this trio has been busy. Coming off a weekend with shows at The Capital in Fredericton on Friday, and opening the night at Black Pug Live on Saturday, the band is recognizing an important shift in Bathurst music.

“Years ago you couldn’t play original music here,” Chris Nini says. “Somebody might throw you a bone every once in a while, but for the most part gigs were all covers with a setlist that needed to be pre-approved by the venue.”

While the band completely understands the need for tribute acts and cover music, they’re just happy for any venue that allows songwriters to showcase their originals.

The band gives credit to Phil Lefort and Southside Lounge for being huge proponents of the shifting music scene in Bathurst over the past few years, and of course, Pierre Doucet at Black Pug Live, who opened the first venue in town solely dedicated to live music.

“There’s always been a vibrant original music scene here,” says Nini. It was just a matter of finding places that would let us play, which often meant house parties, basements, garages, anywhere that would have us.”

King Cod has been together for over a year, and the formation of the band felt natural. “It clicked right away,” says Hachey. 

For Chris, having Greg and Gary want to work on original music he’d been writing was huge. As most of the offers he received were to do covers. 

Now the guys get together for weekly jam sessions in an old storage shed on St. Patrick St.

“The place took about three months to clear out,” says Greg Scott. “There’s a lot of blood, sweat and tears in this place.”

Now the area is set-up with instruments, amps, and a soundboard, creating the perfect rock and roll atmosphere. 

The guys get along well, and they credit that to a mutual respect they have for each other to honor their commitments.

“That’s the biggest beast in any band,” says Chris. “To get everybody on the same wavelength.”

Now the band is preparing to release their debut EP titled Off the Hook. While they don’t have an exact release date, the plan is to release it in the fall in late September, early-October.

They also plan to do a tour to promote it once the spring rolls around, because as we know the northern New Brunswick winters aren’t ideal for a travelling band.

The artwork for the EP was done by local artist Colton Coombs, and the recording for the album by Jerome Arseno of local original music pioneers, Mean Street.

The band doesn’t currently have any gigs lined up for next month, but you can catch them opening for Engage the Threat at the end of September at Black Pug Live.

We want to thank Chris, Greg, and Gary for the interview and wish them the best of luck.

Well, that’s it for another edition of the Northern Heat Report. The place you come to listen to the stories that have not yet been discovered.