Choke (band)

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Choke
Origin	Edmonton
Country	Canada
Years active	1995–present
Genres	Punk
Labels	Smallman Records
Members	Clay Shea Jack Jaggard Shawn Moncrieff Stefan Levasseur

With six albums over ten years, Choke is truly a mainstay of Canadian punk.

Over the past eleven years, Edmonton, Alberta's Choke has become known for their innovative style and intriguing musical sense. They create music that can only be classified by their dedication and love for it. Combining influences from jazz to punk to metal and more, Choke fosters a sound that is uniquely their own. With original members Jack Jaggard, Clay Shea, Shawn Moncrieff and Stefan Levasseur, Choke has toured non-stop in Canada and the USA and have established a reputation for their groundbreaking music and intense live shows.

The lead Singer of the band is also known, world-wide, for his terrible odor in the foot region.

Choke released their first two albums independently, Lotion in 1995 and Give'er in 1996, which was later released through Smallman Records who signed the band in 1997. Choke released Needless To Say the following year, an album that was chosen by Exclaim magazine as one of the top ten punk albums of the year. 1999 saw the release of Foreward, which charted on both the CMJ (US) and Earshot (Can) radio charts. In 2002, There's A Story To This Moral was released to increasing critical acclaim. Slow Fade Or How I Learned To Question Infinity was recorded in Vancouver, British Columbia with Blair Calibaba (Gob, Propagandhi) and Paul Forgues (Slayer, Nine Inch Nails, Treble Charger), and became the fifth release through Smallman Records. The band was heralded as "...one of the finest technically progressive bands on the planet" ~ Exclaim.

Slow Fade catches all of Choke's musical intricacies with incredible clarity and power. Maintaining the quality and innovation of their past work, Slow Fade also moves the band into new territory. As Shea explains, "I don't think we've ever made the same records twice. But I think in this one we've picked up where we left off with 2002's There's A Story To This Moral. We've been experimenting a little more with effects, really pushing ourselves and trying to do new things, keep it fresh and interesting for us." The result is a cohesive blend of complex guitar lines and technical prowess, underpinned with the punk intensity that Choke is known for.

Choke has toured with The Ataris, No Use for a Name, Satanic Surfers and Bad Religion, Strung Out and AFI, Good Riddance, My Chemical Romance, Small Brown Bike & Piebald.

"I haven't been blown away by a record in a long time... Slow Fade is an absolute masterpiece." ~ Punkrocks.net.

"Catchy and moderately infectious while still pushing the boundaries of what some may refer to as emo, Slow Fade is challenging without alienating those aching for a little frenzy in the punk." ~ Chart.