{"data":{"id":"72a178c6-10dd-43be-a1c4-cf6640700db5","originKind":"SYNDICATED","title":"Big Evil Rat releases wicked new self-titled album ahead of Purple City gig","summary":"One of the most hypnotic and danceable local live rock bands going, I always cheerfully describe Big Evil Rat as three bands at once, somewhere between Buddy Holly and the thundering heights of Fugazi.\n\nLike channels switching, the six-piece Rat pack have a beautifully controlled mayhem going, garage, punk and straight up rock and roll, the kind of storm you want to stand outside in.\n\nThree of them are essentially lead singers – Nolan Bossert and Corey Sutton, who both play guitar, and wild-eyed keyboardist Hank Sebzda for a couple total, scream-in-key freakout songs.\n\nTo make things even more nuts, in the rhythm section with bass player Becca Samilde are a duo of full-kit drummers, Sam Leuck and Andy Proskow, who at 37 is the band’s grizzled elder. Darlings of Sled Island who only play a couple shows in town a year, Big Evil Rat has just released its first full-length, a wild, Funkadelic-structured mix tape of diverse charmers and drywall-kickers where you feel like you can hear the band smiling at following one perfect song after another.\n\nYou can’t see them play until Purple City Music Fest Sept. 11-13, but the occasion of the self-titled album release was not to be ignored, and a few of us shared a hilarious interview at the Black Dog recently in the presence of a Dave Mustaine/Garfield sticker.\n\nFish: Where did the idea of Big Evil Rat originally come from?\n\nNolan: We’re living in a rat-free province, so just introducing a rat to the city.\n\nFish: What did you say earlier, Corey, if you weren’t in a band you’d be …?\n\nCorey: Dead, in a pit of despair.\n\nNolan: He’d just be standing over there in the corner in a leather jacket.\n\nFish: Corey, before we get going can you talk about your unfortunate Megadeth experience?\n\nCorey: I fell asleep standing up at Wonderbar one time, but I usually pull through. But yeah, we played a show in February and I was up all night more or less, and then went to Megadeth with my cousin. We couldn’t mosh because we were up in the stands and so I sat down and my eyes started to get a little heavy, like Garfield bleary eyes, and security was right on us and kicked us out!\n\nFish: I guess those things are really together now.\n\nCorey: Garfield as Dave Mustaine? (laughs, pointing at the sticker)\n\nFish: I think Garfield would still be younger in cat years – he’s 48 now.\n\nCorey: In dog years I’m dead!\n\nFish: Speaking of which, Nolan, you’re the super vet of the band, can you explain how this band is both three years old and eight years old?\n\nNolan: We started the band in 2018 with just some friends for the sake of playing music between projects and a few of us were moving to different projects, so we decided to do just one show. Then, a few years later, I applied to Sled Island with the name and got in, so everybody kind of circled back, some members rejoined, some new members, and we’ve played Sled every year since. We’ve been lucky.\n\nFish: Andy, how does it work when there are three singers – are you just jamming and coming up with things together?\n\nAndy: A lot of these songs existed to begin with, so I was lucky enough to be a fan coming in about a year and a half ago. Nolan’s an amazing songwriter, but it’s really awesome seeing Corey, who has a lot of cool ideas. We’re really branching out.\n\nFish: And how does having two drummers work – I imagine things have to be pretty tight and in sync.\n\nSam: The idea is to not improvise as much as possible and make it an actual part that we’re all playing together.\n\nAndy: And the idea that you forget that you’re two drummers and get this, “Holy f— those guys are so loud!”\n\nSam: I think that’s where the whole double drum thing’s really cool. And if we’re nailing it we’re not just playing over each other, which I think we’re good at.\n\nCorey: Part of the fun is when I turn around and look back at them, it’s like two dolphins jumping out of the water together. (everyone laughs)\n\nAndy: When Sam and I are playing, I have to watch him more than anybody I have in a band before. We’re looking at each others’ hands, feet, I’m looking at his face. I can see his body when he’s about to crash huge.\n\nNolan: I also want to shout out to Becca, who’s been in the band since 2018. She’s a big force in what makes the sound.\n\nAndy: And her specific bass tone is just huge. It felt like such a massive void in the spectrum when she was on a trip for a couple months.\n\nFish: Can you talk about how the album was tracked? It feels a lot like the live set caught on flypaper.\n\nCorey: Yeah, we did them as we laid them down in the set, so we just ripped each song a couple times and took the best take.\n\nAndy: We went in to record a single, maybe a couple songs, and we ended up recording a whole album, to everyone’s surprise. (laughs)\n\nFish: The old versions of the songs online are cleaner and janglier and you guys are just messier, which is so much fun. It was monsterless before, and now you have Nolan doing that insane Big Evil Rat voice saying the band’s name, and the crowd cheering added in…\n\nAndy: That vocal effect makes me laugh every time.\n\nFish: Yeah, it’s very much like you guys aren’t taking yourselves seriously, even though the playing is very serious and well done.\n\nNolan: Yeah, it’s disarming, I think, the Rat, especially in a live show where it takes the place of stage banter. We don’t have to talk, it’s just a nice transition to the next song, whenever someone has to tune or whatever.\n\nFish: Why did you decide to release the album as a tape?\n\nNolan: It’s the cheapest medium. I used to run a label with friends, Sweetie Pie Records, so I just have a love of cassette tapes. I work in a record store but the majority of my music is on tapes. Everything’s digital these days so it’s nice to have a physical thing you can hold while you stream.\n\nFish: Ironically, you guys are the first band I ever streamed using ear bids off my laptop after you sent the link, so I was like, “Oh my god! I can research and clean my apartment at the same time!” I’m about 150 years behind on tech.\n\nCorey: Happy to be of service!\n\nfgriwkowsky@postmedia.com\n\n@fisheyefoto.bsky.social\n\nRelated Jon Nordstrom, 1974-2026: Calgary, Edmonton musicians pay tribute to bassist and songwriter\n\nSherwood Park actor makes TV debut in Elle\n\nBookmark our website and support our journalism: Don’t miss the news you need to know — add EdmontonJournal.com and EdmontonSun.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.\n\nYou can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun.","url":"https://edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/edmonton-big-evil-rat-album-purple-city","imageUrl":"https://smartcdn.gprod.postmedia.digital/edmontonjournal/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/0801-you-bigevilrat.jpg","publishedAt":"2026-07-30T20:54:24.000Z","sourceLabel":"Edmonton Journal Music","tags":["Entertainment","Local Arts","Music"],"authorName":"Fish Griwkowsky","contentHtml":"\"Big

One of the most hypnotic and danceable local live rock bands going, I always cheerfully describe Big Evil Rat as three bands at once, somewhere between Buddy Holly and the thundering heights of Fugazi.

Like channels switching, the six-piece Rat pack have a beautifully controlled mayhem going, garage, punk and straight up rock and roll, the kind of storm you want to stand outside in.

Three of them are essentially lead singers – Nolan Bossert and Corey Sutton, who both play guitar, and wild-eyed keyboardist Hank Sebzda for a couple total, scream-in-key freakout songs.

To make things even more nuts, in the rhythm section with bass player Becca Samilde are a duo of full-kit drummers, Sam Leuck and Andy Proskow, who at 37 is the band’s grizzled elder. Darlings of Sled Island who only play a couple shows in town a year, Big Evil Rat has just released its first full-length, a wild, Funkadelic-structured mix tape of diverse charmers and drywall-kickers where you feel like you can hear the band smiling at following one perfect song after another.

You can’t see them play until Purple City Music Fest Sept. 11-13, but the occasion of the self-titled album release was not to be ignored, and a few of us shared a hilarious interview at the Black Dog recently in the presence of a Dave Mustaine/Garfield sticker.

Fish: Where did the idea of Big Evil Rat originally come from?

Nolan: We’re living in a rat-free province, so just introducing a rat to the city.

Fish: What did you say earlier, Corey, if you weren’t in a band you’d be …?

Corey: Dead, in a pit of despair.

Nolan: He’d just be standing over there in the corner in a leather jacket.

Fish: Corey, before we get going can you talk about your unfortunate Megadeth experience?

Corey: I fell asleep standing up at Wonderbar one time, but I usually pull through. But yeah, we played a show in February and I was up all night more or less, and then went to Megadeth with my cousin. We couldn’t mosh because we were up in the stands and so I sat down and my eyes started to get a little heavy, like Garfield bleary eyes, and security was right on us and kicked us out!

Fish: I guess those things are really together now.

Corey: Garfield as Dave Mustaine? (laughs, pointing at the sticker)

Fish: I think Garfield would still be younger in cat years – he’s 48 now.

Corey: In dog years I’m dead!

Fish: Speaking of which, Nolan, you’re the super vet of the band, can you explain how this band is both three years old and eight years old?

Nolan: We started the band in 2018 with just some friends for the sake of playing music between projects and a few of us were moving to different projects, so we decided to do just one show. Then, a few years later, I applied to Sled Island with the name and got in, so everybody kind of circled back, some members rejoined, some new members, and we’ve played Sled every year since. We’ve been lucky.

Fish: Andy, how does it work when there are three singers – are you just jamming and coming up with things together?

Andy: A lot of these songs existed to begin with, so I was lucky enough to be a fan coming in about a year and a half ago. Nolan’s an amazing songwriter, but it’s really awesome seeing Corey, who has a lot of cool ideas. We’re really branching out.

Fish: And how does having two drummers work – I imagine things have to be pretty tight and in sync.

Sam: The idea is to not improvise as much as possible and make it an actual part that we’re all playing together.

Andy: And the idea that you forget that you’re two drummers and get this, “Holy f— those guys are so loud!”

Sam: I think that’s where the whole double drum thing’s really cool. And if we’re nailing it we’re not just playing over each other, which I think we’re good at.

Corey: Part of the fun is when I turn around and look back at them, it’s like two dolphins jumping out of the water together. (everyone laughs)

Andy: When Sam and I are playing, I have to watch him more than anybody I have in a band before. We’re looking at each others’ hands, feet, I’m looking at his face. I can see his body when he’s about to crash huge.

\"

Nolan: I also want to shout out to Becca, who’s been in the band since 2018. She’s a big force in what makes the sound.

Andy: And her specific bass tone is just huge. It felt like such a massive void in the spectrum when she was on a trip for a couple months.

Fish: Can you talk about how the album was tracked? It feels a lot like the live set caught on flypaper.

Corey: Yeah, we did them as we laid them down in the set, so we just ripped each song a couple times and took the best take.

Andy: We went in to record a single, maybe a couple songs, and we ended up recording a whole album, to everyone’s surprise. (laughs)

Fish: The old versions of the songs online are cleaner and janglier and you guys are just messier, which is so much fun. It was monsterless before, and now you have Nolan doing that insane Big Evil Rat voice saying the band’s name, and the crowd cheering added in…

Andy: That vocal effect makes me laugh every time.

Fish: Yeah, it’s very much like you guys aren’t taking yourselves seriously, even though the playing is very serious and well done.

Nolan: Yeah, it’s disarming, I think, the Rat, especially in a live show where it takes the place of stage banter. We don’t have to talk, it’s just a nice transition to the next song, whenever someone has to tune or whatever.

Fish: Why did you decide to release the album as a tape?

Nolan: It’s the cheapest medium. I used to run a label with friends, Sweetie Pie Records, so I just have a love of cassette tapes. I work in a record store but the majority of my music is on tapes. Everything’s digital these days so it’s nice to have a physical thing you can hold while you stream.

Fish: Ironically, you guys are the first band I ever streamed using ear bids off my laptop after you sent the link, so I was like, “Oh my god! I can research and clean my apartment at the same time!” I’m about 150 years behind on tech.

Corey: Happy to be of service!

fgriwkowsky@postmedia.com

@fisheyefoto.bsky.social

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You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun.

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