Daily Inspiration: Meet Boiler Beach

Today we’d like to introduce you to Terry Marsh of Boiler Beach.

Hi Terry, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Mid-2019, two guys and a girl decided to start making (mostly) party music inspired by the 90’s pop-punk alt-rock genre. Boiler Beach are: ANDREA MATCHETT, lead vocals, guitar, bass, accordion, keys, production; TERRY MARSH, background vocals, bass, guitar, marketing, booking, finance; MIKE STOPFORD, drums, graphic design, administration.

Boiler Beach entertains for hours with fun, catchy originals and a wide variety of popular cover songs – everything from the 70’s to what’s currently on the Top 40 charts.

We are 100% DIY and self-sufficient! We do it all from booking, writing, recording, promotion, sound, lighting, wardrobe, performance, merchandising and more!

NEXT, we have our first Christmas album in post-production! “Merry Merry” should be ready for release November of 2024.

WE BRING THE FUN!!!

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Despite having an extraordinary amount of support from family, fans, and the local community, there are ALWAYS challenges when trying to make music your profession! Attempting to stand out of the crowd and be a top choice for entertainment, while trying to make a living at it at the same time can be extremely difficult.

Boiler Beach hit the ground running with a string of well-received shows in Kincardine and Hamilton in 2019, then appearances in 2020 & 2021 had to be cancelled due to Covid-19 restrictions.

We had the opportunity to play a couple of live stream events with www.indie-rocks.ca, New Year’s Eve 2020 With NPX and Second City in support of CMHA, and a bunch of great shows including Youth Showcases, street parties, private parties, airplay on 97.9 The Bruce and 95.5 Shoreline Classics FM, opening for BOBNOXIOUS, another great Halloween show at The Bruce’s FIRST show of 2021 and our first show at The Pub in Owen Sound.

2022 saw full shows open up and we had our BUSIEST year YET, playing the Lelawala Music Fest, Kincardine Summer Music Festival, Paisley Blues Fest, and Kincardine Scottish Festival, lots of great shows at The Pub in Owen Sound, The Bruce & Locals in Kincardine, The Queens in Port Elgin, many private events, charity events for: Canadian Cancer Society, The Foundation Fighting Blindness and Miracle Treat Day, lots of shows for the Municipality of Kincardine and Kincardine BIA, opening for BOBNOXIOUS again at Heartwood in Owen Sound, competing in the Audacy Opening Act Contest, finishing in the top 8 out of over 15,000, and appearing on Eastlink TV’s Tailgate Talent Show!

For 2023, we played 40 shows, including at the Kincardine Scottish Festival, Barrie Waterfront Festival, Lion’s Head Harbourside Concert Series, Goderich Downtown Music Festival, Port Elgin Pumpkinfest, private parties and club shows in Owen Sound, Kincardine, Port Elgin, Wingham, Cambridge and London. We had many collaborations with great artists including Fall Down 7, Nuclear Vibes, Screw U Sweetheart, K-Man and the 45s, Ian BW and more.

Our documentary, “Party For a Living” which was shot at our 2023 Kincardine Scottish Festival appearance, premiered at a fundraiser for the Kincardine Food Bank in January 2024. We launched our self-contained party-in-a-box; the Mobile Concert Stage in 2024, appearing at events, and parties across the region with this fully self-sufficient trailer stage. We produced our own Summer Sunset Songwriter Series of shows on our stage at Station Beach, benefiting different charities and showcasing many featured artists. We appeared at more festival events including Strummerfest in Waterloo, Women Rock For Men’s Mental Health in London, Sauble Beach Sandfest, Goderich Sunset Festival, Port Elgin Pumpkinfest and have made trips to new locations like Sarnia, Timmins, North Bay and more. We have multiple Halloween shows and Christmas shows planned for this year, as well as a gala fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters to cap the year on New Year’s Eve.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
The main thing that we are known for is that we BRING THE FUN! Our shows are always high-energy, and full of great moments with the audience. We do a lot of shows in family settings, where the kids, their parents, grandparents and, really ANYONE, can have fun with us.

What we’re most proud of is our original material. When writing our songs, we focus on having a positive message and making our songs fun and accessible. We draw from our many experiences as individuals to look at those experiences in a positive light. Feeling that we didn’t fit in gave MISFIT its message. Feeling like people point and laugh and talk behind your back is what STOP AND STARE is about. Reacting to peer pressure and seeing friends going down the wrong path is the inspiration for MY OWN WAY.

We have recently been able to form a partnership with KIDS HELP PHONE because the message of our music echoes many of the themes that KHP highlights in their messaging. We are producing a one-hour presentation with their videos and our music to present live in schools. Having the ability and the platform to reach out to kids in a positive way is immeasurably satisfying.

A HUGE thing that sets us apart now is our ability to have a show ANYWHERE. Our Mobile Concert Stage is a 28 foot trailer with a 16ft stage door that folds down out of it. The MCS has full lighting and sound, and is self-sufficient with its 7000w generator. The MCS has given us the ability to bring professional-level production to shows at a quarter of the cost of a bare stage rental, making these kinds of shows far more accessible to private individuals, service organizations, municipalities, small businesses, charitable organizations and more.

Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
Keep going, look after each other, and adapt.

The lockdown hit when we were 9 months into our journey. We had a pile of shows lined up for 2020, all of which were cancelled. At first, like most people, we were unsure as to what was going to happen. We did a few online shows just to be performing, and then when summertime came, we were able to do a couple of shows on the main street in Kincardine. Our municipality did a fantastic job of keeping businesses alive during the lockdowns and the restrictions by closing off the main street to traffic, making a promenade that allowed local businesses to set up and sell to people in an outdoor setting throughout the summer. We were able to produce a couple of private parties for people where there were 50 people or less in attendance outdoors, with social-distancing measures in place. We even had the opportunity to participate in an online NYE party Dec 31, 2020 when the largest employer in the area funded an event in conjunction with Second City Comedy. We were asked to provide music on video for the event. it was a HUGE challenge to produce 20 minutes of video with just 6 days’ notice, but we got it done!
The biggest challenge was with planning beyond 2020, as we were really uncertain as to what to expect. We had a New Year’s Eve party planned for 2021 and an outbreak forced the bar owner to cancel it, so that was a drag, but in general we feel lucky to have come through those 2 years relatively okay.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/boilerbeachband/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/boilerbeachband
• Twitter: https://x.com/beachboiler
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@boilerbeach1495
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.ca/biz/boiler-beach-kincardine
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/boilerbeach
• Other: https://www.indietunz.com/boiler-beach-music

Image Credits
Dan Blenkinsop, Janice Matchett, Boiler Beach