Billy Talent closed out an epic four-day event at the Rock The Park Music Festival in London, Ontario on Saturday, July, 15, 2023.
Billy Talent’s most recent studio album Crisis of Faith debuted at #1 in Germany and had three singles hit the #1 spot at Canadian Rock Radio which combined to spend a total of 21 weeks atop the Canadian Rock radio chart.
Crisis of Faith debuted at #8 on the Billboard Canadian Albums Chart, joining just four other rock artists who have reached the Top 10 within the past 12 months (Iron Maiden, The Tragically Hip, Kings of Leon and Foo Fighters).
Here is what the band had to say about their latest album:
“A ‘Crisis of Faith’ is what the last few years have felt like while making this record. It was made while the world was facing some of the toughest obstacles we’ve ever had to endure. It’s filled with snap shots of what it means to be human and the struggles we all face both individually and collectively as people. This record was written from the heart.
From the time we set out to write and record this album to now, the journey has been transformative. We welcomed new life within our camp, lost loved ones closest to us, and navigated our way through the ups and downs of a pandemic that is still ongoing. The past few years have seen us question a lot of the things we’ve been taught to believe in: our systems, our governments, our leaders, and even ourselves. We bore witness to the power of the people, worldwide protests for equality and justice, a toxic divisiveness that has grown like a cancer around the world, and a climate crisis which has reached unprecedented new urgencies. Throughout this we’ve also had our own individual struggles but the underlying message here is one of hope. Knowing that you’re not alone and that, through all of our differences, we all want the same things: love, understanding and compassion.
We find it hard to believe that it’s been so long since our last record, but much like everything nowadays, we had to figure it all out on the fly. There were many starts and stops while recording, and at times it felt like everything around us had spiraled beyond our control. However, the end result is an album we are beyond proud of and can’t wait to put out into the world. Again, these are some of the most turbulent times we’ve ever had to face, and this record embodies both the light and dark sides of those feelings. The frustration, the anger, the fear, the instability, and the uncertainty had all found their way into the heart of this record. At the same time, the underlying thread that connects each song is one of hope and resilience. The realization that we need to learn from our differences, and to be more openminded and empathic towards each other and towards our earth. As the world tries to divide us, we know that compassion and kindness will prevail. We know that health, friends, family and community are now, more than ever, the most important things that we have.
You’ll hear a diverse range of sounds on this album, and lyrics that capture every emotion that we were feeling throughout the writing and recording process. This diversity represents a culmination of who we are, what we’ve gone through, and where we’re at as a band. We feel both incredibly fortunate and grateful to everyone that has followed us on our journey and to all the new people we may meet along the way. Regardless of whether you’re new to the band or have been with us from the beginning, we want to say “welcome and thank you” and we hope you enjoy this latest chapter in the Billy Talent book.
Remember that no matter how dark it may get at times, we must find the light. Though it is difficult to see it at times, it’s there and it’s the only way out. Take care of yourselves and we can’t wait to see all of you soon.”
– Ben, Ian, Jonny and Aaron
Looking ahead to September, Billy Talent is set to perform at the Louder Than Life Music Festival in Louisville, Kentucky. They’ll be playing the final night of the festival, which runs September 21-24, 2023, and will be sharing the stage with Green Day, Queens of the Stone Age and countless others.
As previously published in SWOMP, Billy Talent announced they were partnering with EB Research Partnership to help fund a cure for Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a group of devastating and life-threatening genetic skin disorders that affect children from birth.
Founded in 2010 by Jill Vedder, Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, and a group of dedicated parents, EB Research Partnership (EBRP) is the largest global non-profit entity funding research aimed at treating and ultimately curing EB.
The Canadian rockers donated a dollar from each ticket sold at their recent Budweiser Stage Show in Toronto on July 8, 2023.
“I had never heard of EB until someone in my family was diagnosed a few years ago,” said Ben Kowalewicz, lead singer of Billy Talent.
“The more I read about it the deeper I felt l wanted to help in whatever way possible. Then I stumbled upon the EB Research Partnership and saw what remarkable and cutting edge work they were doing, and I reached out to see if there was anything the band could do to help raise awareness and support their efforts to find a cure. Billy Talent is incredibly proud and honoured to align ourselves with such a trailblazing organization like the EBRP and this will be the first of many collaborations with them until that glorious day when we find the cure.”
Billy Talent have been long-time champions for many philanthropic efforts, partnering with their fans during their tours to support a variety of causes, including food insecurity War Child, Make Music Matter, MusiCounts, Kids Help Phone, and MS research.
In 2018 they launched the Billy Talent Charity Trust to give back to a variety of organizations with values that the group believes in.
For more information on EB an the efforts to find a cure, visit https://www.ebresearch.org/.
Mor details about the band are available at https://www.billytalent.com/.