Fans of Edmonton punk four-piece Choke should be familiar with the names Clay Shea and Shawn Moncrieff. The two played in that band for 13 years, putting out six releases and garnering critical acclaim in the process.

When Choke broke up, Shea and Moncrieff formed Passenger Action along with Ryan Podlubny (ex-The Full Blast) and Allan Harding (ex-Thirty Nights of Violence). Speaking by phone from Edmonton at the beginning of February, Shea talked about what sets Passenger Action aside from other bands he’s played in.

“Some people would think it would be more trying to live up to things, you know with the success we had in Choke and things like that. I [actually] feel a lot less pressure,” he said.
Passenger Action recorded the Acoustic Blueprints EP in 2006, releasing it independently the following year. When they signed on with Smallman Records to record a full-length last year, the label decided to re-release the EP digitally.

“We had our little run of [a] limited print and it was sold out. So, it was just the label suggested it and said it would be credited as an official release in terms of our contract details and stuff. I guess it’s nice, and we’re happy that people can get it if they want it.”

Passenger Action decided to sign with Smallman Records because of the good experience Choke had on the label.

“We recorded the EP pretty quick. We initially recorded it to use a demo and shop it around and ended up releasing it ourselves,” Shea said. “The guys at Smallman really liked it, and we had a couple of other options, but in the end [we] went back with our old buddies.”

The band recorded its full-length late last year in Brampton, Ontario at BWC Studios. The 12-song disc is full of catchy riffs, crisp vocals and soothing melodies. It’s sure to attract new fans, as well satisfy old Choke fans too. Greg Dawson produced it.

“We were really impressed with how he was able to up [our performance] level in the recording [on our EP]. So for sure we thought we would give him a chance to make a record,” Shea said.

As for future tour plans, Shea has high hopes.

“Ultimately, I want to go to Europe and Japan while touring this record,” he said. “That is all a pipe dream right now, but it’s part of the reason I’m still motivated to play music.”

Published in Volume 63, Number 21 of The Uniter (February 26, 2009)