Humanifesto


Humanifesto was a Canadian hardcore punk music group from Montreal formed in 2004 by singer / bassist Phil Campeau and singer / guitarist Franck Chevrier, and which was active between 2004 and 2011. Over years, the band would perform over 100 shows in the Eastern Canadian area, sharing the stage with notable acts including Propagandhi, Strike Anywhere, The Video Dead, Chixdiggit and Hostage Life, and would go on to record two full-length albums, their debut A Declaration of Intent, followed by The Infamous as well as a split 7" vinyl EP All These Lives and a NOFX tribute album, released on 7" vinyl, titled Don't Eat Meat.

History

2004 - Band formation & recording / release of ''A Declaration of Intent''

Soon after Phil Campeau and Franck Chevrier formed the band in 2004, the band quickly wrote and recorded their first album, A Declaration Of Intent with the help of The Sainte Catherines' Rich Bouthillier filling in on drums, and their guitarist Marc-Andre Beaudet behind the mixing console. Shortly after the independent release of A Declaration Of Intent, Rich Bouthillier's busy schedule with The Sainte Catherines made it clear he could not be Humanifesto's full-time drummer. Not long thereafter, former bandmate of Franck Chevrier's, Andrew McGrath was recruited on drums, and the band's longest-lasting line-up was established.

2006 - recording / release of ''All These Lives'' EP

The band's first EP consisted of the first three songs written with the band's new line up - All these lives, Yesterday's Headlines and Sitting Duck Hunt - and was recorded at the beginning of 2006. The title song All these Lives was later released as a single on the Make Trade Fair compilation album, released by Lower Left Records to raise awareness of alternatives to sweatshop labour. The two additional tracks Yesterday's Headlines and Sitting Duck Hunt were released on a split 7" vinyl with I Am The Cartographer, on Hip Kid Records in August 2007.

2006 - recording / release of ''Don't Eat Meat'' 7" EP

In the summer of 2006, the band returned into the studio to record a new EP, entitled Don't Eat Meat. This project was in fact a tribute to NOFX's Fuck The Kids EP, performing the music arrangements and vocal melodies from the NOFX disc, but replacing the original lyrics with Humanifesto-style left-wing political ones. After shelving the project for a year while working on other projects, Fat Mike of NOFX authorized Humanifesto to release the project on 7" vinyl. This disc was issued in spring 2008 by KOI Records in Texas.

2007-2010 - recording / release of ''The Infamous''

The band's second full-length album was titled The Infamous. The album was unique in its concept as every song title on the album including the album title itself, were an anagram of the band's name. Notable song titles included on this release were "Oh, Meat Is Fun!", "US Anthem of I", "Some Thai Fun", "Atheism of UN" and "South Famine". The original version of this album was written, recorded and mixed between 2007 and 2008 with the band's established three-piece line up but due to growing discord between band members and friction with the studio where it had been recorded, the recording never made it to mastering and was eventually shelved and never released. This episode led to Andrew McGrath's departure from the band, and subsequent relocation to Malta in late 2009. It wasn't before a shuffle in line up, which saw Dan Audette join the band on lead guitar, and Justin Santora sit in on drums, that The Infamous was re-recorded and released on Koi Records in 2010. In May 2010, and in support of The Infamous the band toured Quebec and Ontario with bandmates Society's Ills, before drummer, Justin Santora, was forced to leave Montreal and return home to Chicago.

2010 - Elegy

The last official Humanifesto recording was a song called Elegy, the drum tracks for which were recorded by Andrew McGrath overseas in March 2010 at the in Malta, the same studio where Rammstein recorded platinum record, Sehnsucht.

Break-up

The last Humanifesto show was on June 12 of 2010, in Montreal at Cafe Chaos and featured Andrew McGrath back behind the drums. It was seen as a serendipitous reunion and highlighted an end to the discord which had permeated much of the period between 2007–2008.
In January 2011, it was announced via the Humanifesto Facebook page that the band would be "moving on to new projects". The band has not recorded or performed since.

Before / After Humanifesto

- Before -

Phil Campeau was formerly a member of Montreal punk band First Impression, Franck Chevrier and Andrew McGrath were originally members of Highwire and Strike Nine and Justin Santora's former recording project was called I Am The Cartographer.

- After -

Dan Audette continues to play guitar / sing in Society's Ills.
Andrew McGrath plays the drums in ManaTapu, a Malta-based ska / reggae band.
In March 2013, Franck Chevrier and Phil Campeau, alongside Scott Loney and Yves Boulay, formed new project Addington Lennox. Their first full-length album, At Sixes and Sevens, featured Andrew McGrath on drums and was recorded at Bridgehead Studio in Montreal, in February 2014. The album was independently released in September 2014.

Discography

Albums