The Ducky Boys

This article is about the punk group. For the gang, see The Ducky Boys gang.
The Ducky Boys
Origin Boston, Massachusetts
Genres Street punk
Punk rock
Years active 1995 – present
Labels State Line Records
Sailor's Grave Records
Thorp Records
Flat Records
GMM Records
I Scream Records
Website duckyboys.com
Members Mark Lind
Jason Messina
Douglas Sullivan
Rich Crimlisk
Past members Mike Marsden
James Lynch
Mike O'Leary

The Ducky Boys are a street punk band from Boston, Massachusetts. Since forming in 1995 in the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston, the band has spanned over eighteen years with three tenures that have led to six full-length albums and over 80 songs. The band derives its name from the name of an Irish street gang in the 1979 movie, "The Wanderers".

For the past ten years, the band has been composed of frontman Mark Lind (bass and vocals), Jason Messina drums and guitarist Douglas Sullivan. The Ducky Boys have released five studio albums (the last three from this current lineup) along with several 7-inch records and appearances on compilations. Rich Crimlisk joined the band in 2012 and played on the "Chemicals" EP as well as the forthcoming sixth studio album.

Over the last ten years, the band's sound has evolved from quick punk riffs to more stripped down rock music and a developing message of social consciousness. However, the band's influences, which include Rancid, The Replacements, The Clash, Bruce Springsteen, and dozens of other punk and rock n' roll bands, still remains a prevalent element in the band's sound.

This band should not be confused with another punk band by the similar name, Ducky Boys, from Brooklyn, New York, formed in the early 1980s, and featured on the 2006 Staring Down the Barrel compilation, which features over a dozen tracks by very obscure, unknown punk bands from 1979 through 1983.[1]

History

Formation and early years

The band was formed in 1995 by Lind (age 18), Messina (age 19), and former guitarist Mike Marsden (age 17). The band's first two songs were "White Slum" and "Pride". The band soon recorded their first official release in a 7" split with Dropkick Murphys and within a year, the band was picked up by GMM records.

The band's first album, No Gettin' Out, was recorded at Salad Days Studio, Boston, and was released in May 1997. Featuring the song "I'll Rise Up", the album was composed of 15 tracks that totaled a length of almost 39 minutes.

Dark Days

Soon after the release of No Getting Out, the band, along with guitarist Mike O'Leary, returned to the studio. Recorded between February and March 1998, the album Dark Days would help define the band and eventually increase their status in the punk rock community. Featuring songs such as "These Are The Days" and "I've Got My Friends," the album was widely praised and deemed a street punk classic. The tour for this album was with Dropkick Murphys and Oxymoron. This saw the first appearance of James Lynch on guitar while on tour. O'Leary, still in high school at the time, was unable to tour.

However, as Lind stated in a recent interview, "we didn't know what we were doing" soon after the release of Dark Days. "We thought bigger than we actually were", Lind further stated and as a result, the band soon experienced turmoil over the future direction and would eventually break up though they would remain on and off until 2002.

Three Chords and the Truth

After almost five years, which saw several successful side-projects by Lind, Sinners and Saints and Dirty Water, the band permanently re-formed in 2003. Gone were Marsden and O'Leary with former The Eleventh Hour lead singer Douglas Sullivan taking over on lead guitar. With this soon came the recording of the band's third album, entitled Three Chords and the Truth. Under the production of Jim Siegel, the album has a clear, big, professional sound found in both the punk shout outs and melodic rock n' roll type songs.

The album features a punk-influenced cover of the song, "Stand By Me." Lind's song writing was widely acclaimed and the album as a whole proved to be a huge success in both sales and popularity.

The War Back Home

Lind began writing shortly after the release of Three Chords and within a year, production began on the band's fourth album The War Back Home. The album was more of a group presentation with several lyrics written by Sullivan and a more complex drum sound. The album features both punk and blues elements with influences by both The Clash and Dropkick Murphys clearly heard with the message again evokes social themes of political, social, and economic magnitude. It received relatively positive reviews.

The 12 song album features "Celebrate," "Bombs Away," and "The Middle Children of History," all which exhibit the developing style and message of the band; and especially focusing on topics such as poverty and the war in Iraq.

Chasing the Ghost

In 2012, the Ducky Boys released their fifth studio album, Chasing the Ghost. It was recorded at Mad Oak Studios in Allston, Massachusetts. Originally slated to be a 7-inch record or an EP, a breakup brought a surge of songwriting from Mark Lind and the project quickly became a full-length 17-track album. As a result, many of the songs deal with that sort of loss and the roller coaster of emotions that go along with it. Perhaps the band's strongest overall effort yet, the record also marks the first songs with guitarist Douglas Sullivan singing lead vocals on two tracks. Live support for the record has included sets with the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Dropkick Murphys, Sick of it All, The Pietasters, Madball, H2O, The Cromags, Cockney Rejects and Rancid, among others. These shows have also featured a second guitarist with each set - ex-Ducky Boys member and current Dropkick Murphys guitarist James Lynch for one show and Morgan Knockers guitarist Rich Crimlisk for the others. Chasing the Ghost was released in January 2012 on the band's own State Line Records and was followed in May 2012 with the four song digital EP, Chemicals, featuring all new songs. None of these songs were leftovers from the CTG sessions.

Dead End Streets

The band is currently operating on a "part-time" basis, performing a small amount of shows throughout the year, featuring the lineup of Lind, Messina, Sullivan and Rich Crimlisk.

Ducky Boys released their latest album, Dead End Streets, on State Line Records in June 2013. The band performed an album release show with Swingin Utters and The Welch Boys in June 2013. They since regrouped in April 2014 to help organize and perform on a two night fundraiser for two Boston firemen killed in the line of duty. The benefit shows raised over $52,000 as featured performances by Street Dogs, Avoid One Thing, Slapshot, Stray Bullets, The Welch Boys among others.

Ducky Boys have remained relatively silent since 2013 but periodically post updates to their Facebook page. While no upcoming shows have been announced, the band has been clear that it is not over. Rich, Jason and Mark have been playing in a new band called The Warning Shots.

Members

Former members

Performances

The Ducky Boys have performed with the following bands:

Discography

LPs

EPs

Compilations

References

  1. ↑ Discogs Database, Entry for Staring Down the Barrel Compilation CD
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