Ryder Rocks Canada: A New York Rock and Roll Band's Journey To The Great White North, In Support of Chris Holmes

jaybroderick
Sep 30
3 min read

Ryder performs live at The Rockpile in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Michael Drukarsh

By: Michael Drukarsh - Hailing from Queens fucking New York, Ryder have crossed the border to bring four shows to their Canadian fans while supporting Chris Holmes and his 'Sound of W.A.S.P.' Tour, and are they ever having fun!

Evident from some of their Instagram posts, the band, consisting of Lead singer and rhythm guitarist James Ryder, Bassist and backup vocalist Rod Viquez, lead guitarist and vocalist Max Knight, and newest member, drummer Bill Peluso, are having a blast driving from gig to gig starting in Montreal, moving to Ottawa, and then Toronto, where I met up with them before their set at The Rockpile, and then off to Delhi, Ontario for their final show.

Hitting the road to promote their latest release, 2025's Menagerie, the band is no stranger to the Great White North, touring back in March with Pat Travers and gaining new fans as they played. According to Ryder, “The last time we were here, the reception that we got as completely unknown, the reception that we got and the passion for original music…we weren’t treated like an afterthought, everyone was so into it and showed such love.” Of course, the first question they got after their set was, “When are you guys coming back?” Jumping at the first opportunity to return and snagging a pretty impressive slot on the H.O.L.M.E.S. tour, they are once again feeling the love, Peluso adds, “It’s been great so far, the hospitality is exceptional”.

Bill Peluso performs live at The Rockpile. Photo By: Michael Drukarsh

The album, a ten track collection of songs with a range of styles that all have their base set in rock came about according to Peluso with “... just put a bunch of guys that joined a band together and everybody had some ideas… people were open to new ideas and people were open to new arrangements. Everybody has their own influence and you end up getting that kind of dynamic.”

With sweeping guitar solos and soaring vocals in a song like "Eulogy" and the final track "If It Were", the album can be listened to as separate tracks but Knight, who was behind the engineering and production of Menagerie feels that listening to the whole album from start to finish is important. “That is the key, because in this day and age it’s all streaming and shuffle… we all sat down and discussed the set, the order of the track listing, we all come from that philosophy, like a record… the flow is super important… for those that are really into the experience of listening to a record, we didn’t want that to fly under the radar.”

James Ryder performs live in Toronto. Photo By: Michael Drukarsh

When asked why there was a wide gap between full length albums, James explains that going back to 2020’s Killer Karma, the band didn’t really have an identifiable sound but with the current lineup they have that identifiable sound and they are continuing to evolve and grow and “... are firing on all cylinders".

Discussing the current music trends of streaming and downloading a single rather than an album, I asked if they were worried about someone finding a track like “If It Were” and loving it only to discover that “From The Dark” has a completely different vibe. James likens the experience to going into an ice cream shop, you have all the variety to choose from and buy, but in the end it's all from the same shop. “You like our acoustic stuff, you like our heavy stuff, you like our medium paced stuff, it’s all us, it's all authentically us. So, at the end of the day you are supporting us.”

And support they got! The fans at the Rockpile grooved, moved, headbanged and threw the horns up in love and appreciation for Ryder who will hopefully return to Canada soon with an opportunity to headline and deliver a longer louder concert! As James so eloquently put it to close the show, “WE PLAY MOTHERFUCKING ROCK AND ROLL”. And fuck ya, do they ever!