Canadian rock band Billy Talent continues cross-country tour with Rise Against in Ottawa
Posted Apr 4, 2022 09:07:00 PM.
For the first time since before the pandemic, Canadian rock band Billy Talent is on the road for a cross-country tour.
The band is playing a show on April 4 at 7 p.m. TD Place in Ottawa, the third stop for the group.
Joining them on the first half of the Canadian tour is long-time friends and other rock band Rise Against.
“We've done many, many shows with them,” said Aaron Solowoniuk, the original drummer for Billy Talent. “It ended up working that we could do the first half of this Canadian tour (with them) and they're just great humans… they're just like brothers.”
Although Solowoniuk said the band is excited to be on tour again, there are still some nerves about touring during a global pandemic.
“Of course we're excited, but we're also – we're apprehensive about it,” said Solowoniuk. “We're all self-testing ourselves yesterday, and we're kind of on edge because if one of us has COVID then everything gets cancelled.”
Solowoniuk revealed in a letter to fans in March of 2006 that he had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS). As a result of his condition, Solowoniuk passed over drumming duties for this tour to Loel Campbell, drummer for Canadian indie band, Wintersleep.
“I'm at a point in my life now where I just can't play drums anymore,” said Solowoniuk. “I might play one song depending on how I feel, but unfortunately it's nothing that I can really commit to because everything is just on a day-to-day basis for me right now.”
Being off-stage for the most part, Solowoniuk has been heading up most of the bands charitable initiatives. He has helped oversee the partnerships Billy Talent has made with food banks in each Canadian city they are playing in during the tour. For the show in the capital, the band has partnered with the Ottawa Food Bank and has encouraged those attending the show to bring non-perishable food items.
Tonight at @TD_Place, @BillyTalentBand is hosting a food drive in support of the Ottawa Food Bank
