EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Top 5 iTunes Rock Band Across The Board

Indie-Music: First off, thank you for taking the time to sit with us Jackie. Please take some time to introduce yourself to our readers. Who IS Across The Board?

Across The Board: Thanks so much for having me. Across The Board (ATB) is a band that was founded by my husband and I in about 2013. Since that time we have created 5 studio albums, over 700 Youtube videos and won several global and national indie music awards, including an Indie Music Channel Hall of Fame award for charting #4 on the iTunes Rock chart for our 2018 album “Sonic Boom”, and charting top 20 just hours after the release of our 2019 album “Wild Ones”. We have 5 core members in the band and a full time production/management relationship with MC2 Music Media in Toronto.

IM: You've had sort of an evolving lineup over the years. Can you catch us up to speed as to who is in the band, and what role they play?

ATB: Our current line up includes myself as lead singer and acoustic guitarist, Andy Ramjattan as bass player (my husband), Darnell Toth as drummer—who is also our manager/producer, Martin Heller as keys player, Jessica Speziale on vocals and Matt Makarenko on our production team and rhythm guitar.

IM: Tell us about your latest album, "Wild Ones."

ATB: “Wild Ones” is an album of rock songs written to celebrate autonomy and uniqueness using the analogy of the “Lone Wolf” who strives for independence yet understands the necessity of “The Pack”. The album explores self-determination and autonomy within the concept of community. I wrote most of the songs after an unfortunate diagnosis of breast cancer in the summer of 2018 and was contemplating these concepts at the time.

IM: You were nominated for a Canadian GMA Covenant Award this year. Tell us about that whole experience.

ATB: The GMA Covenant awards are a Christian/Gospel music award organization in Canada. We were not certain that we had made any impression on the gospel music community until we received the nomination. Our previous album Sonic Boom was a concept album written as a rock opera taking a small-town girl through the journey of bringing her dream to fruition to take her music to the big city. The concepts of a higher power and a guiding force ran through the album and although not specifically written as a gospel album, our own Christian faith was expressed throughout the record and a cross-over between rock and gospel music became apparent. It was an honor to receive the nomination and we travelled to Edmonton from Toronto for the awards show. It was brilliant!

IM: Any plans for a new single sometime soon?

ATB: We are currently in pre-production of our next album, working title “Love Potion”, which is a collection of songs co-written by the band members and some of our friends, who got together at the ATB cottage one weekend for a writing retreat. I also added some songs later on, some of which have also made the final cut. The album is rock at it’s core, and is developing the ATB sound through an evolution that parallels the evolution of the band’s line up. It’s slated for release in 2020.

We have a single coming up that did not make the first release of “Wild Ones”—although we consider it part of that project. It’s called “Joan Jett”—and it celebrates the life work of one of my biggest musical influences. “Joan Jett” will be coming out soon.

IM: When can we expect another album or EP project?

ATB: 2020 and early 2021 will be a big time for us—we will be coming out with some innovative ways to share our next collection of music and hope to create a buzz with a multimedia approach to independent music publication.

IM: What's the one piece of advice you would pass along to a musician, who is just starting out?

ATB: Keep writing, keep playing, keep practicing and collaborate. Get involved in your local music community and do not be afraid of social media….get out, get scene, don’t sit around and wait for something to happen, and don’t sit around and wait to be perfect—it’s a journey, not a destination.

IM: Any tour plans for next year?

ATB: Yes we will be on tour once again this upcoming summer and look forward to taking our music across the country and hopefully beyond our Canadian borders!

IM: Thanks again for taking the time Jackie. Any parting words for our readers?

ATB: Thank you. Yes, we would love for your readers to follow us along on our social media sites: