Trainwreck (album)

Trainwreck is the second studio album by Canadian rock band Boys Night Out, released on July 26, 2005 through Ferret Music. After some line up changes, the band took a short break; guitarist Jeff Davis wrote a short short which would serve as the direction for their next album. Recording took place at iiwii Studios in Weehawken, New Jersey, The Machine Shop in Hoboken, New Jersey and Harariville in Weehawken, New Jersey, with producer Machine. Trainwreck is a concept album about a character known as The Patient murdering his wife, being hospitalized and trying to convey the music he hears in his head. Its emo and pop rock sound incorporated elements of progressive rock, post hardcore and dream pop. Trainwreck received generally positive reviews from music critics, some of which noted the variety of musical styles and praised the songwriting quality. Prior to the album's release, the band went on a Canadian tour and supported Millencolin on their tour of the United States West Coast. They then promoted the album with a slot on the US Nintendo Fusion Tour towards the end of the year, and went on a US tour with Armor for Sleep and Chiodos. Andy Lewis joined Boys Night Out shortly afterwards and then toured the US and Canada. During this period, keyboardist Kara Dupuy left the band; they ended the year with a Canadian tour. Punknews. org included the album on their list of the year's best releases.

Boys Night Out released their debut studio album Make Yourself Sick in September 2003, through Ferret Music. The band promoted it with supporting slots for Catch 22 and Senses Fail in the United States, a Canadian tour with Alexisonfire, a US West Coast tour with Matchbook Romance, and a US East Coast tour with Nightmare of You and My Chemical Romance. The laborious touring schedule affected guitarist Rob Pasalic and drummer Ben Arseneau, both of whom would leave the band soon after. Following the conclusion of their November 2004 tour, the band opted to take a break.

The band were put in contact with producer David Bendeth, most known for his work on Contact (1987) by Platinum Blonde. Boys Night Out sent demos to Bendeth; they received a message from him, asking for more demos and radio sending songs. He went on a speech about being sold to a major label, which perplexed Davis: "I was like, 'What the fuck are you talking about?!' I called Ferret [Music] and refused to work with that guy". Machine flew from his home state of New Jersey to hear the songs the band they had, and after discussing the direction they were aiming for, he wanted to work with them. Davis knew of him with his prior work on Ashes of the Wake (2004) by Lamb of God and The Power to Believe (2003) by King Crimson. From "Dreaming" onwards, The Patient serves in the lead role, as the listener "follow[s] his attempts at recreating the aforementioned song", according to Shultz. "Waking" is a power pop song, complete with a Moog synthesizer. Boys Night Out embarked on a cross country tour of Canada with the Fullbast, Blue Skies at War and As Tall as Lions, and supported Millencolin on their headlining US West Coast tour in May 2005. On May 29, 2005, the album's artwork and track listing was posted online; alongside this, "Composing" was made available for free download through the band's Myspace profile. On June 23, 2005, "Medicating" was posted online; the song's music video followed on July 15, 2005. The video, which features 50 of the band's fans, was filmed at the Player's Guild in Hamilton, Ontario. On July 25, 2005, "Healing" was posted on their PureVolume account. Trainwreck was released on July 26, 2005. Prior to this, the band played two in store performances on the US East Coast. On March 23, 2006, the Fullblast announced their breakup and said that their drummer Andy Lewis had joined Boys Night Out as a guitarist. The split had caused some controversy, with Davis needing to clarify that they "didn't steal him from the [Full]blast, and we did not break up the band". In May 2006, the band toured the US with Anterrabae, Just Surrender, and Drive By, prior to the Canadian tour with The Receiving End of Sirens, Rosesdead, and Machete Avenue. Around this time, Davis said Dupuy quit the band, which he explained that she "never toured before. It just wasn't her thing". On June 27, 2006, the band released their first video album Dude, You Need to Stop Dancing, which includes a live performance filmed in March 2006 in Toronto, Canada, music videos, and a documentary directed by Simon Bruyn and Matt Unsworth. In the following two months, the band performed at the Scene Music Festival and Wakestock, both in Canada. In September and October 2006, the band went on a Canadian tour with Moneen, and performed at the launch party for the 2006 Canadian Open.

Trainwreck was met with generally favourable reviews from music critics. The staff at AllMusic wrote that Lovat Fraser was "still prone to abrupt bursts of shouting, most of his vocals are melodic and energetic, reflecting the guitar heavy (and sometimes complex) tunes on offer". Seabaugh called it "active listening at its finest". Melodic writer Kaj Roth said it sounded "top notch, but the music is what makes this so interesting you will find new things every time you listen to this record". Punknews. org ranked the album at number 15 on their list of the year's 20 best releases. In 2017, a theatrical iteration of the album was staged at the Patchwork Theatre in Niagara Falls, New York for four performances.