Published In The Great North Arrow, June 1, 2024: Heavy Metal And The Southwest Fire Academy

- jim Young

“Sometimes when I fall asleep, I know what’s waiting for me,

Praying on my hands and knees, The dark my soul to keep.”

- Lynn, Quistad, Miracle and Warsnop

Gone are the days when all you had to do was book a studio for a couple of hours to record and press a record if you wanted to release a song.

To get really noticed in the highly competitive music business these days, you also need a professional video to go along with your song.

Nashville country musician Royale Lynn (originally from Aylmer, Ontario), who is gravitating more towards hard rock/heavy metal these days, recently teamed up with Danny Worsnop, formerly of the English heavy metal bands, “Asking Alexandria” and “We Are Harlot” to create a new song “Death Wish”.

"Death Wish" (Official Music Video) - Royale Lynn & Danny Worsnop

Written by Lynn, Quistad, Miracle and Warsnop, “Deathwish” is a tribute to first responders around the world who put their lives on the line every day, often at the risk of their personal relationships with their loved ones.

Filmed on location in Waubaushene at the home of Gina Young

In their review of “Death Wish” the website AntiMusic.com quoted Royale as saying "After writing the song I had a very specific vision for the video and knew it had to be perfect. Working with Dylan (director of the music video) really helped bring everything together and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out! This one goes out to all the first responders out there!"

AntiMusic goes on to say, “Royale set out to visually depict the emotional and physical perils of real-life firefighters and their loved ones.”

The Southwest Fire Academy in Waubaushene served as the set
for a burning apartment building in the music video
Death Wish by Royale Lynn & Danny Worsnop

When it came time to produce the video to go along with the song, Director of Photography, Nik Pilecki recommended director Dylan Hryciuk of Versa Films contact Jesse Bond.

Having previously worked with Jesse, co-owner of Southwest Fire Academy in the small village of Waubaushene on other projects, Nik knew that Jesse and his team had the expertise to not only get the shots they needed, but to ensure the safety of the cast and crew and everyone involved.

Southwest Fire Academy, established in 2015, is a fire college in the little village of Waubaushene, Ontario owned and operated by Jesse Bond and his cousin Brad Neely.

With a population of just 950 permanent residents you might wonder why Waubaushene? When Jesse Bond was moving Southwest Fire Academy from its original location in Delhi, Ontario, he was looking for a location closer to his home in Waubaushene. So why not choose a school for his school? When the public school that Jesse had attended as a young boy went up for sale, Jesse knew it was the perfect location for his school.

Bond and Neely whose grandfathers on both sides of their families were firefighters before them, in addition to their duties as owner/operators and instructors at SFA are also full time firefighters themselves.

Firefighters Jesse Bond & Brad Neely
- cousins and owners of Southwest Fire Academy

“SFA is an accredited Career College that is regulated by the Ministry of Colleges and Universities, with a Memorandum of Understanding with the Office of the Fire Marshal. This means that SFA is an approved training provider with the OFM and the programs are recognized in Ontario.”

Southwest Fire Academy, Waubaushene, Ontario

The Southwest Fire Academy is a real family affair employing Jesse’s mother Gina, his aunt Lori, brother Ryan and Jesse’s very soon-to-be wife Kristen, along with her mother, Irene and father Brian. Jesse’s brother Ryan is also a volunteer fire-fighter and his soon to be father-in-law Brian is a retired captain of the Toronto Fire Department.

So when the Versu Films production crew were looking for a house to serve as a set for the main storyline, Jesse was quick to offer up his mother, Gina Young’s house. Filmed on location in Waubaushene the locals will easily recognize all the locations in the rock video, including the building of the Southwest Fire Academy which doubled as an apartment building fully ablaze thanks to the CGI effects created by Versu Films.  

Jesse Bond is deservedly proud of the Southwest Fire Academy saying “We are owned and operated by fire fighters who care and are passionate about helping our neighbours and saving lives.”

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