When you're draining human excrement for a living, there's nowhere to go but up.

Not long ago, Billy Talent singer Benjamin Kowalewicz was working for an airport in Toronto, Canada, and his primary responsibility was emptying the septic tanks of airplanes. He worked the crap job to support his music habit, and didn't even dream of making lots of money by playing rock and roll.

"If you're out there just trying to get the big deal, then you're doing music for the wrong reasons," he explained. "The hidden aspiration was always to be able to maybe pay our rent and play music, but even that was never the main goal."

Now, with a self-titled major-label debut under their belts and the single "Try Honesty" building at radio, Billy Talent are not only paying the bills, they're poised to break through to the mainstream alternative market. For a Canadian band that's been playing clubs in a van for a decade, that's a crazy thought.

"We have no idea what the hell's going on," Kowalewicz said. "I'm just blown away every time I'm driving and I turn on the radio and hear our song."

"Try Honesty," one of the band's catchier ditties, is about a friend of the singer, who always feels victimized by circumstance. "She was a dear friend growing up, and she had a lot of problems in her life, but she always thought everything was everybody else's fault," he said. "She never took it upon herself to change the circle of people [who were making her life miserable]. You're in control of your own life, and you should do what you wanna do and be truthful and honest with yourself, and everything else will follow suit."

Kowalewicz and guitarist Ian D'Sa wrote the song last year, and included it on an EP they self-financed and sold at shows. The disc fell into the hands of a record label A&R man, and then the band became the subject of a minor bidding war. Soon after, the group was signed.

Billy Talent are melodic and energetic — a strange hybrid of the Clash, Jane's Addiction and Incubus. The band's most distinguishing feature — and a turn-off for some — is Kowalewicz' yelping vocals, which sound like a cross between Jello Biafra of the Dead Kennedys and Mike Patton of Faith No More.

"I think the word is 'annoying'," the singer said, laughing, of his unusual voice. "It's definitely an acquired taste. But it's what comes out of me naturally, and it's just one component of our songs. A lot of times people say, 'Oh, I can't stand his singing,' but the songs are still good, and I just hope those people can get over certain humps and see the actual music underneath."

The members of Billy Talent — Kowalewicz, D'Sa, bassist Jon Gallant and drummer Aaron Solowoniuk — have been together for 10 years, and were originally called Pezz. But in 1999, they had to find a new name because another band in Memphis had their chosen moniker. They chose Billy Talent after the main character in a book called "Hard Core Logo" by Canadian author Michael Turner.

"It's about a fictional punk rock band that reunites for one last tour across Canada," Kowalewicz said. "We thought it would be funny to take the name because it sounds like a pop act and it's a little homage to Canadiana."

As exciting as it has been to become a radio rock band, Kowalewicz's greatest accomplishment was being handpicked by Perry Farrell to play the second stage at 10 shows of this year's Lollapalooza. As a kid growing up, Jane's was the singer's favorite band, and he still holds them sacred. Once during Billy Talent's soundcheck, Farrell sat at the side of the stage and listened. At the time, Kowalewicz couldn't imagine anything better, but a few days later he had an even more enthralling experience. He and Gallant went backstage in the jam tent, where members of different bands would get together and play. There, they saw Jane's drummer Stephen Perkins and his band's guitar tech rocking out.

"Jon walks up and goes, 'Hey, you guys need a bass player,' " Kowalewicz recalled. "They said, 'Sure.' Then they asked Jon if he knew any Jane's, and he played 'The Mountain Song,' which is my favorite Jane's song. I got up there and sang with them, which was completely incredible. If that's the best thing that ever happens to me, I'll die a happy man."