Monday, March 18, 2024

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT ('80s Metal Invasion) Plus Wyld Stallyns Lineup Updates!!

Today's post is largely devoted to a huge LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for this summer that you 1980s glam metal fans are definitely not going to want to miss, and we also have some new band lineup announcements to round things out with. Here's what you should know!

A massive hair metal concert (and outdoors, at that) is coming to the St. Ignace Kewadin Casino on Saturday, July 20th for the '80s Rock Invasion! Presumably formatted identically to the Cheap Trick/Goo Goo Dolls show on the waterfront in August 2021 in terms of staging, this show will be even bigger for scheduled bands, with five name acts coming to St. Ignace for Hair Scare diehards, including the long awaited return of original Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley! Last seen at the Sault Michigan Kewadin in 2009, expect the Spaceman himself to break out Kiss and solo classics like "Shock Me", "New York Groove", and "Rock Soldiers" in his first E.U.P, date in almost fifteen years! Two hair metal bands who are no strangers to this part of the world will also be making their way to St. Ignace in July, with Los Angeles' own Great White co-headlining in their local return! Now, Great White are one of those bands that split in two, L.A. Guns style, but this time, we are getting the original band led by original guitarist Mark Kendall.

While this Great White has most of their classic members from the "Once Bitten, Twice Shy" days, you may recall that Jack Russell's Great White (the splinter version featuring their classic singer and bassist) headlined outdoors at the St. Ignace Kewadin back in 2017, so discounting that, the original Great White also have not played here since rocking The Dreammakers Theatre in 2009. A little confusing, but hair metal fans will be right at home with Great White's return in July! The other returning band is Las Vegas glam metal quartet Slaughter, who last played here via an indoor headlining date at the St. Ignace Kewadin in June 2019, preceded by support gigs in both of the Twin Saults in 2008 & 2012. Expect classics like "Fly To The Angels" & "Up All Night" in their (at least) fourth regional concert! Also coming in July is "Appetite For Destruction"-era Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler in his local concert debut!

You may be familiar with Steven's exploits in recent years with bands like Adler's Appetite, but he currently tours under his own name with a solo band playing a set primarily made up of GNR classics from his time in that band. Steven's still got the chops, and he found strong musicians to bring these songs to life, so don't bypass his set either! Opening on July 20th is Minnesota hair metal band Vixen, notable as the biggest all-female group in the genre, and from hit songs like "Edge Of A Broken Heart" and "Cryin'". Only drummer Roxy Petrucci remains from their heyday, but they still deliver some talented hard rock with their current lineup, so don't be late for them kicking things off! Pre-sale for this 6:00 PM & all ages concert kicks off tomorrow, with tickets going on sale to the general public on Friday. Tickets will start at $65, and if the Cheap Trick show in 2019 is anything to go by, there will likely be two higher tiers.

That show had tickets at $50, $75, and $85 depending on location, with the two higher price points being in seated areas. You can buy yours starting on Friday at this link, at the in-person box office, or by calling 1-800-KEWADIN. Given that this Saturday's Skid Row/Buckcherry concert at the Soo Kewadin sold out (preview forthcoming), I wouldn't take my chances that Ace and crew will have good tickets for long, so get yours A.S.A.P., and visit the above links for more on what will be a huge concert for hair and glam metal fans this summer, especially if the weather cooperates!

Finally, we have big lineup updates from Sault Ontario funk/hard rock cover band The Wyld Stallyns, as they have a completely new rhythm section! They have enlisted former Id Iota/Far From Fine drummer Blair St. John as their new bassist (replacing Alex White), while former Din/Re:Born drummer Brandan Glew has replaced Derek Turner behind the kit. Blair & Brandan debuted for The Stallyns at The Kiln at Searchmont this past Saturday, though both have sat in as guests with the band before. Reasons for Alex & Derek's departures were not publically announced, but the post on the band's Facebook page announcing the changes painted things in amicable terms, and that "you'll see them around, so keep showing them the love". Hopefully that's true, as Al and Derek are talented musicians who would be assets in newer bands! Blair and Brandan are strong musicians with multi-genre experience, so they'll fit in fine as well!

For what it's worth, The Wyld Stallyns' next concert has been announced on at least one band member's personal Facebook page, but I'll wait for a public announcement from the band or venue before covering it here (unless it doesn't get a public plug thusly, but I do know where & when it is for weekend preview purposes). It is great to see Christina, Rob, Jesse, and Josh re-fill out their lineup, and hopefully we'll hear more from the new-look Wyld Stallyns soon! That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone!

Saturday, March 16, 2024

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Bone Yard 225), More Weekend Concert Previews, And More!!

(Updated on Monday at 6:27 PM) As promised, let's wrap up the St. Patrick's Day weekend concert previews in this post, but thanks to big updates and more LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS from one of the bands in question, this post was nicely filled out on its own. With that said, let's get things rolling!

Local southern hard rock trio Bone Yard 225 (yes, they did in fact change their name) will return to Reggie's Place for newly announced concerts on (Good) Friday, March 29th and Saturday, March 30th! These shows were announced on the concert calendar on the band's brand new website, and will be a part of a "triple header weekend" there, counting their recently commenced role as Thursday jam night hosts at Reggie's. If you want some hard rocking classic and southern rock hits from Greg, Alex, and Warren over the Easter weekend, they'll be happy to oblige, and March surely won't be going out like a lamb this way! These shows are 19+ affairs with 9:00 PM start times and no cover charges. As we're on the subject, while Soundcheck are the entertainment at Reggie's this weekend, Bone Yard 225 will instead be at Shooters Downstairs Lounge as part of the venue's St. Patrick's Day weekend festivities TONIGHT!

Previously announced by the band, this one-nighter will see the guys bust out their fan favourite classic and hard rock covers at a venue going all out for the holiday, and they're definitely not saving everything for Soundcheck's short notice gig TOMORROW. Drink specials (presumably including green beer and the $5 lucky leprechauns, not to mention the infamous "Bone Yard shot") will be on tap, as well as prize giveaways (presumably some of the Molson ones?) will be offered as well. Wearing green attire might help your case as well! If you're curious, The Queen Of Hearts Club upstairs will be hosting a video dance party and themed photo booth concurrently with Bone Yard 225's show downstairs. There's no announced cover charge on either floor, this is definitely a 19+ event, and Bone Yard are on at 9:00 PM tonight. Visit the above links for more details on what to expect on Dennis Street!

Before we get to our customary preview video for upcoming live bands, I should address Bone Yard 225's website, as there is some new content there that isn't (yet?) on Facebook! The site contains an electronic press kit that highlights the band's run since 2009, and it 100% confirms that they are working on original music, something that they have frequently teased over the years. Their first single "F.A.F.O." (short for "fuck around (and) find out") is expected to be released to major streaming platforms in "late spring", and a 30 second sample of it is streamable there. They're also looking to ramp up tour dates out of town, presumably beyond just Sudbury, so contact them at this link if you'd want to book Bone Yard 225! No insight into the name change was given, but there are other Bone Yards out there, so distinguishing themselves makes sense (it's not a steelworkers union reference, thanks to bassist Warren Reville for clarifying!)

The band has also joined TikTok, but I'm pretty sure there isn't any substantial exclusive content there (yet?). Lastly, a brand new promotional video was posted to their Facebook page and the website, featuring Bone Yard (225) covering Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here" at an undated pre-name change show at Jay's Piston Broke Pub. Shockingly filmed in horizontal landscape orientation (a rarity for Bone Yard's Facebook videos), this partially acoustic cover (with Greg jumping from guitar to drums) is well handled for Pink Floyd fans, and well shot with effective stage lighting, so give it a look for yourselves below!

Finally, here's one more concert preview for TOMORROW NIGHT, as local skate punk trio Hails will play their first show of 2024 when they headline at The Distraction! The Vanity First side project have gotten off to the right, if somewhat sporadic, foot last year with their up tempo punk originals, and hopefully Brent, Mikhal, and Keeghan will be up to their old tricks once again tomorrow, perhaps with new band merchandise available? Ha!ls will be atypically joined by their "good buddy" Shane "DJ Seith" Erickson, whose well established and fan favourite turntable mixes (which have dipped heavier in the past) should provide a fun opening soundtrack! This all ages show has doors opening at 6:00 PM, and admission is $5 or "pay what you can". As far as St. Patrick's Day goes, the bands/venue have not confirmed any themed events, but if you want green beer, you'll have to go elsewhere, as alcohol is not permitted at this venue.

The Distraction has proved to be good value for rising original artists since opening last fall, and hopefully Hails rock the old barbershop on East Street well to ring in the work/school week! Remember, this starts at 6:00 PM tomorrow and only has two acts, it will be an early night. Visit the official Facebook event page for more details, and for a preview, here's Hails live!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this week! Thanks everyone, and enjoy St. Patrick's Day responsibly!

Friday, March 15, 2024

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Wyld Stallyns & Soundcheck), Weekend Concert Previews, And More!!

As promised, we're looking at St. Patrick's Day weekend concert previews today, but due to SHORT NOTICE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, I'm breaking things into two posts (as I suspected may be the case given what weekend it is). That said, look for our previews of tomorrow's Bone Yard concert and Sunday's Hails concert (both of which had lots of advance notice) in our next post. Now, here's what you should know to start off the weekend!

Local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck will return to Reggie's Place for concerts TONIGHT (as in, RIGHT NOW) & TOMORROW NIGHT before serving as the St. Patrick's Day entertainment at Shooters Downstairs Lounge on SUNDAY NIGHT! I profusely apologize for the short notice across the board, TONIGHT & TOMORROW'S shows were only announced by Reggie's Facebook page yesterday and I only noticed the announcement of them this evening, while SUNDAY'S Shooters concert was only announced via the venue's Facebook poster linked below for the weekend's events. Regardless, Soundcheck did not publically announce any of this weekend's gigs, and haven't posted on their Facebook page since plugging their road trip to Wawa to play at their annual ice fishing derby two weeks ago. TONIGHT & TOMORROW's Reggie's shows are their first shows there in over a month, so if you've missed them at this downtown staple, head there NOW or TOMORROW NIGHT!

The Reggie's shows do not have any advertised St. Patrick's Day frills/themes, at least not via Facebook, but that doesn't necessarily mean that they're not taking part, especially TOMORROW given that it's closer to March 17th. There will unequivocally be the luck of the Irish at Shooters this weekend though, as the poster would indicate, with the Dennis Street venue hosting live bands on consecutive nights for the first time since Halloween! A live band on SUNDAY NIGHT makes all the sense in the world given the holiday, and yes, green beer will be on tap, as will $5 lucky leprechaun drinks, and a special St. Patrick's Day menu from the kitchen. Some sort of prizes from Molson will also be offered on SUNDAY, so keep that angle in mind, and I'm sure green attire is encouraged! If you believe a comment from the band on this preview video for the weekend festivities (featuring silent footage of Soundcheck live there), they may be incorporating their jam night format on SUNDAY in some form as well.

Shooters regulars who go there for SUNDAY karaoke nights are not being left out, as karaoke is instead moving upstairs to The Queen Of Hearts Club for one night only. The venue doesn't have a cover charge, so you can move between floors as needed. TONIGHT & TOMORROW'S Reggie's shows began/begin at 9:30 PM, SUNDAY'S Shooters gig is at 9:00 PM, none have a cover charge, and all are 19+. I'm sorry again for the late notice, I'd have covered everything much sooner than this had I seen Reggie's post and/or the band said something, but the classic and hard rock covers will provide a fun festive soundtrack this weekend! See above for more details, and for a preview, here's Soundcheck live at Shooters!

Next up, local funk/hard rock cover band The Wyld Stallyns will play their first publically announced concert of the year when they return to The Kiln at Searchmont Resort TOMORROW NIGHT! Again, apologies for the short notice, the band only announced the show via their Facebook page earlier today. This will be The Wyld Stallyns' first advertised gig (unless they played something without saying, which has happened before) since playing at The Water Tower Pub in September, which the band acknowledged by saying that "Stallyns hibernate too sometimes... we've been quiet lately, but we have been busy!". TOMORROW'S show coincides with Searchmont's last night skiing session for the season, so if you want to hit the slopes past sunset, this is your last chance there until the fall! Also, the Stallyns have teased "new announcements coming soon", and personal Facebook posts have implied that they've had at least one lineup change.

We'll keep you posted when/if updates come in re: The Wyld Stallyns in 2024, but it's great to see Rob, Christina, and company back! Everything takes place TOMORROW NIGHT at 8:00 PM, there is no cover charge at The Kiln, nor is there a firm age limit. No word on St. Patrick's Day ties, for the record. Visit the above links for more details, and here's a newly discovered video of The Stallyns live at The Kiln just over a year ago! This features the band (minus saxophonist Josh Norling) covering The Spencer Davis Band's "Gimme Some Lovin'", courtesy of Searchmont's Facebook page. Fun and lively cover while the video's 87 seconds-long run time lasts, so check it out for yourself below, and don't miss them TOMORROW!

Closing tonight with a show that had advance notice before this week, as we're heading west to Misty's Fifties, where local unplugged classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison will resume his bi-weekly concert arrangement TOMORROW! This stop in Tym's current run of a Saturday matinee every two weeks (unless booked anyway like on February 24th) will indeed be St. Patrick's Day themed given the timing, and attendees are encouraged to wear green to the Second Line West bar/restaurant tomorrow, as there will be "lots of prizes"! No word on green beer or other drink-related tie-ins, but regardless of how deep Misty's goes for their shamrocks & shenanigans, Tym's acoustic rock covers should find another entertained audience as his current regular run continues! If you can't make it, he'll be back at Misty's over the Easter weekend on Saturday, March 30th. Tomorrow's matinee concert takes place at 4:00 PM with no cover and a presumed 19+ age limit. Click here for more details, and here's Tym live!


That's all for now, but stay tuned for our Bone Yard and Hails previews (and more) next! Thanks everyone!

Thursday, March 14, 2024

Spades GT's Late 2023 Video Content From Rye Field Studios!!

With no currently announced Friday night hard rock concerts in the area for the St. Patrick's Day weekend, and two Sunday nighters taking place on said holiday, I'm postponing this weekend's concert previews to tomorrow so that we're slightly closer to what has been announced. Stay tuned!

Instead, let's continue playing catch-up on local/Barrie crossover thrash band Spades GT's recent activity, and we're winding back to late 2023 for some performance and interview footage that they shot! These come from Rye Field Studios, a recording studio out of Brantford that also posts long-form content to their YouTube channel featuring bands that come in to their headquarters, particularly interviews and performance footage. The former Jack Spades aren't even the only band with local ties to be featured in Rye Field Studios content, as St. Thomas metalcore band Prosector (fronted by ex-State of Misery singer Steve Rhodes) got similarly covered in January, so give those a look if you've missed Steve locally! The first of Rye Field's videos featuring Spades GT was uploaded in September, before they ever made the 2 hour drive south to Brantford, and it has concert footage of them in Toronto in June!

The video (one of two compilation videos from Beer Bash 6, the other seen here) features the first five bands that played at Beer Bash 6, with Spades GT's segment beginning about 7 minutes in with introductions by Rye Field's Ben Zander & Shane Briand, who also host much of their YouTube content. Spades GT were introduced as "the first band" despite being the third seen in the 23 minute video, and they were filmed playing their newest album's title track "Sewer City Radio". Strong performance at a nice venue with great video quality (horizontal and multi-camera, at that), but the drum-cam of Tyler is pointed too far out from him. Check out Spades GT and much more from Beer Bash 6 above and below!

On December 8th, a 17+ minute in-studio performance video of Spades GT at Rye Field was posted to YouTube, but before that, two teaser videos were shared to preview the Spades content in the preceding couple of days. One video is a preview of the actual performance so I won't redundantly embed it here, but if they were going to crop it to vertical dimensions (presumably as a "Shorts" video), why not do that before the on-screen text is added? Embedded below is the other preview clip, which features J.D., Daniel, and Tyler (no sign of James) signing a Rye Field Studios banner on the wall there, that other musicians have apparently signed over time. Oddly, the song "Sewer City Radio" is playing in the background, albeit over speakers there and not added in post. Nice gesture to help Ben and Shane commemorate their in-studio sessions, if shot vertically too, so check it out below!

As for the proper in-studio performance (part of Rye Field's "Live In The Whiskey Pit" series), it leads off with Ben & Shane introducing Spades GT, then pertinent logos (the kids saying the studio's name caught me off guard), before we get to the band proper. As noted with on-screen text, Spades GT play "Hands", "Succubus", "Red", "Final Girl", and "Sewer City Radio" here, and at least three different cameras capture the band in action here, two facing the band at slightly different angles, as well as a drum cam that is better positioned than at Beer Bash 6. Very well performed, shot, and edited, so fans of Spades (Jack and/or GT) will be right at home, but the green lighting was overdone to me. Check it out below!

Finally, a 36 minute interview with Spades GT was posted to YouTube by Rye Field Studios on December 12th, so what are they asked about while sitting on "The PodCouch"? Ben and Shane start by asking the guys about how Beer Bash 6 went, followed by the origins of Spades GT. The Soo days and Tyler's old band Caym's shows up here are addressed, but much of it is about how the band came together in Barrie, including insights by James as to how far along songwriting for the "Sewer City Radio" album was when he joined. After briefly discussing the album and practicing, they ask about Anvil (whose drummer Robb Reiner is Tyler's dad) and Spades GT's experiences opening for Anvil last fall, including some notes on working with and hanging out with Anvil frontman Steve "Lips" Kudlow. Their then-upcoming concert plans, including their cancelled winter tour run with The Dayglo Abortions, come up next.

Ben & Shane (who has a great voice) ask about Spades GT's early favourite bands before getting into Tyler's drumming style, the advantages and disadvantages of the internet, their plans to work on new material in 2024, and even James' story about meeting Robert Plant(!), among other topics. This is a fun and laid back interview with great presentation from multiple cameras, and it's nice to hear James so much throughout (he's definitely the quietest member in social media promotions). However, it can be hard to hear some of the conversations with everyone talking over each other at points, especially when things go off the rails a bit. Check the whole interview with Rye Field Studios out for yourselves below!

Lastly, kudos to Ben & Shane at Rye Field Studios for all of their work in promoting metal and punk bands in Southern Ontario, both from their YouTube videos and their actual recording studio work, so give much more from them a look above as well! That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

A New Punk Album, New Videos, And Band Link Updates!!

Before we dive into St. Patrick's Day weekend concert previews, here's a new news post on this Wednesday evening, including new videos, updates to our band links, and leading off, a new album release. With all of that said, here's what you should know!

We have a surprise new album release to note on here, as local folk punk/emo solo project Agnosticism quietly released a new EP named "A Letter Of Resignation" to major streaming services on February 23rd! Given that this project (led by Vanity First, Hails, and Apocalypse Afterparty alum Mikhal Muto) is only active on social media via Instagram, it could be easy to assume that the album was plugged there and nowhere else, but nope, it wasn't even mentioned there. Mikhal actually told me about the release in a Facebook message, even acknowledging that he hadn't said much about it, so now everyone knows! The five song EP can be streamed on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, and even Boomplay (an Africa-centered streaming service that is getting more attention from local artists in recent months). Yes, this album is on sale on iTunes for $4.95, so it is eligible for a review on the SMS!

This and next month are sewn up with reviews of the newest Heavy Lies The Crown and Convergence albums, but our May 2024 album review will be of Agnosticism for the first time, so what will I have to say about Mikhal's unplugged folk punk originals? We'll know then, but give the opening song "New Year's Revolution" a listen below, and buy/stream this and other Agnosticism albums at the above links!


Next up, here's a new video from one of Iron Mountain, Michigan classic/hard rock cover band Oz's shows at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino earlier this month! Uploaded to the band's Facebook page last week, the video features Oz covering "Somebody's Out There" by Triumph, in what has to be a rare example of a band covering a Canadian song in Sault Michigan. Strong cover filmed from a good angle to capture the whole stage, and I can easily see Oz handling Rush singles if this Triumph cover tells me anything! Give it a look below, and hopefully Oz come back to the E.U.P. soon!


Also today, let's hop back to Sault Ontario for new videos from local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations! These were filmed by attendee Christopher Bardawill (who has filmed them before) at their show at Jay's Piston Broke Pub on Saturday. The videos were first posted to Christopher's personal Facebook page and then shared to the band's Facebook group. Interestingly, both songs that he filmed are ones where Valerie Powley is not on lead vocals, instead providing backup and playing tambourine. One is a cover of The Eagles' "Already Gone" with guitarist Tony Kajnar on vocals, but embedded below is their cover of Steppenwolf's "Magic Carpet Ride" with bassist Pierre Anthony on vocals. That cover is a little shorter, but I embedded it here because it's a harder rocker and he didn't film it while sitting at a table for the duration, so you get some a much closer side stage vantage point of the band in action here!

I'm no Eagles fan, but that cover and "Magic Carpet Ride" are performed well and make good use of their vocal harmonies, especially on the former! Alas, both videos were shot vertically, which really didn't help the "Already Gone" video's case, but kudos to Christopher for filming on Saturday! Give their newest live videos a watch above & below!

Finally for today, here's three assorted shorter news items, all bands newly moved to our inactive band links due to being publically inactive for a year or more. As always, these are in alphabetical order by band name:

 

  • The first of the bands moved to our inactive links is local acoustic southern hard rock duo The Bearded Lounge, who last posted band updates or played live on March 4th, 2023 at The Water Tower Pub. Launched in 2017, this side project of Bone Yard appears to have been put on the shelf so that Greg and Alex could include Bone Yard bassist Warren Reville in their unplugged (sorry, "uncorked") gigs, now under the Bone Yard banner, which have continued in the past year. Look for upcoming acoustic Bone Yard shows at The Water Tower Pub and Gateway Casino!
  • Also now in our inactive links is local/Edmonton noise punk duo No Funeral, who have not issued any public updates since releasing their self-titled album on Bandcamp on March 5th of last year. Featuring former AlgomA drummer Jamie Vincent and his old Flint bandmate Connor O'Brien, No Funeral played one live date at Outspoken Brewing in October 2022, recorded an album while Connor was in town, and that was about it until the album came out. No Funeral were an entertainingly chaotic project, and hopefully they surface again if the stars align!
  • Finally, I have moved local/Toronto progressive metal trio PROV3RB5 to our inactive band links. Given the studio-heavy nature of the band (especially as Bryan lives out of town), it's entirely possible that PROV3RB5 have been working behind the scenes for the past year+, but the band has not issued a social media update since guitarist Benjamin Roswell posted a playthrough video on their Facebook page in January of last year. PROV3RB5 are too talented to go away, if I may say so, and hopefully Ben, Bryan, and Phil resurface when the time is right!

 

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!

Monday, March 11, 2024

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Hazytones) & Treble Charger Reunion Concert Coverage!!

Keeping our recent string of daily posts up at the SMS, today's post features lots of pre- and post-show coverage of a recent reunion concert that got a lot of attention, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT and related band lineup note for next month!

Montreal stoner/hard rock band The Hazytones will return to Sault Ste. Marie on Thursday, April 25th when they rock The Distraction! Readers may recognize The Hazytones from headlining appearances at the former New American Pub in August 2016 and April 2017, and it's good to see them back after six years! Developing a heavier influenced sound on newer material, including their upcoming album "Wild Fever", fans of psychedelic influenced hard rock won't want to miss this show next month!  The local openers next month include local alternative hard rock quintet Handsome Sandwich in their Distraction debut and their first announced local gig with new guitarist Brandon Ruch, who the band has finally confirmed is replacing Mitch Sirie on guitar, as per a quiet update to their lineup on their Facebook page. A reason for Mitch's departure was not announced, but Brandon did take Mitch's place during their January tour run.

Hopefully all's well with Mitch, and assuming nothing else happened behind the scenes, he and drummer Johnny Belanger are still bandmates in the reunited Bear Hunters! No word on if Brandon will play any role on Handsome Sandwich's upcoming EP, but Mitch did record material for it before leaving. Back to the Hazytones show, the other openers are young local hard rock quartet Sylo (née Raincourt) in their second show since reuniting and since adding Alder Devries on guitar. They're a talented group on the rise, so don't be late for their set either! As usual for The Distraction, this show has a special "$15 or pay-what-you-can" entry model, and doors open at 7:30 PM. Visit the above links for more details!

Next up, here's some Sault Star coverage & fallout from this past Thursday's Treble Charger reunion concert at The Machine Shop! Two articles were posted, one from before the show and one after it, and we'll start with Brian Kelly's article from this past Tuesday, featuring interview remarks with singer/guitarist Greig Nori. I will note before we get too far that I, along with Sault Star reporters, have recently noted that the reunion concert was their first show since Rotaryfest 2018. Locally, that is true, but I completely forgot that Greig & Bill played at the final Burger Fest in Vaughan back in July 2019, and you can see pictures from that event at this link. My apologies, but it's still been a near five year wait! That said, in Brian's article, Greig noted "I’ve never gone this long not playing a Treble Charger set", and while that may be true in terms of him alone, Treble Charger's 2012 return was after a near 8 year hiatus from live concerts.

In the article, Greig discusses how hard it was for him to get back in the swing of things re: playing a full Treble Charger set, how exciting it is to play the songs again, and how new music could happen in the future (they had actively teased hitting the studio in the 2010s but clearly not much came of that). Now to the show proper, which was a fundraiser for the Algoma University music program in order to buy instruments, fund scholarships, and bring in touring musicians. The show was covered in this article by newer Sault Star journalist Kyle Darbyson. "Several hundred fans" packed The Machine Shop for the proceedings, which raised over $10,000 for Algoma's music program, which is awesome to hear! Alongside established originals, Treble Charger played Pixies, Golden Earring, and Iggy Pop covers. Official advertising never outlined openers or guests, so who all else played on Thursday?

The opening act was local pop singer/guitarist Tianna Legacy with a backing band of Algoma University music students, including drummer Will Carnes, but full performer credits weren't listed. At least three guests joined Greig, Bill, and (session?) bassist & drummer Frank Deresti and David Peredun, including Greig's daughter Ava on backing vocals and Algoma assistant music professor Andree-Ann Deschenes on keytar. Both joined in on "American Psycho". As well, aforementioned Handsome Sandwich guitarist Brandon Ruch guested with Treble Charger for their set-closing cover of Iggy Pop's "Lust For Life" (if he, Ava, Andree-Ann, or anyone else played on other songs, they weren't mentioned in the article). Of course, Brandon is an Algoma music program alum himself who has worked with Greig a lot at the Algoma Conservatory of Music, and has further plans with him in the pipeline.

No public videos from Thursday have surfaced (yet?), but I have moved Treble Charger back to our active band links, as this was not a one-off set! They will play their first non-local date since Burger Fest 2019 when they play at Riverfest in Elora (outside of Guelph) in August, though full disclosure, festival organizers have not announced any performers yet. Greig noted in Kyle's article that they have other offers to play in Southern Ontario, and "we’re hoping to get out there a little more". It's great to see that everything went well for Treble Charger and Algoma University alike on Thursday, so read Brian & Kyle's Sault Star articles above, and look for more news this week! Thanks everyone!

Sunday, March 10, 2024

Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Kaepora Gaebora

It's now time for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile, as we again give a look at a local metal, hard rock, or punk band from the past, as randomly selected from our band links! This month's selection is a recent-ish extreme metal group featuring many familiar faces in their lineups that never got that far off the ground despite their promise on paper, so here's what you should know on them!

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Kaepora Gaebora (previously known as Debt To The Heirless and later renamed to Exploring Detritus)

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario

Genre: Death Metal

Lineup: (Members not in their last full lineup are in italics)

Dan Souliere (Bring The Fallen), vocals/guitar
Mitch Sirie (The Bear Hunters) vocals/guitar
Ryan St. Pierre, guitar
Justin Lam (The Bear Hunters, Jack Spades), bass
Anthony Boudreau (HeadFirst, Them), drums

Joey Graham (Ashoka At The Show, The Undead Warriors), vocals
Daeson Lesage (Bring The Misery), guitar
Jeph Brown, bass
Kevin Overton (Gates Of Winter, RedD Monkey), drums

Audio/Video: During their original run, Kaepora Gaebora wrote original songs with names like "Evolution By Force", "Misinterpreting The Deity", and "ABCDEFG", but I can only find two surviving videos from that era, including this 43 seconds-long jam session clip featuring their main 2016 lineup. For their 2022 relaunch, the since-renamed Exploring Detritus posted a bunch of jam session and rehearsal videos to their Facebook page, and even posted some (largely identical) content on TikTok and Instagram, but nothing advanced to a public reveal of a song name, let alone new concerts. Here's the then-Kaepora Gaebora playing their original "Death Spins" at The Oddfellows Hall in 2016!


Info/Analysis: Publically launching in the fall of 2015 as Debt To The Heirless, this new death metal band united veterans of the late 2000s and early 2010s local metal scene, taking their Kaepora Gaebora moniker in January from the wise owl in the Legend of Zelda video game series. Debuting at a house party in April 2016, the band's eventual permanent lineup (Joey, Dan, Daeson, Jeph, and Kevin) would play twice that spring at The Oddfellows Hall, opening for The Motherfuckers and at Bear Hunters drummer Johnny Belanger's birthday concert. Last seen opening for Foam at The New American Pub in June, the band went silent on social media until changing their name to Exploring Detritus that December, but updates slowed again and ceased in mid-2017. After some false starts, Dan Souliere relaunched Exploring Detritus in April 2022 with a brand new lineup.

Despite bringing back original drummer Anthony Boudreau and adding Bear Hunters alumni Justin Lam & (briefly) Mitch Sirie to their lineup, the revived Exploring Detritus only advanced as far as jam session videos, and last posted to Facebook that July. Regardless of name, Kaepora Gaebora were a promisingly heavy group that helped give a nostalgic comeback to some regulars in the scene, with a solidly heavy base and a welcomed focus on original material, and it's a shame that they didn't last longer either in the mid-2010s or in 2022. Follow the reunited Bear Hunters and HeadFirst to hear what most of their last lineup is up to nowadays, and hopefully Dan tries to launch another metal band in the future!

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I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! This series will return on or around April 10th when we profile another randomly selected defunct local band, and this time, it will 2013-2015 all-female hard rock band The Danger Cats! Look for that profile then, and for more news and notes this week! Thanks everyone!