Last Month's Sault Metal Poll Results And This Month's New Poll!

Well folks, it's time to shut down the latest Sault Metal Poll! As you may remember, the question I posed was "What genre of metal bands would be most successful for Sault-area concerts?" First off, I have to say thanks to everyone for voting more in this poll! Up from 27 to 45 votes!! As for the results, they honestly surprised me! See for yourself, here are the totals! (Remember, for news on Garden of Bedlam, Sense of Truth, It's Just Me, and more, check immediately below this post!)

1. Classic Hard Rock (9 votes)
2. I like all types of metal (7 votes)
3. Black Metal (6 votes)
4. Glam/Hair Metal (5 votes)
4. Nu Metal/Modern Rock (5 votes)
6. Hardcore (3 votes)
6. Thrash/Speed Metal (3 votes)
6. Other (3 votes)
9. Death Metal (2 votes)
9. Progressive Metal (2 votes)
11. Power Metal (0 votes)

Well, let's discuss the totals. No one thinks power metal would work here? Interesting, you'd think a Dragonforce type band or something would be a success. I expected prog metal to be low, but death and thrash/speed are WAY lower than I was thinking. Death metal seems popular enough, and if I could have voted, I'd have picked thrash, it's not something we get here much, you'd think people would be aching for it somewhat! As for hardcore, we get tons of hardcore shows, but maybe the low total reflects how some of you feel about the amount of them we do get? I dunno, just a thought.

Glam/hair and nu metal/modern rock tied for 4th, about where I'd expect. Some of you think they'd be successful, and it's been proven both can be (look at the Motley Crue and Three Days Grace shows for proof!) Black metal finished 3rd, which may be a sign of how popular bands like Woods of Ypres really are (and deservedly so!) I just hope the next Woods show has a higher turnout than the last one! Second was "I like all types of metal", which is a great sign, but I wish that applied to more fans here so all shows could be successful!

And the winner, with 20% of the votes, is classic hard rock! Honestly, this is kind of an open ended choice, so it could mean bands sounding like AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Guns N' Roses, Kiss, Led Zeppelin, et cetera. But it seems clear that a lot of you love the old school stuff! Maybe this is an idea to take up, booking more classic sounding bands? I don't know what'd be best for this town, all I know is what the votes tell me, and that was the highest vote getter! Definitely interesting though!

So now that I've closed the original poll, it's time to replace it with a new question! And seeing as we're nearing the halfway point of 2009, I was wondering what shows you guys liked the most so far this year. Plus, there's nothing else scheduled right now on this side until July. So, I pose you the question: What was your favourite Sault Ontario metal concert of 2009 so far? I narrowed down the selections to 11 shows (all of which feature metal bands as headliners or are mostly comprised of metal bands), plus "Other", so let's go over each choice to remind you guys of the shows of the past 6 months!

Bands: Blessed By A Broken Heart, As It Stands, Upheaval of an Exorcist, Breaking The Fourth Wall, & Deter
Venue: The Oddfellows Hall
Date: January 9th
Info: Headlined by Montreal's own Blessed By A Broken Heart, this show was one of the first major metal shows of 2009, and (to my knowledge) featured the last live performance by As It Stands. Northern Rocks Magazine were also on hand at this show for some promotion! Lots of hardcore fans were there, but how good do you think it was?

Bands: Ministry of Zen & Fingerbone
Venue: Coch's Corner
Date: January 24th
Info: In their first local show since the Rock 2 Roll benefit, London's own Ministry of Zen rocked Coch's Corner! Also featured locals Fingerbone, in just their second live performance. I was there, it was a great show, but was it your favourite?

Bands: Upheaval of an Exorcist, Machine of Macabre, The Memphis West, The Fury, Good Morning Gorillas, & Talk Shit
Venue: The Oddfellows Hall
Date: February 20th
Info: Held in honor of Big Voiced Records owner/It's Just Me frontman Jeremy Hannah's birthday, the show featured an assortment of Ontario death metal bands, combined with local punk openers, for a night of musical mayhem! What'd you think of this show?

Bands: Carnifex, The Last Felony, & Upheaval of an Exorcist
Venue: The Lock City Grand Theater
Date: March 11th
Info: Featuring San Diego death metal band Carnifex as headliners, this show was put into jeopardy due to roadblocks caused by a severe winter storm. Despite this, and Blind Witness dropping out after a car accident, the show went on! Did you survive the storm to rock out at this show? If it's your favourite, vote for it!

Bands: The Undead Warriors, Dirty Virgin, Operation: Killdozer, Sue Inside, The Glass Statues, Train Junky, & Waterslide (YMCA Battle of the Bands)
Venue: The Lock City Grand Theater
Date: March 20th
Info: In this showcase of local talent, The Undead Warriors (now known as Necropolis) stole the show, winning first place! Dirty Virgin and Operation: Killdozer also took home prizes, while the other bands put on great performances! Also featuring an original YMCA rock opera, the battle was a success, despite no alcohol. What did you think?

Bands: Stillbroke
Venue: The Verdi Hall
Date: April 1st
Info: Locals Stillbroke made their grand return to the stage at this show, unleashing tons of originals and some covers as well! Featuring door and raffle prizes, merchandise, and more, there was something for everyone! I even won $300 of toy trucks there! If you attended, was it your favourite show of the past year so far?

Bands: Cattle Decapitation, Psyopus, Beyond Within, & The Killing Field
Venue: The Oddfellows Hall
Date: April 12th
Info: On Easter Sunday, more death metal invaded Sault Ontario for this concert, headlined by death metal legends Cattle Decapitation! Despite venue issues, slow ticket sales, and Rose Funeral dropping out, it was one hell of a show! But do you agree?

Bands: Black Dog: The Tribute To Led Zeppelin
Venue: Coch's Corner
Date: April 24-25th
Info: This Toronto-based Led Zeppelin tribute band delivered some rock n' roll to Coch's Corner on consecutive nights in April! I've heard mixed things about Black Dog, but in your opinion, did they put on your favourite metal show so far in 2009?

Bands: Who Made Who: The Ultimate Tribute to AC/DC
Venue: The Canadian
Date: May 15th
Info: Who Made Who gaves us their own brand of high voltage rock n' roll at this concert last month! The crowd loved every minute of it, and the band did a great job pulling off the AC/DC sound! I loved it, but did you, if you were even there?

Bands: Blind Witness, To Cherish, The Fallacy, Amnesia Amnesia, Loyalty Is Dead, & The Fury
Venue: The Oddfellows Hall
Date: May 19th
Info: Big Voiced Records brought lots of hardcore goodness to the Soo for this show, featuring Blind Witness' return and the debut of Loyalty is Dead! (now It's Just Me.) I hear it went pretty good, but what's your opinion of this show? Vote if it's your favourite!

Bands: Today I Caught The Plague, Faceless Hulk, Norris, Constructed Apocalypse, & Loyalty Is Dead
Venue: The Oddfellows Hall
Date: June 11th
Info: More death metal bands hit The Oddfellows Hall last week on The Canadian Crusade Tour, including Thunder Bay's Faceless Hulk and Norris, and the locals now known as It's Just Me! Sounds like it was an awesome concert, but what do you think?

Other: Ok, maybe your favourite metal show so far isn't listed. Well, choose your favourite here! Maybe it had Sense of Truth, Sykotyk Rampage, Fitswitch, All Else Fails, Death By Stereo, or Quite Frankly! Or how another show featuring Stillbroke, Necropolis, or Operation: Killdozer? It's up to you, vote "Other" for an unlisted choice!

So there's your choices! Vote today, let's see if we can crack 50 votes this month! And stay tuned for more local metal news! Thanks everyone!