Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile: Papa Fogals Chair & The Sexual Vigilantes

Hey guys, it's time for the second installment of our profiles of out of town bands with Saultites in their lineup...does anyone know of a shorter name I could use for it? Meh, that's off topic. Today, we'll talk about two Southern Ontario based bands that feature local members in their entirety, yet were never based here! One features two prolific local musicians' lighter side, the other of which is reuniting later this month! Maybe you remember them, maybe you don't, but they are sure worth profiling! So here's this month's profiles! (UPDATED: November 24, 2014)
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Papa Fogals Chair (London, ON)

Lineup: (Saultites in RED)

Andy Chillman (vocals/guitar)
Joey Grisdale (guitar/backing vocals
)
Mike Bird (bass)

Derek Turner (drums)

Adam Chillman (percussion)

Official MySpace page: http://myspace.com/papafogalschair
 
Official SoundClick page: http://soundclick.com/papafogalschair 
Official CBC Radio 3 page: http://radio3.cbc.ca/bands/papa-fogals-chair
Official StereoKiller page: http://stereokiller.com/bands/papafogalschair 
Official Supernova page: http://supernova.com/papafogal 
Official AudioStreet page: http://audiostreet.net/papafogalschair

Local Info: Though never based out of Sault Ontario, all five members of Papa Fogals Chair either lived or now live in Sault Ste. Marie and surrounding areas. Friends since Grade 3, the members of Papa Fogals Chair played in a few local bands growing up, including Sulfur and Spit, among others, with Sulfur releasing an EP entitled "How Empty I Am". Following the lead of a few other Saultites, these guys headed to Southern Ontario in the early 2000s, where Papa Fogals Chair took shape. Most notable to local fans nowadays is drummer Derek Turner, who now mans the kit for Garden of Bedlam, though the other members of the band have kept busy in various other projects, notably frontman Andy Chillman's work in the London acoustic bands Too Much Unsaid & The Bird Stone Revival, and the local hard rock band The Side FX, which features both Derek & bassist Mike Bird.

Band Bio: Likening their music to furniture being bashed over your head, P.F.C. rose quickly among the metal scene in London. They released a demo and two albums, 2004's "Face Melter" and their 2006 followup, "Two Faced Is Never Pretty", both of which got some deservedly great reviews and radio airplay. A frequent sight in Southern Ontario at their height, P.F.C. were nominated for a London Music Award in 2004 in the Best Metal/Hardcore category, though after their 2006 peak, the band quietly dissolved. However, reunion shows happened on occasion, usually alongside Derek's new band Garden of Bedlam, including a notable performance at their first concert at Foggy Notions (now Coch's Corner) in 2008. Papa Fogals Chair would later make one-off returns to the live stage at Foggy's in February 2010, and at Mike Bird's stag & doe at The Moose Lodge in May 2013, though plans for future concerts are unknown.

Papa Fogals Chair are awesome, there is no way around that! I've been a fan since I first checked them out a few years ago, they're exceedingly heavy and they have some nice grooves in a lot of their songs too! Andy Chillman has some unique vocals compared to other singers of their type, but they work very well! I love the guitar work too, awesome riffs and solos! Very little for me to complain about here! But don't take my word for it, check them out on their MySpace page. It's great to see locals hit the heights that PFC reached, and though I'm still bummed that I missed them in February 2010 though, but hopefully that's not their farewell! With 2013's MySpace overhaul, no videos of theirs survive that I know of, but here's one of their best original songs "Disgust"!


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The Sexual Vigilantes (Toronto, ON)

Lineup: (Saultites in RED)

Curtis Faux (vocals/guitar)
Brenton Ellis (bass/backing vocals)


MySpace page: http://myspace.com/thesexualvigilantes
Reverbnation page: http://reverbnation.com/thesexualvigilantes

Local Info: If you know your local bands, Brenton and Curtis should be very familiar! Brenton (a.k.a. Diamond Brent Panther) & Curtis were recently best known as the singer & bassist for the cult Toronto hardcore punk band Maximum RNR, but you may also recognize them as
bandmates in the Toronto bands The Labour Of... and Kuah, and of course, from the inactive local hardcore punk band Detroit, releasing two EPs during their run! Also, Brent's well known locally as Destroilet's current co-lead singer, Lion Ride's former bassist from 2008-2010, and as The Bombed Squad's former frontman, while Curtis has been seen locally and in Southern Ontario acts, currently with the garage punk band The Cola Heads and the thrash outfit Chainbreaker. Brent and Curtis were the only members of The Sexual Vigilantes, with a drum machine handling the kit on studio recordings.

Band Bio: Formed in 2005, The Sexual Vigilantes played a varied style of metal/hard rock, ranging from classic rock inspired songs like "Back In Brown" to more hardcore songs like "Phantom Limb", to even some songs with electronic influences. In fact, some SXVGLNTES songs eventually became Detroit tracks, like "Pyre Driver" and "Kill-O-Rama"! Not ones to take themselves seriously, the band infused a lot of comedy into band discussions, from their many different stage names to various band descriptions and bio information, which you can get tastes of at their various pages! The Sexual Vigilantes were mostly known for their studio output, rarely playing live concerts, and employing guest musicians where needed when they did. The Sexual Vigilantes have not updated their MySpace page since March 2009, and are long since defunct, but check them out at the above links, and maybe they'll turn up again down the road!

The Sexual Vigilantes were unique soundwise, harbouring an interesting combination of genres! Curtis isn't a bad singer, he and Brenton play as good as ever on their instruments, and they can be pretty funny! Though not locally based, they brought The Sexual Vigilantes home on December 28th, 2007 for two shows that night; an acoustic show at the former Eargasm Records, and then a normal set at what's now Coch's Corner, with their Detroit bandmates Mark Ran
& Mikey Hawdon joining in on guitar and drums. I think those were their only concerts. Solid band, it'd be cool to see them reunite down the road, as their stuff was pretty entertaining! For a video preview, here's The Sexual Vigilantes' playing "Motorbike The Song" live at their last show!


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Hope you guys enjoyed this month's out of town band profiles! Just cause you take a metalhead out of the Soo doesn't mean you take the Soo out of the metalhead! Next month, I will take a look at two bands who aren't from Ontario: Feral Noise, the Calgary metal band featuring Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison on guitar, and Michigan's own Sadomasochism, one of many bands to feature local drummer Mikey Bishop! Stay tuned for that in the first couple weeks of March!

That's all for today, tomorrow will feature my review/recap of tonight's Sault College/Scotties Tournament Battle of the Bands at the curling rink on Anita Boulevard! Will Sykotyk Rampage win it for the metalheads, or will one of the other bands win a well deserved $750? I'll let you guys know tomorrow afternoon, plus news on a local band's new frontman, and hopefully more! Thanks everyone!

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