Well, the show didn't start as early as Facebook announced, not getting underway until 11:00, but I had no plans, so all worked out! Also, there was a cover charge, $3, that wasn't posted beforehand, but no worries there either! Now in terms of Turner Up themselves, let me start by saying that they actually theme their sets around specific sounds, which I don't think I've seen other local bands do. Frontman Todd Killam used the "first/second/third base" analogy to describe their progression throughout the night. The first set was more classic/general rock, the second set was more party/dance tunes, and third set was generally hard rock and more metal stuff! But before I caught on to what each set was like, I wasn't sure what I was in for, when Turner Up played INXS, 54-50, and Green Day in their first set!
Don't get me wrong though, as much of a metalhead as I am, I saw the talent these guys had in their first set, they're really good musicians! Todd Killam has a pretty good rock singing voice, it suits a band that covers a wide variety of stuff! I like his on-stage presence and the way he ad-libbed references to the other Turner Up members mid-song! The guitarists were Rob Brown and The Rad Zone's Len Ward, who are both really proficient guitarists! Len especially surprised me, I knew he was in bands way back, but man. I didn't think he'd nail the solo on "Ice Cream Man" so well! Other songs too, but that got my attention the most! Former Johnny Lunchbox guitarist Jeff Gray handled bass, which caught me a bit off guard. Still, he's a very good bassist! And drummer Scott McClorg kept the beat nicely throughout, also picking up lead vocals for a few songs! I think one was a Tragically Hip song (shades of Jeff from Caveman Morrison?), but he also shown his hard rock voice on a cover of Kiss' "Cold Gin"!
Their second set was essentially, as I said before, the party set, breaking out some Lenny Kravitz, Van Halen, and Collective Soul, among other songs, and this was where Todd encouraged fans to get up and dance! And dance they did, a few girls even pulled their stools up real close to the stage to enjoy themselves! This is where the concert got very loose and casual, with everyone up front singing along, getting on stage, and dancing the night away! Members of Turner Up hit the floor too to mingle mid-song, which was cool to see! Hell, the dancing continued during the break between the second and third sets, even to the house music on the P.A.! They sure do love to just have a beer and party, and I welcome that! The third set brought heavier stuff like Def Leppard and Ozzy, and it was arguably my favourite set of the night, and the exact reason why they're discussed on the SMS! Sucks that I had to leave early though. Also, they gave out free t-shirts during the last two sets, and it impressed me how they had multiple sizes and colours!
Overall, this was a fun concert, and I gotta thank Todd and Len for the free t-shirts (I like them, but they don't say "Official Crew Member"!), and Len for the Black Label Society guitar pick! Really nice guys! I felt so young at this show though, there can't have been too many people there around my age. Turner Up are an entertaining live band, though you know me, I'd really like to see them play a straight complete hard rock/metal set! But really, what they played last night appeals to everyone, there was a set for everyone to enjoy! Mine was the last set, and the dancing partiers loved the second set, they're diverse and wide-ranging in that regard! Fun show, hopefully I'll get to check them out again soon! As you can tell, I took lots of photos, click here to check them out, or head to The Sault Metal Scene's official Facebook page!And I got a video! A bit of an issue timing some earlier attempts at a video, but I got one good one on time! So here's Turner Up's cover of the Def Leppard classic, Hysteria! (Oh, and expect better pictures and video from this concert in the near future, Turner Up had some pro quality video and pics being taken at the show!)
Next up, we have more videos from the Tyler Yuke Memorial Concert last weekend at The Outback! Remember when I mentioned that a guitarist with a Zakk Wylde custom Gibson Les Paul really impressed me? Well, we have video of his set online! As it turns out, his name is Mike Laprade, and he is a current Sault College student! Not in a band though. He added me on MSN the other day, we were talking about the local scene and his set, he's a nice guy! He told me that him and his friend were supposed to cover "Mr. Crowley", but couldn't thanks to all the delays. On his YouTube channel, he has videos of his two songs with the other guitarist (YouTube user myapplecore) covering "Mama I'm Comin' Home" and "Blackened Waters" by Black Label Society! I KNEW that song was familiar! Soft vocals, but they work well! The audio is still worse than their playing would assume, Mike's got some serious skill! Check out their rendition of "Blackened Waters" below! Also check out his original farewell ballad at this location!
And finally, we'll leave you with some assorted Lion Ride news! First off, they sadly did not win Thursday's Great Canadian T-Shirt Battle. Marky Lion's Facebook statuses confirmed that Whale Tooth, a Toronto indie band, won the 200 custom band t-shirts. I was hoping Lion Ride would win, but hey, what can you do? In more positive news, Lion Ride are now on Twitter! If you use Twitter, click here to follow Lion Ride! I imagine the "tweeting", as it were, will pick up soon! If I used Twitter, I would follow them, but I'm still boycotting it. No SMS Twitter page yet either, but I can't predict the future. And finally, in their Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands quest, they're currently in 74th place, so they're slowly climbing! They can crack the top 70 with just 8 votes, so VOTE FOR THEM TODAY! They won't be considered to play at The Warped Tour's Toronto stop in July unless YOU VOTE!!!That's all for now, I promise to have more news and updates real soon! I shall return before you know it!
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