Monday, September 7, 2015

Punk Rock Bingo, Halloween Party & Din Updates, And Much More!!

After an off-weekend due to family commitments out of town, we're back in full force on this Monday night, with lots of big recent updates, so what's on tap? Lineup updates for an upcoming fall concert, a guitarist departure from a local band, and more, but first, here's an unexpected event in a few weeks!

Here's a unique event for your September plans: punk rock.... bingo?! On Wednesday, September 30th, Six Two Oh will be hosting the first ever punk rock bingo event in the Soo at The New American Pub, and it's exactly what you think it is! While details are to be worked out regarding if cards will be free or be buyable, attendees who get Bingo will win punk rock prizes of some kind, details forthcoming on what the prize range will be. Destroilet co-lead singer Brenton Ellis will be the caller, and there were teases of punk music and movies being played in the New A during the event. Admission itself will be FREE, with a 10:00 PM start time, but it is a 19+ event. Also, the reference about "punch & pie" comes from the South Park movie, and as far as I know, isn't the name of a band or anything. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This is definitely an intriguing event, and everyone knows how to play bingo, but will a punk rock angle ensure a big turnout in three weeks time?

I know that the "sex toy bingo" events that have happened here did well, and promoters have hinted at making this a recurring event if September 30th is a success, so definitely keep this in mind for month's end, and get your dabbers ready, as you never know what could happen at punk rock bingo!

Next up, we now know some extra details regarding next month's annual Halloween Party from J.D. Pearce and Tidal Records on Saturday, October 31st at The Algonquin Pub, including an awesome poster by Kevin Powe, and the identities of the local openers, so who can you expect? Joining the already announced headliners Caym (with a Metallica tribute set as "MetalliCaym"), the announced Misfits tribute appears to be a one-off reunion of the early 2010s local punk/metal cover quartet T-Rex Manning, with J.D., his Jack Spades bandmate Tiffany Stocco, and Stereo North's Bill Bennett joining forces once again on Halloween night! No word on a name for the band (or the identity of their drummer), but for reference, T-Rex Manning played a Misfits tribute set at at March 2013's Apocalypse: The Musical (a prior local tribute band-themed concert) under the name The Fiend Brigade, so they could reuse that name next month. The opening tribute band will play Rancid, NOFX, and (in a new addtion) Operation Ivy covers, but who can you expect in this one-off act?

A local supergroup of sorts, the yet-unnamed band will feature Destroilet guitarist Christian Foisy, Sykotyk Rampage bassist Tony Briglio, Jack Spades bandmates Johnny Belanger & Jesse Cook, and Billy Bastards guitarist Greg Beharriell, though specific instrument roles are not listed yet. Quite a lineup though, and it will be very interesting to hear how they sound together! The Halloween Party has a $10 cover charge, 19+ age limit, and 10:00 PM start time, so visit the official Facebook event page for complete details, and stay tuned when more details roll in!

Also today, we have a surprising lineup departure to note on here, as local alternative hard rock trio Mike Haggith & The Din have parted ways with guitarist Curtis McKenzie. According to their Facebook page yesterday, they only cited that "it was time for a change" for the reason, and had no ill will towards him, but note that Curtis' own personal Facebook posting about the split did not sound as amicable as The Din implied, so read into things however you want. At the same time, the band has left PaperClip Productions, the independent label co-owned by Curt, though it's not yet firmly stated if Mike's own solo project has also severed ties. Curtis had played bass or guitar with the band since their 2013 debut, including through their looser acid jam era, and he was a natural fit during both eras, but you can still see him singing with Project 421! Also, Curt posted on the Musicians Wanted Facebook group yesterday to find a bassist and drummer for a new local band that's "preferably not a metal project", so it looks like he's seeking a fresh start, possibly in a punk act.

Also, the lineup news comes shortly after Mike Haggith & The Din revealed details regarding both old and new studio material that we will cover in a future post, so stay tuned for all of that as well. Hopefully things progress on good terms despite everything, and best of luck to Curtis in the future!

Finally for today, here's three more shorter assorted news items from the last while, and as usual, these are in alphabetical order by artist or organization name:

  • Toronto punk veterans Broomfiller (who previously played here back in 2002) are hoping to book local concert dates for their fall Canadian tour, with Soo stops pencilled in for Thursday, September 17th & Saturday, October 3rd, but they have yet to finalize a booking for either day. It'd be neat to have them back in our area, so if you can help Broomfiller return to the Soo this fall, message frontman Richard Leko at this link or via his post on this local music Facebook group!
  • Local hard rock quartet Long Shot have posted audio demo recordings of their first three original songs onto their Reverbnation page! The songs include the classic rock-esque "Long Goodbye", the faster & heavier instrumental "El Camino", and the hard-edged "Double Take", which has some funk influences. I like where these are going, but obviously, the recording quality could be cleaner. Check them out above!
  • LopLops Lounge owner Stephen Alexander and Case's Music's Carrie Suriano-Case are among 22 candidates hoping to be voted to one of 12 board membership spots on the Queenstown Business Improvement Area (formerly the Downtown Association), a process that's attracting more interest than usual due to the recent high profile fight to save or abolish it. Downtown business owners are eligible to vote, though Stephen & Carrie are among the 5 candidates who didn't submit biographies for this SooToday article on the process. Hopefully all of this helps address the concerns about the B.I.A. down the road!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes this week! Thanks everyone!

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