It's now time for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post, and after last month's installment didn't have much new to add, we have two new additions this month, as well as one existing entry with updated info (anything new or updated has the title in italics). So, in this ongoing monthly look at upcoming albums known to have begun recording sessions, where are the new albums? Read on to hopefully find out!
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Bullet Train's upcoming EPs
Rumoured Songs: "Atmosphere", "Illusions", "Profit", "Wayside"
Background: The current hard rock
band from former Sense of Truth/Skeyes of Seven frontman Cory Murchsion
and ex-Fort Creek bandmates Robin "Bones" Lee and Anthony Fabiano,
Bullet Train have existed solely as a studio band so far, releasing four original songs recorded at their own home studio to their YouTube channel in 2024, all very much influenced by their take on current
events. After a quiet summer due to "life's trials", Bullet Train
resurfaced on their Facebook page on September 1st to reveal that they were working on two
demo EPs, with the first one entering post-production as of the 9th,
though it's not clear if their 2024 singles will be on them.
Current Release Status:
No idea yet, especially as this band has no prior track record for
releasing albums, though all three band members have experience writing
and recording studio material to varying degrees. Bullet Train claimed
on September 9th that a release date for EP #1 would be announced "in
the upcoming weeks", a timeline not realized as of this writing. It'll
be interesting
to see how fast things come along for Bullet Train, so keep tabs on
their Facebook page for further updates!
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Chase James Wigmore - The Chaotic Rite
Rumoured Songs: "The Cities Alive & It's Angry"
Background: Ever
the prolific artist & songwriter, local folk punk/extreme metal
musician Chase Wigmore has been working on an extensive rock opera for years (once claimed to be a 33 part work),
originally named
"A Story
About A Kid Named Todd". Worked on in between his other unrelated solo
albums, released for sale or otherwise, Chase posted a lengthy
elaboration of the rock opera in 2022, now titled "The Chaotic
Rite", outlining its concept, recording plans, and long-term release
timeline. Clips of songs have surfaced on his Facebook page,
as have full songs not explicitly tied to the album, as well as the final artwork. In more recent promotion, Chase has
hinted that "The Chaotic Rite" might be his final solo album as part of aims to focus on his personal life more
than his prolific original material.
Regardless, the final product has been pared down to 25-30 minutes.
Current Release Status:
Chase elaborated on Facebook last summer that the album was 95% done
earlier this year when the files "got trapped on my desktop's hard
drive", and he had been unable to procure a backup of the material or
recover the files as of that post. In any event, three of the full songs
uploaded to Facebook in the past year were clarified as not being
planned for "The Chaotic Rite", but they could surface on a separate EP.
Fingers crossed that Chase is able to save this album and put it out
when able, especially given the years that he's put into the making of
it!
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Convergence - Gemini
Rumoured Songs: "Gemini", "In Bloom", "Breaking News", "It Ate The F&$%ing Moon", "Kraken Mara", "You Are Not Flesh"
Background: Just over a month after releasing their sophomore EP "Dead And Dreaming",
local progressive metal band Convergence announced on
February 9th that EP #3 would be named "Gemini", despite the obvious
twin implications of that name. The cover artwork
for "Gemini" was released at the same time, with the band asking fans
if they should release singles in advance or put it all out at once. Teaser clips of most songs from the EP have been posted on their Facebook page and their YouTube channel since May. Guitarist Brendan Christie revealed the names of five songs in
a recent Facebook conversation, one named after the band's prior name
Kraken Mara, though a new or renamed song named "You Are Not Flesh" was posted an advance single on Bandcamp in September. New drummer David Peredun (who was confirmed to have joined
the band in February 2024) will presumably make his studio debut here. The band has spent most of the past month hyping a crowdfunding campaign for a planned tour, though "Gemini" is not overtly tied to its marketing.
Current Release Status:
No clue, and given the complexity of their music yet their independent
studio trappings so far, that could bode a quick or lengthy timeline for
"Gemini" to come out, depending on what angle you take. Since their
modern studio cycle commenced in 2023, things have been relatively
steady for Brendan and Jake as a recording act, and here's hoping that
Convergence keep that up for their third offering!
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Fort Creek's debut album
Rumoured Songs: "One For The Road"
Background: Background: Local
southern/hard rock band Fort Creek have sporadically teased plans to
record an EP since February 2020, but they wouldn't release any samples
until almost two years later when they shared (now-deleted) clips of
their original song "Hammer Down" on their Facebook page.
The guys would play it regularly at concerts from June 2022-August
2023, and were working in studio throughout 2023, revealing that "it's
coming along" in a
Facebook post that March, and teasing new recording
sessions following earlier "learning experiences" there that
May. After the departure of bassist Robin "Bones" Lee and drummer
Anthony Fabiano (both now of Bullet Train) in the fall of 2023, Fort Creek opted
to abandon material recorded with them "as a show of good faith", and
have been working on new material and rebuilding their studio over the
past year. Now featuring Phil Greco on drums, their first single (the acoustic "One For The Road")
was posted online in January, with the band confirming plans to now
record a 10 song album at Jettison Studios prior to returning to live
concerts.
Current Release Status:
Prior release timelines for their debut EP reflected their early 2020s
lineup's material, and Justin, Shane, Bill, and Phil have largely kept things
somewhat close to the vest prior to putting out "One For The Road".
There are a lot of
unknowns,
especially given the 4+ years of production time and their decision to
basically start over in 2023, and that this is a band
that was primarily known for their work on the weekend cover circuit
before their rhythm section left. It
will be interesting to see how things develop, so stay tuned for
updates!
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Fuller - "II".jpg)
Rumoured Songs: "And I End", "Kerosene", "Love Is Always", "Batts", "Crush", "Image", "Embarrass"
Background: Twenty-one years after releasing their self-titled debut EP, local midwest emo/post-hardcore band Fuller reunited for a headlining concert at LopLops Lounge in December 2023, with founding frontman Jamie Vincent and mid-2000s bassist Mark Rand now joined by Convergence drummer David Peredun. While seemingly a one-off, teasers popped up last year that the guys were recording at Unsalted Audio with producer Dustin Goodall when Mark was back home, and the album was finally publically confirmed on social media in early 2025. "And I End" and "Kerosene" were posted on YouTube last month as advance singles for the album, which was mixed by Greg Dawson at BWC Studios. Songs on offer are expected to primarily be unreleased songs from Mark's original run in Fuller, and unlike on their 2002 EP, all songs will have official titles.
Current Release Status: "Fuller II" is expected to drop on major streaming platforms "very soon", with a release party likely to follow, and Mark had teased on the band's Instagram page that physical copies could also be put out if there was demand. This is all very exciting news for old Fuller supporters from their original run, let alone emo and post-hardcore fans in general, so keep tabs on their social media accounts and with band members for updates as things draw nearer!
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Handsome Sandwich's first EP
Rumoured Songs: "Without You", "Partyfuel", "Change A Bit", "No Idea", "All Done Now"
Background: Before even releasing
their full-length debut album "Deconstructed" in May 2023, local
alternative/hard rock quintet Handsome Sandwich revealed that not all of
their existing originals would be on that album, with plans to instead
release them and some brand new songs on a forthcoming EP. In September
of that year, they began recording this EP (which will reportedly have
seven
songs) at the Algoma Conservatory of Music,
with bass & drum tracks completes that month, and then-guitarist Mitch
Sirie was finishing his parts as of that December, with vocals still
to go. At least five of the seven songs have had their names revealed in
concert setlists. After only
contributing to the packaging on "Deconstructed", bassist Rafael Medina
will perform on this EP, and a "Reel" of him recording an unidentified song in studio was posted to the band's Facebook page.
It's not clear if new guitarist Brandon Ruch will be involved on the EP
in some fashion or not, but Wyld Stallyns saxophonist Josh Norling may
appear again, as he guested with them to play "Partyfuel" at August's Northern Vibe Festival.
Current Release Status:
To be determined, and while they're not recording this EP at the same
place as "Deconstructed", note that the sessions for that album at
Unsalted Audio wrapped up four months before the album release. An article about the band
from The Sault Star in June noted that the seven new songs "will
likely be released as singles", but whether this points to a change of
release plans or is just an acknowledgement that they have seven
individual singles to put out, I don't know. It will be interesting to
see how things progress
in the coming months!
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Spades GT's second full-length album
Rumoured Songs: "United"
Background: Long teasing plans to record their next album this year, local/Barrie crossover thrash band Spades GT did indeed begin recording sessions for their follow-up to 2023's "Sewer City Radio" on February 17th at Room 21 in Toronto with producer Kyle Marchant once again. Their fourth release total dating back to their original all-local run as Jack Spades, this will be Spades GT's first album with new second guitarist Matthew Voros. Teaser videos on their Facebook page included guitarist Daniel Horton tracking bass on at least one of the planned eight songs (the band has yet to officially replace bassist James Roy Daley) and ex-guitarist Jay Sarrazin returning as a guest musician, while the video from the vocal sessions seemed to suggest that one song will be named "United" or "We Are United". The final sessions on February 22nd reportedly featured guest appearances and gang vocals, but teaser videos from that day were not shared online, so we don't know who else will pop up yet.
Current Release Status: Not sure yet, but for "Sewer City Radio", it was recorded in March 2023 with a release three months later, so if a similar turnaround occurs, we wouldn't see this album until May. There are many variables, and of course, the band now being based in Southern Ontario will have its own plusses. In general, Spades are pretty open about their upcoming plans, so stay tuned in the coming months!
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I hope you guys liked this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post! This series will return on or around April 2nd, while our next monthly feature post will likely be this month's Defunct Local Band Profile on or around April 10th. That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site soon! Thanks everyone!
Kudos to Our Lady Peace for teaming up with Superior Heights and giving the kids one huge opportunity, one that they've been practicing for all winter, and it sounds like it went over well! You can see the performance below in one of (surprisingly) just two YouTube channels who have visibly posted content from the concert so far. YouTube user MasonTheGoat was on hand to film Our Lady Peace's set (nothing of the openers), and along with "Life" embedded below, he also filmed them playing "Clumsy", "Innocent", "In Repair", and "Whatever". Alas, all five videos were shot vertically, but while Mason wasn't especially close to the stage, he has a good clear view of the band in action. Honestly, Steel Rock are hard to hear as the song goes, but it's a solid performance of one of O.L.P.'s bigger hits, and the audio quality across all five videos is pretty good, so give Mason's footage a watch for yourselves above and below!
