Before we dive into another round of weekend concert previews, here's a new news post to check out on this Wednesday night, which includes new videos from/about Soo Blaster concerts from three different local bands, plus an addition to our inactive band links. Here's what you should know!
In their first major update since releasing their new album "Road Trippin'" on May 3rd, local hard rock quintet HeadF1rst have released the first music video from it! The video is for the album's first advance single "Slay The Dragon", and was uploaded to their YouTube channel earlier today. It features footage of HeadF1rst playing this song at Soo Blaster during the album release party, including clips featuring album producer/guest guitarist Bill Priddle, who joined them on stage to play this song at set's end. Footage was shot across both a stationary camera and by a roving filmer, with Ella Kallonen and A Dire Setback's Matthew Quinn both credited for videography, while the video makes heavy use of the 1929 Disney short cartoon Hell's Bells, which is now in the public domain. You can tell that the performance footage isn't always synced up with the song, but the video is well shot!
Note that a good portion of the video features bassist Claire Jeffrey on lead vocals with her brother Red Jettison playing guitar, despite this song having Red singing lead, which may be a preview of other songs on the album if you haven't heard it yet (our review hits the site by month's end). Another song from the album will be getting a music video on May 28th, but will it feature more footage from the release party? We'll know more next week, but give HeadF1rst's... first music video from "Road Trippin'" a watch below!
Next up, I'm behind on recent video content from local death/thrash metal trio Pillory, so let's start rectifying that with a full set video from last month' all-local metal show The Pit at Soo Blaster! This was uploaded to drummer Bret Shuttleworth's YouTube channel on April 21st (three days after the concert), and unlike in his prior full-set uploads, he did label all songs in the description with tags as to when they start. In order, Pillory played eight original songs here, none of which are carry-overs from their 2013 debut EP "Cringe At The Cross" (which predated frontman Robert Sartini taking on harsh death metal vocals). In order, the guys played a short intro track named "End Of Small Sanctuary" before diving into "Specimen Of Egotism", "Sculptor Of Cadavers", "The Angst Of Existence", "The Passing", "Abhorred Apprehension", "The Curse Of Eternal Sickness", and "A Drop Of Shame In An Ocean Of Guilt".
This set ended with a cover of Sepultura's "Territory". The video was shot with a stationary camera aimed towards the stage and the first few rows of fans on the floor, and if you're wondering why the top strip of the video is blurred out, Bret explained in the description that he did that because "the lights (above the stage) were seizure inducing". Nice and brutal performance from a solid angle, and if you like Death-inspired death metal, you'll like what Pillory are cooking up here, and there's more from them ahead! Give their full concert set in/at The Pit a watch below!
Also, here's a new video from local progressive metal band Convergence's Facebook page to hype up their upcoming concert at Soo Blaster on June 28th! The vertical promotional clip sees singer Stephen Gagnon-Ruscio and guitarist Brendan Christie pulled over by a "cop" (guitarist Jacob Valois) for "going too fast", but can Stephen make things right by giving the "officer" tickets to The Upheaval? Funny clip for what it is, though part of me was hoping to see some live footage from their debut concert (the aforementioned The Pit at Soo Blaster). Lots of pictures from that night are on their Facebook page, but so far, no videos to sample how Convergence sound with a vocalist. Check out the Upheaval commercial below!
Finally, I have officially moved local funk/hard rock cover band The Wyld Stallyns to our inactive links due to almost one year's inactivity. There had not been a public update on The Stallyns proper since posting on their Facebook group on May 23rd of last year, with singer/guitarist Rob Speers quietly transitioning into work as a solo musician last summer, including taking over the band's advertised set at The Northern Vibe Festival. It is worth noting that he and his wife Christina (who sang most lead vocals) separated last year, which may or may not be related. Launching as an acoustic duo from Rob and his then-Elements bandmate Jesse Cook in November 2017, the former Kariokeheads took on their Bill & Ted-inspired name in early 2018, adding Christina in time for numerous concerts at nightclubs, charity events, and festivals. The band later added drums in 2019, and post-pandemic, they became a full electric group, adding bass guitar to their live ranks.
Their rhythm section frequently rotated in the 2020s, and their last six-piece lineup only played together briefly in the spring of 2024, though Rob enlists guest musicians (some being fellow Stallyns alumni) at many of his solo gigs. While not as heavy as The Elements could get,The Wyld Stallyns were a fun act who could entertain at a multitude of live events with sets tailored to any occasion, and with The Elements not re-emerging after the pandemic, their sister band's expansion beyond unplugged shows was a good one. Everyone in their last lineup is still performing, so look for Rob, Christina, Jesse, Blair, Brandan, Josh, and their other former members on a local stage near you, and look for weekend concert previews on the site next! Thanks everyone!
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