Saigon Hookers Concert Review & Half A Man Updates!!

Hey guys, I'm back from last night's Saigon Hookers concert at The Rockstar Bar, so how'd it go! I will tell you in this review, followed by some new updates from Half A Man! I regrettably got to the show late, so I probably missed half of Brad Example & The Role Models' set, but I made a point to rush there when I finally left to see what I could! Fittingly, they were covering Black Sabbath's "The Wizard" when I arrived, which was cool! The band's lineup looked mostly the same as they did in March when I last saw them, although the drummer may have been different (don't quote me though.) Musically, what I saw was about as good as The Role Models' March show, with Brad Example making the most of his grittier punk singing, and Dave Bahun was as good as ever on lead guitar! Again, I wish Marco Pedalino had more lead time, but I'm only judging by what I saw. Decent sized crowd cheering them on, and they deserved it from what I caught! Nice straightforward punk with some metal flourishes here and there, hopefully they play some other shows at some point, cause hopefully I'll see the whole thing next time!

Then were the main attraction, The Saigon Hookers, returning from Kitchener for round 2 in Sault Ste. Marie! Their set was, musically, as good as it was in March, with tons of punk inspired hard rock for their fans, including originals like "Devil To Win", "Stray Dogs", "Ignition", and "Hopeless Case Of A Kid In Denial", and some Hellacopters, Rolling Stones, and Thin Lizzy covers to boot! Their sound is always an energetic blast of alcohol and hard rock, and they shown that again last night, from Tommy Smokes' attitude-infused singing to Ron Cybulskie's fast shredding! (Also, kudos on the retro Lion Ride shirt!) Lee Brook deserves lots of credit too for rocking out awesomely on bass despite a broken ankle, though it did restrict his on stage movements. While musically, everything was on par (save for some too-quiet singing early), the overall atmosphere of the show was lacking compared to the March show. Many fans seemed to leave when The Role Models wrapped up, very few people got on the floor until very late in the set (and only to dance), and there didn't seem to be a large amount of energetic response to the Hookers like the first time around. Many fans who stuck around enjoyed themselves, but I don't know, something seemed off.

I had fun though, and I know many in attendance did too! The Saigon Hookers rock and have lots of great tunes to go around, and Lion Ride fans will sure enjoy them! I also forgot to mention this in March, but The Saigon Hookers don't have a set break, they play all their songs straight through, so you get a non stop relentless attack and lots of time to drink post-show, which I find cool! Hopefully they come back sooner or later, though hopefully with some better advertising and more advance word, the environment will be livelier! I did get a bunch of photos, so click here to check them out, or visit our Facebook page! And yes, I did get a video, so here's The Saigon Hookers playing their original song "Ignition"!



And finally for today, here's some more news from Brimley hard rockers Half A Man, who are still hard at work on their first album! The band has uploaded two new videos from the sessions, likely at McNally Smith Studios in Minnesota, onto their YouTube channel over the past couple of days. One is a video showing various computer screenshots from Mikey Bishop's drum tracking, as overlayed with other song portions from various songs to be featured on the album. Not a lot to say on it, but the song clips sound promising, though obviously incomplete. The other video, which we have embedded below, is of Mikey doing live drum tracking, with him on camera busting out his parts for their song "Bad Way"! If you haven't heard the song before, it will basically just sound like a solo drum piece, but it's very well played and should sound even better with guitars and such wrapped around it! Nice video quality too, if a bit dark. Check out Mikey's drum tracking for "Bad Way" below, and stay tuned for more Half A Man studio updates! Check the above links for more studio stuff too!



That's all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for a new news post with a big announcement concerning how YOU can win something related to an upcoming concert! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Laika), Upcoming Concert Updates, And More!!

Good morning, metalheads! It's time to get you all caught up on some more recent news and notes in the local metal/hard rock scene, so here's what's on tap for today! We have our latest weekly classic video, the newest solo material from a local musician, the full lineup for an upcoming concert, and the latest news concerning Half A Man, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!

It looks like metal nights at The Roosevelt Hotel are gonna continue well into 2011 (very luckily, thanks Rich!) as I recently came across an out of town band that looks like they'll be on one this summer! The band in question is Laika, a six man melodic death metal band from Manitoba, and they've announced a stop at The Rosie for August 25th, which just happens to be a Thursday! It looks like this will be a part of the band's Eastern Canada tour cycle in August, though specific details on the local date aren't known yet. I assume it will have a 9:30 PM start time, no cover, and a 19+ age limit like other similar shows, but nothing else is known at present. I imagine openers won't be known until the summer either, but you never know! Laika aren't too bad, they definitely make the most of the "melodic" tag in their genre mixing synths with some nice extreme death metal! Vocals are a bit higher toned than I expected going in, but Laika are pretty good, and they should attract a crowd in August! Stay tuned for updates on this show as they come in, and check Laika out at their official MySpace page!

Now to some concert updates, and we'll start with TOMORROW'S punk night at The Roosevelt Hotel, which does apply to the SMS given the participation of Sykotyk Rampage! Two weeks ago, we knew about their participation thanks to a Facebook event page that they launched, but the remainder of the lineup wasn't known at the time. Well, on Monday, promoter Typhoid Meagan finally posted an official event page for this self-described "semi-rushed (and super awesome)" second punk night! So, who's joining Sykotyk Rampage? Well, the headliners will be (oddly enough) local hardcore quartet Changing Waves, fresh off their Rosie debut last week at the last metal night! I honestly wouldn't consider Changing Waves "punk" at all, but hey, this will still rock, and they deserve a headlining slot! Sykotyk Rampage are second on the bill, and the openers are going to be stoner rock quartet Whiskey Skidoo, who are known to cover a punk song here and there (even Nirvana and The Queens Of The Stone Age!) I still don't know how they sound live, but hopefully they'll impress tomorrow! Same house rules apply as at most Rosie concerts. Stay tuned tomorrow for more details on this show in our weekend concert previews!

Meanwhile, here's a double shot of news from Brimley hard rockers Half A Man! Firstly, their announced concert on March 26th at The Merchant's Bar has been pushed up 3 weeks to April 16th. Why? I don't know, the band didn't go into detail on their Facebook page, but I imagine it was a schedule conflict. It should be noted that Mikey Bishop was stating there that he couldn't play the original March date due to prior family commitments, but whether this was related isn't specified. With that said, Mikey has officially announced that he is now the band's full time drummer, replacing Doug Reed in that position. Again, no reason was given on band pages, but Mikey is more than qualified, and I imagine Doug's personal problems are connected to this change. Still, best of luck to Doug, he's a good drummer! This may seem out of character given Mikey's past work in death and black metal bands, but if you've heard his live work with Half A Man, you won't see any problem! Check the above links for more, and remember to go see Half A Man at "The Merch" in April!

Fourthly, here's the latest original solo material from local guitarist Mike Cliffe! He's posted three new songs onto his Reverbnation page in the past little while, so here's what you should know before checking them out! One is entitled "Winter Takita Bird", and it takes a different approach featuring synthed orchestral-sounding music and unique drumming, with no real guitar until the last minute of the track. It's not what I'm used to, but it works for it's style! Has sort of an East Indian feel at points, if that's accurate. Another newly posted song named "Mud Sandwich" is closer to what we're used to from Mike's solo work. Nice riffing and solid solo sections, it has an old school feel at points, while still being heavy and retaining a unique quality! The third song is simply called "Name This Song" because Mike literally wants you to name this song! If you have a suggestion, you can post it on Twitter with the hashtag "#audiofumes" and Mike could select it as this song's title, or use it on a future track! Musically, this is the most different of the three new songs, with an atmospheric and very light feel throughout with techno flourishes. Hard to explain, but it's very unlike most of his past work. Click here to check out all three new songs, and the rest of his posted solo stuff! His talent and diversity shines again here, and though I like "Mud Sandwich" the best, all are valid songs that should be heard! Check the above links for more!

And finally, here is this week's classic video! In honour of their return to the stage on Saturday, I have uploaded a new video of local grunge trio No Arrow onto The Sault Metal Scene's YouTube channel! Now most No Arrow videos have made it to YouTube through frontman Dann Pichette's YouTube channel, but here's one that never got posted there, despite other songs from said performance being uploaded there already. This comes from (I think) a set the band played on June 16th, 2007 at a Sault Area Wrestling card at The Elks Lodge. I believe the card was called "Revenge's Warpath", and if you were there, you may have recognized Energy Rock Radio's own Ryan McQueen as one of the wrestlers (source here, 3rd picture.) I love wrestling, but I couldn't make this card, so I can't verify if the above information is 100% accurate, but I tried! This video in particular was filmed by an attendee, and was later uploaded by Dann onto Facebook, and you can check the original video out at http://facebook.com/video/video.php?v=4833374126. In this video, No Arrow covered The Stooges' "Search & Destroy", and didn't do a bad job of it!

It was effectively grunged up, and they made it their own! The video quality isn't spectacular, but the audio's better, so that's good! Also nice to see former bassist Harley Syrette on stage again here, he's a great bassist! I just wish the full song was included, only 3 minutes of video were filmed. Still, check out our latest classic video below, and go see No Arrow in their return on Saturday!



That's all for now, but stay tuned tonight or early tomorrow for weekend concert previews! Thanks everyone!

Local Metal Video Showcase!!

As promised, I have another new post, as I have to get caught up from stuff I've held back during my ongoing illness. So today's post is devoted to new videos, as an occasional post theme returns today: the local metal video showcase! We haven't had a videos only post like this since the Kiss concert aftermath, so this definitely has been a long time coming! So, let's kick off this post with our first videos, going in alphabetical order by band name!

Firstly, here are the latest videos from local hard rock trio Browbeat! As we inch closer to their return to the stage this weekend at The Rosie, we can now get a preview of sorts as to how their new lineup sounds, thanks to new uploads by bassist James White! He uploaded two new Browbeat performance clips onto his YouTube channel (which also includes jam videos with former Disciples of Rock bandmates) on Wednesday, including performances of their songs "Movin' On" and "Days Gone By"! These are the first videos we've seen of the band with Dutch's former Caveman Morrison bandmate Johnny Belanger on drums, and the band as a whole have good chemistry in these videos! I like James' enthusiasm, Dutch Vanderploeg's unique singing is effectively used, and the songs sound good! "Movin' On" is the heavier of the two, but both are solid hard rock tunes, so definitely check them out and see what you think! I hope to be at The Rosie on Friday night to check out Browbeat, you guys should go too! For now, check the above links for the new Browbeat videos, and here's "Movin' On"!



Next up is a new video from Brimley, Michigan hard rockers Half A Man! The band has a healthy amount of good quality concert clips on their Facebook page, but YouTube uploads have proven more elusive. Not to worry though, we now have one, though not of the whole band. On Tuesday, temporary drummer Mikey Bishop uploaded a new video from February 3rd's I-500 Pub Crawl concert at The Bird onto his YouTube channel, and it features one of his drum solos! The video quality itself isn't great, but the red lighting adds a sort of effective ambiance to it! The audio makes up for it though, as you can hear Mikey's very proficient drum solo very well! He's definitely a talented drummer, and it shows for all 24 seconds of this video! Check it out below, and remember, for full performance videos of Half A Man songs, the links above will hook you up!



Thirdly, here's the newest video from local metal trio Sativa Rose, which is almost two weeks behind schedule for me to include on here, so my apologies for the delay! This comes from last month's Icy Metal For Aborted Therapy concert at The Oddfellows Hall, and it's actually of the same song I filmed for the SMS, that being their cover of Ratt's "Lay It Down"! Once again, the video was filmed by bassist Adam Veale's dad John and uploaded onto his YouTube channel on January 31st. As usual, the quality's great, way better than the video I got! There's zooming, clearer audio, and higher quality video in general, kudos to John for another solid video! I saw him filming a lot more than just this song though, I wonder if we'll see more from this set down the road? Muscially, I can't add much new here, having already commented on their set from this show, but it's another solid example of Sativa Rose's talent and musical abilities! Just don't judge just on singing, they're doing their best! Check it out below!



And finally, here's our latest (apologetically overdue) weekly classic video! Like our past videos, I've tied this one in to a band/artist performing in the area from the upcoming concert weekend (well, last weekend now), and this time, the featured band is That's Chester and their cover of Deep Purple's "Highway Star"! They fit for this weekly feature, and there's no videos of the band with current frontman Greg Simpson on YouTube anymore, so I'll help amend that! This week's classic video comes from one of their many concerts at Docks Riverfront Grill likely from last year (Facebook doesn't provide specific upload dates), and this was filmed and uploaded by attendee Carol Kainula. The original video can be seen at http://facebook.com/video/video.php?v=136327797552 and ALL CREDIT goes to Carol for this upload! She did all the hard work, I'm just expanding it's audience like it deserves. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED!! Quality's not bad, and the band's talent is clear, though Greg doesn't attempt the falsetto parts in that range. Audio's a bit scratchy, but it's still a solid clip, and it's a nice look at That's Chester's current lineup! So here's That's Chester's cover of "Highway Star", and I should have a new classic video uploaded mid-week!



That's all for today, but I have more big news to come over the next couple days, I promise! And our monthly feature posts will be kicking in over the next little while as well, so stay tuned for those as well! Thanks everyone!

Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile: Human Disorder & Summon

As promised, it is now time for our newest monthly profiles of two out of town hard rock/metal bands that feature at least one Saultite in their lineup! This month, we take a look at two bands that feature local guys we've already talked about here, but are by no means not worth profiling! One's broken up, the other is very much alive, and both are very talented! So, here we go, and of course, if there's something incorrect, missing, or lacking info/details, please tell me! (UPDATED: November 24, 2014)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Human Disorder (Port Colborne, Ontario)

Lineup: (Saultites in RED; members not in their final lineup in italics)

Scott Bowen (vocals)
Jason Taillefer (vocals/guitar)
Tim Letkemann (guitar)
Keith Gillam (bass)
Joe LaVergne (drums)

Official MySpace page: http://myspace.com/humandisorderon

Local Info: As mentioned in our Phatstick profile, Jason Taillefer and Joe LaVergne were born and raised in Sault Ste. Marie, where they played in various local bands in the 1980s and early 1990s! You may recognize Jason from his work in Alyster and Scrooge, for example. Both moved to the Niagara Falls area in the early 1990s to further their musical career, where they eventually both found their way into Human Disorder in 1994. In 1999, the pair formed Phatstick, and have since relocated to St. Catharines. Though neither Jason or Joe live in Sault Ste. Marie anymore, they were known to come back home for the occasional Phatstick concert, so take note of that in case the band reunites!

Band Bio: Human Disorder was formed in 1994 by guitarist Tim "TbOnZ" Letkemann and Joe LaVergne, eventually acquiring the services of Jason Taillefer on vocals and guitar and Keith Gillam (Jason and Joe's future Phatstick bandmate) on bass. The quartet played numerous gigs in the Niagara Falls area in the mid-1990s, recording their debut album "Twisted Sane" in 1995, before independently releasing it in October 1996. After it's release, St. Catharines' based Blue Summit Records (now Stumble Records) signed Human Disorder under the Ruptured Discs imprint. In the late 1990s, the band was joined by vocalist Scott Bowen, and recorded their second and final CD, "Ugly Modern Aggression", which was released in 1999. The band toured all over Canada and The United States in support of the album, and the success of "U.M.A." helped get Human Disorder into the top 50 on FMQB's "Top 100 Metal Bands" list in 1999! The band broke up the next year, playing their final show on April 30th, 2000. Jason, Joe, and Keith went on to form Phatstick, while Tim and Keith launched the industrial metal band InterVenom. In their heyday, Human Disorder did play in Sault Ontario, which I bet would have been awesome!

Human Disorder are the perfect example of why I often curse my age, cause I missed a band this cool! They had a definite Pantera influence that comes through on their songs, though it had a bit of a "nu" flair that made it a bit more accessible, but not enough to sell out with! This is especially evident on "Ugly Modern Aggression", thanks to Scott Bowen's aggressive vocal style! Jason Taillefer, whether as lead or co-lead singer, also shown off some impressive singing, which fans surely saw with Phatstick too. Some of their stuff with Jason singing lead definitely reminds me more of "nu metal", but I like a lot of nu metal, so it works for me, though if you're not big on that style, you my not be as appreciative. The instrumentation is great, though the guitar solos that I've heard aren't the best. To be fair though, I haven't heard any of their full albums, but from what I have heard, I'm very impressed! Very heavy with some good melodies, great singing, and lots of energy! Pantera and nu-metal fans will have a field day with Human Disorder, and if you're craving something a touch heavier than Phatstick, look no further!

Three songs (two from "U.M.A.", one from "Twisted Sane") are on their MySpace page, along with a remix from their last album! Also, you can still buy unopened copies of "U.M.A." on Amazon for as cheap as one cent, click here to check it out for yourself! As for a video, I have found just one video online of Human Disorder, a 1999 music video for their song "Puzzled"! This was originally uploaded on Google Video 3 years ago and was filmed by Black Walk Productions. The original link is at this location, and I've uploaded this video to YouTube to spread it to the masses like it deserves! NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED!! So with that in mind, take a trip back a decade and check out "Puzzled"!


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Summon (Lansing, Michigan)

Lineup: (Saultites in RED; members not in their last lineup in italics)

Chas "Necromodeus" Schoals (vocals/bass)
Ed Ryan (lead guitar)
Mike Jasso (rhythm guitar)
Mikey Bishop (drums)

Sean "Xaphan" Peters (vocals/guitar)
Dan McNeil (guitar)
Mark "Akhkaru" Garcia (guitar)
Chad "Haborym" Metzger (guitar)
Ryan O'Neil (guitar)
Matt "McGoat" McClelland (guitar)
Craig "Oze" Wilson (drums)
Mark "Supmur" Hague (drums)
Joshua "Dominus" Moore (drums)
"Asteroth" (drums)

Official MySpace page: http://myspace.com/cemetarydesekrator666
Official Facebook page (1): http://facebook.com/pages/summon/107242069317984
Official Facebook page (2): http://facebook.com/pages/summon/115792518441039
Official ReverbNation page: http://reverbnation.com/summon666

Local Info: The only local member of Summon wais drummer Mikey Bishop, who is sure to be familiar to local metalheads, especially ones from Sault Michigan! A veteran of numerous metal bands stretching from Ontario to Nashville, Mikey's probably best known nowadays as drummer for Brimley hard rockers Half A Man, along with former bands like the Grand Rapids death metal band Sadomasochism, playing with them in some high profile tours in the mid-2000s. Mikey's body of work includes stops in bands like Bludgeoned, Cement Pond, Dry Rot, 13 Mile Style, and most prominent of his former local bands, mid-90s groove metal rockers Lower S.E.S.! Look out for more exciting news and updates from Mikey's current projects in the near future!

Band Bio: Mikey joined Summon in 2009 upon the return of the band after a 4 year hiatus. I think Mikey replaced Joshua "Dominus" Moore as the band's drummer. The current lineup also includes founding member Chas "Necromodeus" Schoals on lead vocals and bass, Ed Ryan (who, like Mikey, is also formerly from Sadomasochism) on lead guitar, and Mike Jasso on rhythm guitar. Summon were initially formed in 1991 by Necromodeus and Xaphan, recording one demo before breaking up to focus on their work in another Michigan black metal band, Masochist. In 1995, the duo reformed Summon, releasing a demo that year and their first full length album, "Dark Descent of Fallen Souls", in 1997. Amidst numerous lineup changes, Summon released four more studio albums up to their most recent release, "Fallen", in 2005. The band went on hiatus after the departure of Xaphan in 2006, but returned in the late 2000s. Though beginning a new CD  "A New Beginning" and playing a number of concerts in Michigan in the late 2000s, Summon fell inactive after 2010, though you can now see frontman Chas Schoals with the Lansing death metal band Inebriated.

I have to be honest, black metal isn't a genre I listen to a lot. That being said, Summon are pretty good! From the songs I've heard, I've detected some very skilled black metal vocals from Necromodeus and Xaphan alike, and though I'm sure many fans will miss Xaphan in the current lineup, Necromodeus is more than capable of carrying the total vocal burden! At least with their black metal singing, it's not toneless shrieking like some other bands, so that's great! Excellent drum work too, they made sure they got top of the line guys behind the kit, especially Dominus, and I know Mikey's going to do just fine in Summon! The various lead guitarists from their early albums were good too, though when listening, I just enjoyed the assaulting heaviness of Summon, they have tons of face-melting qualities, and hopefully they return to activity and come up to the Sault area sooner or later! Here's their music video for their song "Sacred Nothing"!


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
That's all for today, unless there's some major, must-be-posted-today story that comes out later on. So, are you wondering what bands I'll profile next month? Well, after some thinking and searching, here's who I plan to profile: The Disciples of Rock, the inactive Blind River hard rock band featuring Saultites Aaron LeBlanc & James White, and Violet Fuse, the London Ontario hard rock band featuring the Sault Ontario-born Thom Edwards on drums! Expect that around the last week of June!

Over the next couple of days, expect brand new posts with updates on Bret Michaels, Tesla's show here next month, Stillbroke, Nixxon Dixxon, Energy Rock Radio, and more! Stay tuned for more!

Saultites In Out Of Town Bands Profile: Feral Noise & Sadomasochism

As promised, it's time to profile two more metal bands from elsewhere in the world that just happen to feature at least one Sault native in their lineup! For the first time, we'll profile bands from outside of Ontario, heading across the river to Michigan for one, and all the way to Calgary for another! These are two bands I'm sure some of you guys were hoping I'd profile in this monthly feature, and here they are! So let us begin, and of course, if there's something incorrect, missing, or lacking info/details, please tell me! (UPDATED: November 24, 2014)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Feral Noise (Calgary, Alberta)

Lineup: (Saultites in RED; members not in their last lineup in italics)

Nathalie Boudreau (vocals)
Tym Morrison (guitar)
Jamie Bridger (bass)
Landon Chatterton (drums)
Greg Sutherland (drums)

Official website: http://feralnoise.com
Official Reverbnation profile: http://reverbnation.com/feralnoise

Local Info: The only Saultite in Feral Noise was Tym Morrison, who local music fans will be sure to recognize! A lifelong musician, Tym has played in numerous local bands including Hollow, Carbon Black, and Heresy, among many others! Nowadays, you'll best know Tym from his frequent string of solo acoustic concerts in the Sault area (most recently a regular run at The Harp), though many fans will also remember his mid-2000s and 2009-2013 runs with his metal cover band Caveman Morrison. Tym released his "Solo Project" CD in 2006, has worked with numerous established musicians in the Sault area, and has also taught guitar in the past as well, so look out for Tym at a venue near you!

Band Bio: Tym Morrison moved to Calgary in 2006, to further his ultimate musical goals. Later in that year, Tym met JANE?DOE members Nathalie Boudreau and Jamie Bridger at a jam night. He later auditioned for and made their new band, which they called Feral Noise. Former Caveman Morrison drummer Greg Sutherland was an early drummer for Feral Noise, before being replaced by Landon Chatterton, also met at a jam night. Feral Noise were a frequent sight in the Calgary area through 2008, playing mostly hard rock/metal covers, everything from Megadeth to ABBA! They also played a couple original tracks, one of which has a posted demo on their official website! Tym Morrison has called Feral Noise "the most organized band he's ever played in"! The band eventually dissolved, though the band's respective members appear to still be active in music, with Tym returning to the Sault scene in 2009, though Nathalie is still musically active with a solo project & more in British Columbia.

To be fair, there isn't a lot of Feral Noise audio/video online, just one studio demo sans vocals, and one live video (check it out here), but what I hear is really good! Nathalie Boudreau is a talented vocalist, she reminds me of Melissa from Bad Side in ways, though more aggressive, and you can hear more likely-similar work from her later Vancouver bands at this location! The demo of "Bury The Hatchet" from their website gives a clearer indication of the instrumentation, and you can tell this is Tym Morrison playing, he delivers once again! Nice and heavy, and the solo is awesome! It's a shame I never got to see Feral Noise live, it'd have been a great show, it'd be nice to see more from them online though. Luckily, they have embeddable video online, so check this out, Feral Noise from a 2007 show in Calgary covering the Pantera classic "Cowboys From Hell", and Motley Crue's "Live Wire"!


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sadomasochism (Grand Rapids, Michigan)

Lineup: (Saultites in RED; members not in their last lineup in italics)

John Rios (vocals)
Jason Salmer (guitar)
Ingrid Joplin (guitar)
Ray Kandea (bass)
Mikey Bishop (drums) 

Ed Ryan (guitar)
Jason Kandea (drums)

Official MySpace page: http://myspace.com/sadomusic
Official SoundClick page: http://soundclick.com/sadomasochism

Local Info: Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan's own Mikey Bishop was the final drummer in Sadomasochism, which is one of the many bands he's been a part of in recent years! Local fans may best recognize Mikey as the drummer for the local hard rock quartet Half A Man and the recently inactive Lansing black metal band Summon, along with former local acts Bludgeoned (also featuring John Rios of Sadomasochism), and mid-90s groove metal band Lower S.E.S., among many others! Currently working on new material with Half A Man, look for lots of exciting things from Mikey in the future, including hopefully more live concerts!

Band Bio: Mikey Bishop joined Sadomasochism in 2003, replacing Jason Kandea behind the drumkit. The band itself had been going strong since 1999 in the Grand Rapids area, initially playing mostly backyard parties amongst an area unfamiliar to death metal. The band persevered, eventually playing more shows and winning the WKLQ Heavyweight Championships Battle of the Bands in 2002! The band frequently toured Michigan and the midwest, opening for major bands like Superjoint Ritual, Satyricon, Dying Fetus, and Summon. They released their only album, "Worship The Dark" in December 2002, loaded with lots of brutal death metal music and B-horror movie inspired lyrics! Though their profile was on the rise, the departures of Mikey and guitarist Ingrid Joplin eventually led to Sadomasochism's 2004 breakup. Most ex-members of Sadomasochism later played for a newer Grand Rapids death metal band named Flesh For The Beast, (though Mikey was not a part), while frontman John Rios' current band From Hell are likely most similar to Sadomasochism's old sound.

As a fan of death metal, let me express how awesome these guys were! John Rios is a really good growler, clear and vicious simultaneously! The guitar work is really nice, Jason Salmer and Ingrid Joplin were really proficient on guitar, and the Kandea brothers were awesome too on bass and drums! I don't know if they ever played in Sault Michigan, but I bet it'd have been an awesome show! Mikey Bishop never drummed on any Sadomasochism albums, but he's an excellent drummer, and the live clips I've seen with him in the lineup have been quite good! I do find that the songs they have up are slightly muffled, there isn't a huge "punch" to the studio recordings, but the songs are still great! It's awesome to see them hit such heights in the early 2000s, and though it's sad they broke up, Flesh For The Beast carried on their sound nicely! Luckily, they have lots of stuff online to check out, there's plenty of songs on their MySpace page, and there are some surviving concert videos, including this one of Sadomasochism playing their album's title track!


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So there's this month's profiles of out of town bands with local members! Next month, we'll have two more, as we'll head even further out for two bands with Saultites: Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island's Levitate (featuring Sense of Truth frontman Cory Murchison), and Seoul, South Korea's Necramyth (featuring Woods of Ypres' own David Gold!) Keep an eye out for those profiles in the middle of April! Tomorrow, we'll preview all TEN of this weekend's local metal concerts, so stay tuned for everything you need to know on this busy hard rocking weekend! Thanks everyone, I'll be back real soon!

Assorted News On Meatplow, Energy Rock Radio, Lion Ride, And More!!

Last post of January, let us waste no time, for we have a bunch of assorted stories to get to! Let's start with a new studio-quality song from a new local band!

Meatplow, the Sault Ontario hard rock band I've profiled on the SMS in recent months, have posted a new video that unveils a bunch of photos and info about the band! It's nice to get more info on these guys! It is accompanied by The Stone Temple Pilots' song that the band are named after, I wonder if it's an indication of their sound? Aside from that, it's a picture slideshow, followed by credits at the end, including the band's members first names (Dennis, Phil, and Mike; I'm fairly certain of last names, but won't make guesses I can't back up), and it says that their first album will be titled "World Disease"! Hey, if all goes according to plan, I'll be there to pick it up! I'd embed the video here, but Facebook annoyingly doesn't have this feature, so click here to check it out! And before you say I missed a second video on their page, it's the same as the first, just missing the credits. Now we wait for new material! (And excuse my first posts about Meatplow tonight, I made a couple dumb mistakes. I'm only human!)

Next up, Energy Rock Radio's official relaunch is TOMORROW! Yes, the local internet hard rock radio station is now all fancy and new, with a bunch of new features, especially on their website! Besides the new layout and design, the site now features a request form for song requests! As well, Energy Rock Radio now has airplay 24/7 (ensuring that even without DJs, you'll get music!), a new on-air staff lineup, 20% off deals for merchandise in February, and lots more! Owner Ryan McQueen also announced that Energy Rock Radio will be broadcasting LIVE from Foggy Notions on February 27th during the Garden of Bedlam/Papa Fogals Chair concert! Very slick look, and of course, the radio portion is as good as ever! Click here to check out the new site, listen to ERR live, and lots more! I know I don't talk about Energy Rock Radio as much as I should, but I'll work on that! Take a listen!

Remember when I talked about Sault Michigan's own Mikey Bishop and the bands he's drummed in? Well, it looks like his current band are making their way up here! Mikey wrote on the SMS' MySpace page's wall tonight and mentioned that Summon, the Lansing black metal band he's currently drumming for, will be in Sault Michigan THIS WEEK to drop off some Summon CDs at Grooves Music! He hopes to meet with some local bands this week to possibly get local openers for a Summon concert in the area! He's hoping to get two local bands to open, and he says another touring metal band will join Summon at this show! Day, venue, and information unknown at present. Anyone interested in playing at a black metal concert in Sault Michigan, or helping Mikey get a medium sized venue for it? E-mail Mikey at his MySpace page to show your interest! And of course, head to Grooves Music to pick up a Summon CD, black metal fans will find a lot to like! I'll keep you guys posted as I hear more!

Two more stories to cap this post with: One, Stillbroke's concert February 11th in Toronto has been cancelled due to "unforseen circumstances". The event page was deleted and everything. Sucks to see it called off, I bet it'd have been a big show! The other story is that SooToday's own Donna Hopper conducted a professional photo shoot with Lion Ride last month! She remarked that this is the first photo shoot that she's done in a proper photo studio, so the lighting inside was an issue, but the photos turned out real nice! 27 shots have been posted on her photography page on Facebook, all in black and white, ranging from band poses to solo shots! Nice work, can't wait to see more! Click here to check out the full album!

That's all for now, but tomorrow, it's CD review time! We'll finally get to the review of Detroit's new album "Brace For Impact"! Also look out for my profiles of two bands (The Sexual Vigilantes and Papa Fogals Chair) from out of town with local members, a review of Wednesday's Sykotyk Rampage-featured Battle of the Bands, and much more! Thanks everyone, CD review TOMORROW!

THREE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, Three Days Grace Show Updates, And More!

How's everyone enjoying this snow? I was happy, I got the day off class, so I got to researching news for an SMS update, and I have plenty of stuff to share tonight! And we'll start with not one, not two, but THREE LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS!!!

Remember last Tuesday, when local death/thrash metal band Bring The Fallen won the Battle of the Bands at The Speakeasy? Well, as you're likely aware, the winner of that battle would (among other prizes) get the opportunity to open for The Inner City Surfers (featuring Lion Ride's Mikey Hawdon on drums) at their concert December 22nd. Well, I can finally confirm this show is a go, and Bring The Fallen are definitely playing support! They're calling this a Christmas bash, and with the timing of the show, that's appropriate! Also scheduled for the concert: local punk rockers The Scary Uncles, who always impress in their live performances! This concert starts at 10:00 PM that night, cover charges or age limits have yet to be announced. Sounds like a fun concert, and Bring The Fallen will help bring the metal edge that's welcome at any show! Get full details at the official Facebook event page!

Speaking of The Inner City Surfers, members of the band will regroup in a new act playing on December 18th at The Rockstar Bar! That night, a concert called "Rock of Ages" is being held, where three bands will play songs from different eras of music. Local group The Money Shots will play a set of music from the 1950s, while local classic rock band The Suspects will play a set of 1960s/70s music. But what caught my eye was a band by the name of Skid Crue, who will play a set of 1980s hair metal songs! I had to ask about them, and Martin Fiser from The Rockstar Bar told me that three members of The Surfers are in Skid Crue! I don't know if this is a one off thing or a brand new band or what, but it sounds good! Very diverse musical lineup too, you won't see such a wide cross-section like this very often! Tickets for "Rock of Ages" are $5 in advance from either CD Plus or The Algonquin Hotel, or $ 7 at the door! If I hear more about this concert or Skid Crue, I'll let you guys know!

And finally for new concerts, we FINALLY have a local metal concert of sorts in Sault Michigan for the month of December! I've been surprised by the lack of concerts and announcements of new ones lately for across the river, but we have one now! Young local hard rock band Free Refill are back on the live scene, and they'll be playing at a talent show at Sault Area High School! No time is given on their MySpace page, but my money's on it being an after school deal. Sure, it's not a publically open concert, but they're a local metal band playing live, and I'm sure there's readers who go to Sault High, so there's a heads-up! Talented young band, they should have a bright future! Check out more from the band at this location! Also, according to their MySpace page, it looks like guitarist Tyler Wall has left the band. That sucks, but hey, he's still in 7/47, who are promising in their own right!

So there's your three new concerts, and they're now located in the concert listings on the left and right of the page! Now, it's time to update everyone on the fallout from Tuesday's entertaining Three Days Grace concert! Donna Hopper from SooToday has posted her review of the concert at this location! According to the article, the crowd only numbered at around 2,000 people. I wonder why, maybe it was the weather? Ticket prices? Quality of the openers? (Oh come on, I liked Seether more!) She also noted the overall quietness of the crowd and lack of activity for the first two bands, and looking back on it, I noticed that too! What they should have done is grabbed everyone from the stands and moved them to the floor if they wanted, that'd have helped (hey, it worked for Jackyl.) She also noted that Three Days Grace (save for Adam Gontier) later showed up at LopLops Lounge for the official after-party, and mingled with fans and signed autographs and such! EDIT, 8:25 AM: Donna's photo album from the show is finally up, check out her pictures by clicking here!

SooNews correspondent (and friend) Lucas Punkari posted a review and photo album of his own at this location! Nice photos, miles better than mine (remember, I'm not a professional.) Among other local news sources, The Sault Star didn't have a review or recap, though Michael Purvis did post an album with 100 concert photos (again, great quality) which you can check out by clicking here! Nothing from Sault This Week though. And I guess I should mention this, cause I've heard nothing else about it since, but I saw someone get really hurt at the show. They had to clear a big area in the crowd to get a girl out, she was clutching her face and when her hands moved, I saw blood on her hands. I have no clue what happened, it was very packed on the floor, but damn, that sucks! Word of warning, concert fans, be careful, you don't know what could happen! Take care of each other and keep things safe!

And finally, VIDEOS, lots of them! Only two people I know of have uploaded videos so far, but there's lots to go around! One is from YouTube user SLIPKASS05, of the band performing the song "Riot", which you can check out at this location! Not bad quality, and it's the only clip I've seen so far from the floor. The rest all come from barbiegirl8833, who you may recognize for her uploads of videos from the Staind and Papa Roach concerts at Kewadin Casino! She got 13 clips from the show, which (I think) accounts for every song they played except maybe "I Don't Care" and "Just Like You". Quality's alright, she had a good angle of the band from the seats! Check out all of her Three Days Grace videos, plus six from Default's set and one of The Used, at this location! I'll show you guys one here, so take a look at the band playing their hit song "Home"! (Note: Fast forward to 4:55 in the clip. Trust me.)



And of course, if I hear or see anything more coming out of the Three Days Grace concert, I'll let you guys know! Now, here's basically my attempt to catch up on a local metal talent that I barely ever mention on here, but really, he deserves it. Are you familiar with Sault Michigan native Mikey Bishop? Well, he's a noted metal drummer, and he's made a name in numerous bands, some local, some not! The most notable local group he was in was Lower S.E.S., and he's since joined numerous bands behind the kit, almost too many to mention! Probably the most notable is Grand Rapids death metal band Sadomasochism, who did a lot of touring in the 2000s and backed up bands like Superjoint Ritual at some big concerts! Now, Mikey's the drummer for Lansing black metal band Summon, who recently released a new album! I've heard some of Mikey's bands, and I'm impressed! He's an awesome drummer, and it's great to see him succeed as much as he has! Definitely overdue for me to talk about him on here! Check out more from Mikey, including tons of live videos from his bands, and new Summon tracks, at his official MySpace page! He should bring Summon up here for a show!

And finally for tonight, just a quick notification that Rock 101 have officially confirmed that Garden of Bedlam are backing up Kiss on Tuesday! They've updated their front page and concert listings to reflect their opening status! That's all for tonight, next post will likely have a preview of this weekend's Caveman Morrison concerts, along with another LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, and anything else that should pique your local metal interest! Thanks everyone!