LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (These Magnificent Tentacles), New Videos, And Much More!!

Late news post to check out on this Friday night, including some new video discoveries, a few shorter assorted notes, and leading off, a somewhat unique LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next weekend!

Local alt-punk duo These Magnificent Tentacles will play their first public concert of 2022 when they open for surf rock trio The Dynowaves on Saturday, May 21st at the return of promoters Dryer Fire's temporary venue! In this case, Dryer Fire have been renting space at 285 Wilson Street (off Bruce Street, near The Breakfast Pig), and they're celebrating their recent growth with an open house featuring the aforementioned live bands, and even refreshments from the Sweet Aisle Candy Store that's also set up at this building. It is worth noting that in their promotion of the concert, These Magnificent Tentacles said on their Facebook page that this will be "our first show as a full team", so did their teased search for new band members prove fruitful? In any event, frontman Brenton Ellis will be selling his own art on this event on a pay-what-you-can basis, which you Slumshine fans should like!

The open house proper has a 1:00 PM matinee start time, no cover charge, and is definitely all ages, which goes with the community art/candy sale aspect well too! This should be a fun change of pace if you're up for some Saturday afternoon concert action next weekend, and between T.M.T. and The Dynowaves, you'll get some diverse musical entertainment! Visit the above links for more details on this unique matinee concert!

Next up, here's two new videos from local southern hard rock quintet Fort Creek at their Soo Blaster concert last week! Filmed by attendee Eddie Hernando, one is another acoustic interlude just featuring singer Justin Grayson and bassist Robin "Bones" Lee on acoustic guitar covering Luke Combs' "Beautiful Crazy". I'm not a country guy, but it's a solid rendition! Embedded below is the full band clip of Fort Creek covering Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Simple Man", and it's a well done version that builds in the instruments well, and fans on the floor definitely appreciated dancing to it, so give both of these a look above & below!

Also today, here's some videos from former Leaked/Mustang Sally drummer Nic Buckner on his YouTube channel in the last few years! While Nic didn't become a major name as a local rock drummer, he did move to the States to further his career, and his YouTube videos reflect his later musical education! Alongside covers of Maroon 5, Sweet Machine, Michael Jackson, and The Color Black songs, Nic posted a cover of "Rule of Nines" by the Victoria, B.C. metal band Spiritbox in April 2020, complete with an inset second camera showing his foot pedal work. Nic's a very talented drummer and I like how he mixed the backing song with the drums to optimize his performances, so give these a watch above & below!

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

 

• I have moved local acoustic hard rock band The Isolation Sessions to our inactive band links. The band has not issued a public update since posting a cover of Three Days Grace's "Never Too Late" on their Facebook page in January of last year, with members Jordan Rains & Arthur Lacasse since focusing on Dealing Without and the revival of Half Past. The Isolation Sessions seemed like a promising stopgap band in worse pandemic times, and hopefully we hear more from Jordan, Arthur, and Todd soon (and R.I.P. Chris!)
• Prolific local metal musician Mitch Sirie is looking for a bassist for a hard rock/alternative metal band that he's working on with a sound comparable in range to The Deftones or System of a Down. The sonic description implies that this is not for The Bear Hunters, Exploring Detritus, or Handsome Sandwich (where he is the bassist), so Mitch is definitely keeping busy as things pick up locally in 2022! Message him at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post yesterday for more details!
• A Facebook event page has been launched for the Parabol-headlined concert at Soo Blaster on June 4th, and it happens to feature a new local band as openers named Short & Sweet, who are an acoustic two-man project from former Skeyes of Seven bandmates Cory Murchison & Kyle Sweet (hence the name). I don't think Short & Sweet have an online page yet, but Cory & Kyle should deliver an entertaining set beforehand, and see above for more details on what should be a solid concert!
  

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site this weekend! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Project 421), New Videos, And More Updates!!

Before we launch our new poll on the SMS, here's one more news post on this Monday morning, including some assorted recent notes, new videos from a pair of diverse local artists, and first, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for next month! Here's what you should know!

Local classic metal quintet Project 421 will play a solo headlining concert at The Rockstar Bar on Friday, February 5th! Their second solo show without extra bands (but first at this venue), this joins their first solo gig at The Rednecks Saloon this Friday, and it will be their first at The Rockstar Bar since New Year's Eve. It remains to be seen how Project 421's first toe into the solo cover weekend waters goes, but it's good to see this popular band increasing their concert frequency, and hopefully there's a great turnout at The Rockstar Bar in two & a half weeks for their old school metal renditions! There is a $5 cover charge advertised for February 5th, you must be 19 or older to attend, and there's a 10:00 PM start time in effect. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This should be a solid concert full of classic metal, so keep it in mind for next month, and don't miss Project 421's first solo gig at Rednecks on Friday!

Next up, here's some new video finds, including the latest from local death metal duo Brutally Fatal! The Blood Shed Productions project from Crucify The Whore and Revolution alumni had been relatively quiet since the summer, but things picked up earlier this month when they revealed on their Facebook page that they'd be recording a new EP of some type within the next two weeks. That was posted on January 7th,  but it's not publically clear if any recording sessions have begun yet. They followed that with a video upload of newly remastered versions of two songs from their 2013 release "Acidic Sky's", namely "Cold Pulse" & "Drowning In Poison", so how do they sound now? Similar but louder and cleaner, and fans should enjoy these versions! Just to clarify, remember that Brutally Fatal (then spelled with one L in "Brutaly") began as a solo project from frontman Austin McCrae, hence the minimalist bass & vocals-only sound. Check out more from Brutally Fatal above and below!



Also today, here's a new video of Leaked drummer Nic Buckner that was uploaded to Mannapool guitarist Korey Deluca's YouTube channel in October! Recorded at Deluca Sound Productions, this video is of Nic drumming along to Ryan Holliday's "Blinded" before playing a drum solo with no backing track, and he performs strongly in both settings! The description notes that Nic filmed the videos as part of an application to play with a travelling youth outreach band that would play at American schools, and while I'm unsure if he got that gig, this video is well shot and demonstrates his ability nicely! Give it a look below!



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

• Project 421 bassist Daniel Horton is looking for 3 or 4 bands to play a Valentine's Day-themed show on Friday, February 12th (venue unclear), with preference to bands who have "some dance music or upbeat tunes", maybe even love songs. In case this will have a hard rock presence, I thought I'd mention it here, so message Daniel at this link or via his Musicians Wanted Facebook group post by the Tuesday deadline if you want in, or if you want to play on any other future shows that he's working on!
• A celebration of life concert for late That's Chester guitarist Eugene Orlando will be held at The Water Tower Pub on Thursday, March 3rd! Though advertised as being headlined by his classic rock band Agave Blue, the Facebook event page notes that it'll feature Eugene's longtime bandmate Gabe Tessaro alongside That's Chester frontman Greg Simpson in a joint acoustic set with special guests. It's odd that this tribute concert is taking place so late after Eugene's passing, but hopefully there's a huge response on March 3rd, and see above for updates as they roll in!
• We have moved local experimental metal project The Strange Coyotes back to our inactive band links due to a year's inactivity. A throwback post aside, the band hasn't issued any public updates since December 2014, and hasn't played live since November of that year, shortly into a brief reunion. The Strange Coyotes were an entertaining band that had a lot of promise and creativity, but lineup changes and lengthy hiatuses didn't help matters. Best of luck to Chase, James, and Mike in the future, and hopefully we see them back again down the road!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for much more as the week progresses! Thanks everyone!