The First Half Of This Weekend's Hard Rock/Punk Concert Previews!!

Another busy concert weekend is upon us, necessitating two posts to cover it all. As such, look for our previews of this weekend's Bone Yard 225, Double Down, Tarnished, and Nameless concerts in tomorrow's second preview post, so don't worry, they are coming! Now, here's what you should know, starting with a big punk show TONIGHT!

Leading off this busy weekend is the long awaited return of Pomona, California hardcore punk legends Total Chaos, who will headline TONIGHT at The Stellar Door under The Distraction! The second basement show at the former East Street barbershop, this space won rave reviews when The Ripcordz played there this summer, and hopefully the good vibes of a good old fashioned punk basement show continue for Total Chaos in their first local concert appearance since they rocked the former Oddfellows Hall fourteen years ago. Hardcore punk fans won't want to miss their established and newer original fury, so don't miss out tonight! Opening here are Ottawa "post street punk" band BALM Squad in their local debut, and they'll be a strong lead-off band with their hard hitting original sound, so don't bypass them tonight either! Surprisingly, this show does not have any advertised local opening acts.

Note that local/Barrie crossover thrash band Spades GT opened for BALM Squad in Toronto in July, and will open for The Exploited at two GTA shows this weekend, so the local connection goes further than you think! If you hadn't bought the limited $25 advance tickets by now, door admission is via a "$20 or pay what you can" setup, the Mikhal Muto-promoted concert starts at 9:00 PM. and this is definitely an ALL AGES venue (no alcohol, please respect the space). Despite being on a work/school night, this should be a great night of hardcore punk action, so don't miss out at The Stellar Door under The Distraction tonight, and here's Total Chaos live!

Next up, let's dive into musicians on the weekend cover circuit, starting with prolific local classic/hard rock singer/guitarist Tym Morrison, who will wrap up his summer 2024 arrangement at The Mike Case Memorial Stage outside of The Trading Post TOMORROW NIGHT before returning for another matinee  on SATURDAY at Misty's Fifties! As The Mike Case Stage only hosts live musicians seasonally, their live music schedule ends in early-mid September, hence why this is Tym's last Friday evening gig there of the year. If you like seeing Tym playing outdoors way down Great Northern Road, this is your last chance until (likely) mid-2025, so keep tomorrow's show in mind! If you prefer seeing him indoors and earlier in the day, his Misty's Fifties run continues until at least the end of the month, and we'll let you know if it gets extended at all. You can enjoy his unplugged classic & hard rock covers tomorrow at 7:00 PM and Saturday at 4:00 PM.

The Misty's show is likely 19+, and neither has a cover charge. For his outdoor swan song for 2024, tomorrow's Trading Post concert, we're looking at sunny-to-clear skies with temperatures at around 23°, so it should be a fine evening to wrap up the season's schedule with! Visit the official Facebook event pages linked here and here for more details, and for a preview, here's Tym live!

Also this weekend, former Haggith/Eclipse frontman Curtis McKenzie will hit the road just outside of town to play at the Rowdy Ranchers Horse Show at the Laird Fairgrounds TOMORROW & SATURDAY! This annual event is hosted by the local Rowdy Ranchers Round-Up horse club, and will see lots of family enterainment, vendors, and horse/pony shows and exhibits, so if you ride or just love horses, you might want to head out to Laird for all of the action this weekend! Visit the above links for more on the non-musical specifics. Curt will be the matinee musical entertainment during the day throughout the weekend, though he nor organizers have stated when exactly he's playing each night. On Saturday, there will be a nighttime headline band (pop rock cover quartet Lime), but given the formatting of this event, I hesitate to say that Curtis is "opening" for Lime. Regardless, the Rowdy Ranchers Round-Up is FREE & ALL AGES with gates opening at 8:00 AM.

Note that, according to Curt's Facebook page, he had been booked to play at The Dive Gastro Pub tonight but the show was cancelled, as the former Low & Slow had mistakenly double booked tonight's "Think It Over Thursday" gig (the actual performers there tonight are Aaron Lucas & Jeff July). Curtis hadn't announced a September 12th show in advance anyway, but hopefully we see him back at The Dive soon! As for the Rowdy Ranchers Horse Show, this may seem more like a country music-amenable event, but hopefully Curtis' hard rocking covers keep the good vibes going in Laird this weekend! See above for more details, and here's Curt live!

Finally for this weekend, we'll head back into city limits for local classic/hard rock cover quartet Generations' return to Jay's Piston Broke Pub TOMORROW & SATURDAY NIGHT! Last seen at the former Reggie's West early last month, these shows will be joined by Generations hosting Jay's weekly Thursday jam night tonight, so if such events interest you as a spectator or prospective performer, keep that in mind! It is worth noting that Generations frontwoman Valerie Powley does not take part in their jam nights, a'la Cameron Oliver missing Soundcheck's, but she will be back to sing all night this weekend, and the guys have teased having new Bob Seger and The Outfield covers to debut in their sets. Tomorrow and Saturday's traditional concerts (and jam night tonight) are 19+ affairs with no announced cover shows, and the normal concerts have 9:30 PM start times. Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Generations live!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for the second half of our weekend concert previews next! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Total Chaos, Handsome Sandwich, And Cory Murchison!!)

After taking May 31st off for my birthday (I always do, past posts on that day were scheduled auto-posts), we're kicking off June 2024 with a post devoted to LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS and related updates for shows in the next few months, so here's what you should know!

A Friday night concert series has been announced at Soo Blaster for the summer season, so what should you know there? As advertised on SooToday and their online/social media accounts, the Queen Street East venue/nightclub will be hosting acoustic-leaning musicians, usually solo artists or duos, every Friday through the end of August, though be advised that the schedule does list some shows as taking place on a Saturday rather than Friday. I'm unsure if "every Friday" is a generalization for promoting the schedule, or if Soo Blaster erroneously listed some of these shows a day later. There are many familiar faces playing at Soo Blaster this summer, including former Phatstick frontman Jason Taillefer (I'm not sure if his solo shows lean to what his old bands played), but two are 100% in our coverage range, including Bullet Train/ex-Sense Of Truth frontman Cory Murchison on June 28th!

While we have yet to see Bullet Train live, Cory's live music work in recent years had largely been via acoustic shows (including in Short & Sweet and as "Cory Daniel"), so look for some entertaining hard rock covers from him in four weeks! This and all other shows in Soo Blaster's Friday concert series this summer has an 8:00 PM start time, likely 19+ age limit, and no announced cover charge. Visit the above links for more details!

The other show that would definitely cross our radar comes on Saturday, August 10th (as far as Soo Blaster's schedule says, we'll let you know if they did indeed mean Friday the 9th). On that night (whichever night it is), Soo Blaster will deviate from their string of solo artists and duos by hosting local alt-hard rock quintet Handsome Sandwich and their new sister folk/bluegrass band The Golden Scoundrels! While we will see Handsome Sandwich beforehand at the Go North Music Festival (and perhaps elsewhere), this is their first announced show in city limits since opening for The Hazytones in April, so fans of their tasty originals will want to keep this August date in mind! Of course, The Golden Scoundrels (who play their first show tonight at The Whiskey Barrel) feature Handsome Sandwich bandmates Brandon Ruch & Johnny Belanger alongside ex-Shit Liver frontman Josh Penno and fiddler Todd Webb.

If you liked Josh's old St. Catharines band Dirtfight, you should take to The Scoundrels, and it'll be interesting to see how the genre contrast goes over with the two bands in August, both at Soo Blaster and at The Northern Vibe Festival at month's end! Yes, The Golden Scoundrels parted ways with ex-Gnaeus bassist Matt Fronzi (who Brandon replaced) earlier in the spring, and the band took down any media featuring Matt after he left. Hopefully things are amicable and it's just to signify how they'll really be launching! Back to Handsome Sandwich for one more new note, as they'll be hitting the road for another tour run this fall, including a set at this year's Gussapalooza Music Festival in Cookstown (outside of Innisfil in Simcoe County) over the September 13th weekend! They'll be one of 40 acts playing that weekend, with Sudbury grunge/hard rock quartet The Fortunate Losers as the advertised headliners.

Local fans may recall seeing The Fortunate Losers here opening for Monster Truck in 2019. Hopefully things go well for Handsome Sandwich at Gussapalooza this fall, as well as at a teased Ottawa date on September 12th! The show at Soo Blaster on August 10th (9th?) is advertised to have an 8:00 PM start time, 19+ age limit, and no cover charge. See above for more details on Handsome Sandwich's summer and fall plans so far!

Finally for today, here's one more new show announcement, and it's a big one, as Pomona, California hardcore punk legends Total Chaos will make their long awaited return to Sault Ontario on Thursday, September 12th at The Distraction's downstairs space The Stellar Door! This will be Total Chaos' first local concert since headlining at the former Oddfellows Hall way back in 2010, and the show comes one day before they share the stage with Spades GT in Toronto to open for The Exploited there. It's hard to compare Total Chaos today to how they sounded here fourteen years ago, but it'll be awesome to see Rob Chaos and crew back in town for what should be a hard hitting night of hardcore punk classics! Ottawa "post street punk" band BALM Squad will open in their local debut, and they should be a fine compliment with their intense original songs and stage presence, so don't miss out on the action this fall!

Suprisingly, there are no local openers advertised (at least not yet), but we'll let you know when/if any are added. Like The Ripcordz' show here on August 10th, Total Chaos will set up shop downstairs from The Distraction at The Stellar Door, the bigger but still intimate basement floor that is now being opened for select gigs. This is an all ages show starting at 9:00 PM, and limited advance tickets are on sale via Distraction co-promoter/prolific local punk musician Mikhal Muto for $25. At the door, it will have a "pay what you can" model, with $20 being suggested. This should be a great night for hardcore punk fans, so see above for more details, and stay tuned for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post next! Thanks everyone!

Mike Vincent - "Ultimate Chaos" Album Review!!

It's now time for our 109th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, as we're taking a look at former Skull After Betrayl frontman and Bear Hunters guitarist Mike Vincent's debut solo album "Ultimate Chaos"! Released on March 25th (concurrently with his sophomore album "Apocalypse") via his Bandcamp page, this independently released and recorded album was recorded between 2016 and 2017, and it unites what were originally planned to be two solo EPs named "Six, Six, Six" & "We're Of Nothing", though those titles do survive as song names. True to it's solo nature, Mike performs every credited instrument on the album, save for a guest appearance on "Times of the Unforgotten" by his uncle. That said, this album is completely instrumental, despite Mike's past work as a singer with Skull After Betrayl and Devastation of the Heavens. "Ultimate Chaos" is available solely on a "name your price" model at the above links, with no stated CD pressings.

You can also stream this album on Bandcamp, and song names linked below are via these copies, but consider paying for Mike's album to support his work! Note that we won't be sharing individual pictures from each song's respective Bandcamp link due to the politically charged imagery used. While they may reflect the songs' themes, I don't want to divide or provoke readers, and they're not of Mike himself anyway. With 13 songs running for about an hour in length, let's begin this review!

The album begins with six songs whose names all begin with the letter S, as they were originally planned to comprise the suitably alliterative "Six, Six, Six" EP. "Shoah" is up first, which happens to be a cover of Mike's old band Skull After Betrayl's self-titled song, obviously renamed following that band's demise. This song has flourishes of groove and death metal, and some catchy chugging riffs, though the drumming is monotonous on the slower parts, it starts and ends very abruptly, and the vocals of the original song are definitely missed. Not bad on it's own merits though! Next is "Sacred Sins", which has more of a thrash metal base, and his guitar work has a steady yet fast rhythm while never sticking to a specific formula for too long. There is a hardcore-style breakdown late, which is a bit of a surprise addition, but not unwelcomed! Better production would benefit this song, but Mike's guitar skills are given a better showcase on this faster and heavier original track!

Third is the album's shortest song, "Soulless Sanctuary", which gives me a bit of a Sepultura or Soulfly vibe in it's structure and riffing, especially in the first half, if that's fair. This song harbours the first real guitar solo of the album, and while it's not overly long or complex, it does give Mike a chance to let loose! Well structured and paced, this shows Mike's range a little more, and it an early highlight! That's followed by "Screaming Serenity", which has more of a progressive, technical flair to it, while maintaining a fast and aggressive pace. As a pure musician, this is Mike's strongest performance on guitar yet, but the abrupt breaks after where the chorus would likely go are a mood-killer. The bridge does have a doomier, slower rhythm before Mike turns on the jets to end things, but to me, it's just an aural barrage that doesn't add anything new to the song. Early on though, it's top notch!

Next here is "Systematical Satan", which has a slow and ominous opening (which reprises near the end) that calls Slayer to mind, before picking up into suitably thrashy territory, with some groove-inspired sections to help break things up. The cymbals in the percussion often have sound too much like a dinging bell, and the song strikes me as a little too long (especially without vocals), but the body of the song moves at a ripping pace at it's peak, and will definitely please established fans of Mike's original music! Song #6 is "Six, Six, Six" (naturally), which was the originally planned EP's title track. Another ominous opening leads into a track that bounces between speedy thrash and more progressive riffing that honestly comes across as a little meandering to me. The mood changes are otherwise fine, and the guitar solo is definitely stronger than on "Soulless Sanctuary"!

I'd have ended the song with a fade-out, but "Six, Six, Six" is a fine showcase of Mike's talents to end the album's first half with! The remaining seven songs were to have comprised his planned EP "We're Of Nothing", and do not share the same first letter. First from this side is "Times of the Unfogotten", which features a guest appearance by Mike's uncle Jason Ladouceur (ex-Winkstinger) on guitar. It's hard to pin down Jason's exact involvement, but the guitar work is solid and it sounds fuller and better layered here! Mike's drum tracks sound more natural on this song, which has a groove metal vibe while echoing a bit of System of a Down on the faster stretches. A guitar solo would have been a welcome addition, but this is a good sign of things to come for the second half of "Ultimate Chaos"!

Up next is "Chapters of No Light", which is a slow, dark, and minimalistic song for it's first 3 minutes that particularly serves as a showcase of Mike's bass abilities. No drums, not much guitar, and not much to really say until the full instrumentation kicks in for the final 100 seconds, with the song getting more technical there, but the drums sound out of place at a key moment. As a pure song, this is not my favourite on this album, but Mike does let loose at the end! Then we have "We're Of Nothing", the intended title track of the EP in question. This is a return to Mike's prior form, with melodic yet heavy riffing, rapid fire drumming, and some heavy breakdowns for good measure, though his guitar solo isn't layered well at all, and I really had to crank my speakers to hear it with any clarity. Otherwise, this is a quality song on Mike's solo debut!

"Phases of Pain" follows next, whose sinister opening leads into a fast and heavy song that calls to mind some NWOAHM bands, with the guitar work in particular having a catchy melody at it's height! The drum tracks benefit the song, and the bass is solid too, but I'd have cut down on the false endings, but this is one of my favourite songs on this album for a reason! Then we have "Filters of Fire", which is a slower but still heavy and darker-edged song with nicely suited bass work and pounding guitar riffs that is another album hightlight, effectively showcasing Mike's talents without feeling a need to go too fast. Mike arguably has his strongest guitar solo yet, but again, it's not layered well, coming across as too quiet. Other than that, things are going well again on this track!

The penultimate song is "Chapter 2: Glow Of The Dark" (I presume "Chapter 1" was "Chapters of No Light"), and this track is definitely heavier out of the gate than it's predecessor! More of a hardcore-based track, the pounding riffs mesh nicely with the steady drum tracks, and the aggressive steady pace is only a boon at this stage of the album. It could stand to be a little more melodic, but it's a more brutal and full "chapter" than we saw before! The album closes with it's title track and longest song, "Ultimate Chaos", which has another dark softer opening before the song proper kicks into fully metal gear. Though a strong performance technically, the song's structure isn't as cleanly put out as we had previously seen, and even the guitar solo suffers a bit in that regard, despite being louder in the mix. It's an entertaining song on it's own merits, the the softer closing stretch sends the album out easy, but earlier songs showcase Mike's songwriting abilities better to me.

So, what are my final thoughts on Mike Vincent's debut solo album? Overall, I think "Ultimate Chaos" is an entertaining debut album that effectively showcases Mike's musical growth! Having followed his music career since the pre-SMS days when we were both attending Bawating C&VS,  I can attest to his improvement in skill and technicality in the past decade+, and he is a talented songwriter and multi-instrumentalist when fully focused, as songs like "Screaming Serenity" and "Filters of Fire" attest! Since Skull After Betrayl's last shows in 2011, we haven't really seen Mike as a live concert presence, but if he shored up these songs with vocals, most would be quickly ready for the stage! There is room for improvement though. Production quality could be better, especially in how guitar solos (when featured) are layered in the mix, drum tracks could sometimes be monotonous, and the structures of a few songs could stand to be tightened up.

Some songs are also begging for the inclusion of vocals, especially given the political themes implied on Bandcamp, but for a debut solo effort, Mike's firmly on his way, and hopefully "Apocalypse"  builds on this base with even more quality original metal! Buy "Ultimate Chaos" at the above links! So, what is our next album review of choice for this month on the SMS? It will be a new album, but I'm unsure which at this juncture. As it currently stands, I'm torn between three albums (Mike McCleary's "Weight of the World", Sykotyk Rampage's "Live at the Paris Hilton", and SweetKenny's "Management"), with Redundant's debut EP a wild card contender, pending local on-sale availability, not to mention potential releases that haven't even been firmly announced yet. Will we review one of these four albums this month, or something else entirely? Stay tuned to find out, and for more news and notes on the site shortly! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (The Steves), New Album Releases, And New Videos!!

In what I project to be our final post of March 2018, we have lots of stories to touch on for this Good Friday, including some new videos, two long awaited album releases, and leading off, a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!

Regina punk/power pop quartet The Steves will make their local concert debut when they headline at LopLops Lounge on Wednesday, May 2nd! Possessing a slightly lo-fi sound that bridges the gap between punk rock and indie/alternative styles, The Steves should be a fine fit at LopLops in just over a month's time, so don't bypass this one if you can hit a midweek concert like this! Local openers will include alt-punk trio A Dire Setback in their first announced concert of 2018, and just their second since their lineup contracted & Chris Nielsen took over on lead vocals. This show comes following A Dire Setback's commencement of debut album recording sessions, so how much will be revealed regarding that or it's sessions on May 2nd? Be at LopLops to find out, but it's great to see them back on stage! Indie/hard rock outfit Vol. will open in their own announced debut show of 2018, so if you were sad to her that they dropped out of next week's Shit Liver show, then here's your next chance to see this talented band in action!

Presented by Six, Two, Oh. in a rare LopLops booking, this show has a 9:00 PM start time, a $5 cover charge, and a 19+ age limit. This should be a fun show for punk and indie rock fans alike, so visit the official Facebook event page for details as they roll in!

Next up, we have two album releases to note on here, as former Bear Hunters guitarist Mike Vincent has finally given his recent solo music a formal album release treatment! On March 20th and this past Sunday, Mike respectively packaged his prior and new original songs as albums for sale on a "name your price" model via his Bandcamp page, so now you can hear and listen to these as all of a piece rather than loose free song uploads! The former album is called "Ultimate Chaos", compiling songs he recorded in 2016 & 2017 for what were once intended as EPs called "Six, Six, Six" & "We Are Nothing", while the latter is called "Apocalypse" (pictured), which had it's last four new tracks posted in the past month, namely "Unit 731", "MK-Ultra" (no relation to the Sault Michigan band that later became NoXcape), "Annihilation", and "Infanticide". It's great to finally see Mike actually release his two solo albums, but can we expect to see reviews of them on the SMS?

Not next month, as I have Shit Liver's new album review coming to coincide with their show next week, but after that, we could see one as early as May! Between "Ultimate Chaos" (I'd go chronologically), The Din's "Suburban Sendoff", Abhorrent Forest's "To See Eternity", and newer SweetKenny releases, we're covered for new album reviews through the summer, even if nothing else comes out. In the meantime, stream or buy Mike's albums at the above links, and stay tuned for our review of "Ultimate Chaos" in mid-2018!

We'll close today with new videos, starting with defunct local alternative hard rock trio The Din, who shared this never-before-seen video onto their Facebook page from their headlining LopLops concert on January 27th of last year! This is of Mike, Tammy, and Brandan covering The Gin Blossoms' "Hey Jealousy", which also recieved a studio cover from their "cover of the month" series in 2016. Filmed on a stationary camera, it's a high quality video of this lively rendition, and while the sound's a little muffled, it's nice to see this year+ old video at last! Give it a look below!



Finally for today, here's a new video from Sault Michigan classical metal project Theatre of Night's Facebook group, as posted by keyboardist Craig Harrison on Tuesday, and it features him performing a dramatic organ-esque selection from recent songwriting sessions. There's not much to reveal beyond the performance, but it's well done and would add a dark overtone to a completed song, so give it a look below also!

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

Total Chaos Concert Review, Including A Brand New Local Band!

Hey guys, sorry for the delay on this, I've been horribly behind on school work. That being said, I am back from Sunday night's Total Chaos concert at The Oddfellows Hall! How did it measure up? You'll find out in this extended review, featuring reviews of all SIX bands that played, with four brand new videos from Sunday as well! So here's what you need to know from this concert!

First off, it was great being back at The Oddfellows Hall, it's been way too long for a non-battle of the bands, over a year in my case! I want to again stress a pet peeve of mine that re-emerged at the show, and that's the start time. Despite an advertised start time of 7:00 PM, it took over a half hour after that to get going, and I imagine people who were there at 6:00 PM wouldn't have been pleased. The Oddfellows Hall was just as it always was, but the concert atmosphere was enhanced by some good quality audio and lights from Nathan Bouliane's Bonology Lights & Sounds! Every band had a smoke machine and intense strobe lights that, though not conducive to camera quality, really added to each set!

Now, when we first heard about this show, there was only five announced bands, and no one I knew had heard any different. But when the first band took the stage, I knew it wasn't Shit Liver, the advertised first band. The four band members didn't look familiar at all, they looked around high school age, and I frankly didn't know what to expect. When they started, however, they sounded alright! Their name (as best as I could tell) was Changing Waves, and aside from that, I can't tell you anything else. No known internet pages, no idea who's in the band, no nothing, so if you guys have any information on these guys, PLEASE let me know at robertfigures@hotmail.com! They reminded me a bit of early As It Stands with their melodic hardcore style! For kids their age, they didn't sound too bad, and seemed to have a firm grasp of their original material! The singer has a nice scream going for him, but his stage presence needs work, as he spent almost the whole set singing towards the sound guys on the right, and didn't really engage the crowd beyond moshing with some fans late in the set. The guitarist had some nice solos too, I should add! Changing Waves have promise, and hopefully they'll play some more live concerts down the road, and launch a page of some sort!

After they wrapped up, Shit Liver hit the stage for their own debut performance, and let me say this out front: Their sound is very polarizing. From the reactions I heard, fans either loved them or they hated them. I remember getting some flack for plugging them on the SMS before, so I expected there to be some widely differing opinions on their set. In case you forgot, Shit Liver are the grimecore trio made up of 3/4 of the old local punk band O.B.C.D., but aside from a cover of that band, their sound was much dirtier and rawer, taking influences (and covers) from bands like Dystopia and The Capitalist Casualties, along with originals. Guitarist Josh Penno handled most of the vocals, which were mostly low death growls that, though often hard to make out, suited the music! They're honestly hard to describe, but I will say that Josh, bassist Mike "Ralph Brakk" Kyle, and drummer Matt Baic play this style well! I completely accept that many of you guys won't like them or find them any good, but you have to take it for what it is. Shit Liver aren't supposed to be a refined polished band, their sound is crusty and raw and grimy, and it succeeds on that level! Plus, they had a good segment of fans moshing too! I appreciate their sound and their style, but if you don't like what you hear, then I absolutely understand what you get out of them.

Third on the bill were one of my favourite local bands of the non-metal vein, RedD Monkey! And they're just as good as the last time I saw them, if a bit more random. They started AND ended their sets with "cello rap" songs, which felt a bit off for concert bookends, but they were oddly entertaining! But it was their standard punk-with-a-cello set in the middle, and very fun to listen to! Pete Mozarowski continued to be the most noticeable presence with hie cello playing, while his brother Steve shown good punk aggression and swagger himself! Once again, Kevin Overton was absent, I believe Joe Bumbacco from The Fury was back on drums for this show, and he was good as well! Solid set from RedD Monkey, who continue to impress my non-metal tastebuds, even on their extremely fast cover of Motorhead's "Ace Of Spades"! I should also add that because of a person's unfortunate "vomitory incident" on the floor, the majority of the crowd stayed far away from the stage for RedD Monkey's set, even after it was throuroughly cleaned up, so the fan atmosphere wasn't as fun as on the past few bands.

The second half of the concert kicked off with Frightlight in their first ever show at an all ages venue! It was cool seeing a band featuring J.D. Pearce (a.k.a. Johnny Pints) and Rick "Styles" White back at The Oddfellows Hall. I fondly remember seeing Fitswitch at all ages shows back in the mid-2000s, so it was like a flashback of sorts! Musically, Frightlight were right on form, though J.D.'s voice seemed a bit strained compared to the last few times I saw them. I also liked seeing the evolution of their stage getups at this show, adding to their horror feel, though where was Jeff De Rose's facepaint? Luckily, some people crossed the dreaded "puke line" to mosh close to the band for their set, punctuated by all the originals on "It's A...Live!", Fitswitch and Misfits covers, and more! Rick was on top form on guitar, and Eddie Fright/Mike Gingras' bass work stood out clear as day! I have to say though, as a comparison to the rest of the lineup, they were the most complimentary of Total Chaos as an opening band, just by similar styles. I'm all for metal, but when the opening bands are of a different genre and style than the headliner, it doesn't always clash well in my opinion. But the quality was good, so I didn't mind!

Your last local openers were Bring The Fallen, but before I discuss their set, I have two notes. First, Total Chaos didn't even show up until a little before Bring The Fallen started, which a lot of people there were relieved by. That being said, the delay resulted in no Total Chaos merchandise for sale prior to their set, but at least RedD Monkey and Frightlight were covered on that end of things! My second note concerns the photos I took for the last chunk of the show. My camera's battery was draining fast near the end of Frightlight's set, so my later photos are all without flash and are of low quality. You'd be surprised that flash photography is more of a battery drain than just leaving it idle while turned on. So my apologies to Bring The Fallen and Total Chaos for the photo quality, and I will make up for it next time around!

Now, to Bring The Fallen, and in a word, they were brutal! That is a complete compliment, but it left me a bit banged up in the process, and I wasn't even moshing! It was great to see the band back and in full, after bassist Nolan Rainville's spring absence and lead guitarist Andrew Chiarello's exit and return to the band, and luckily they were on top form! Josh Stephney's death growls were devastating in the best possible way, and he commanded the action as fans moshed like they hadn't moshed before! It got so hectic that one of Josh's microphones got busted during a more intense section of their cover of Slayer's "Black Magic", but luckily they had a spare on hand! Andrew Chiarello's guitar solos were wicked and very proficient, and the whole band were playing their hearts out last night! They broke out their hit originals like "Defiling Despondence" and "Stand Before", all the while encouraging a huge fury in the pits that rarely relented! It's also notable that Josh gave away two Bring The Fallen t-shirts, the only ones in existence, which looked cool, and hopefully they go on sale one day! Awesome set, and it seemed like it went by way too quickly, but in this case, it's a good sign. They ruled, and I hope they're playing live again soon!

And finally, your main band was California street punk legends Total Chaos, in their second local stop in their long history! I have to be honest, I haven't been to a ton of concerts where the headliner was a punk band from out of town, but then ones I have been to were good! I still remember the Propagandhi show from Halloween 2006 fondly, so it was nice to see some punk for a change on my schedule! I have to admit, I'm not terribly familiar with Total Chaos, but I liked what I heard! They had loads of punk attitude to go around, and the crowd moshed like mad in response! Rob Chaos' vocals sounded slightly harsher than I remembered from their studio tracks, but he looked to enjoy playing for the fans, as did the rest of the band! There was even some metal flashes, like in their initial jamming before their set, but they retained the punk feel throughout! I really enjoyed Shawn Smash's riffing especially, it complimented the music very well, and there was no relief or rest with their songs at all! Fun way to close the night, and sort of refreshing to see a straight up punk band for a change compared to the metal and hard rock I usually get! I just wish I wasn't so banged up from being near the pits!

Overall, this was a fun and diverse night of music, that delivered sizeable amounts of punk aggression, metal brutality, some new blood in the local scene, and a cello! I haven't seen a package like this at an all ages show in quite some time, and I hope it's not the last! We need more Oddfellows Hall shows, and last night was proof! I got plenty of photos on Sunday (apologies again for the later photos), so check them out at this location or at the SMS' Facebook page! And yes, I got videos of the four metal bands last night, so check them out below: Changing Waves' original "Divine Intervention", Shit Liver's cover of Antischism's "Greedy Bastards", Frightlight's cover of Fitswitch's "Rust Angel", and Bring The Fallen's original "Nostalgia"!









That's all for today, but stay tuned for some more local metal news later tonight! Thanks everyone, and sorry again for the delay!

This Weekend's Local Metal & Hard Rock Concert Previews!!

Second post of a three post Friday, and it's your concert previews for this weekend! On the hard rock and metal side of things, we have seven concerts featuring five different lineups on both sides of the Twin Saults. Big weekend, let's begin the previews in Sault Michigan with the three concerts over there that I know of! (Check the post below for last month's poll results and the details on our current poll. VOTE TODAY!!) Firstly, we'll head to The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino, which features the return of Northern Michigan hard rock trio Peril for one night only! Originally scheduled to play on Saturday as well, that date was cancelled a little while ago without a public explanation (as confirmed on their official Facebook page), but they will be in town tonight! This will be their first local date since last month, and this promises to be another fun night of hard rock and metal covers and originals! As is usual for their sets in town, Peril will be on at around 9:00 PM tonight, there will be no cover charge, and you must be 21 to enter. Even if it's only one night this time around, Peril have a great classic metal sound, and you guys should definitely consider going to Kewadin tonight to check them out! For more, including original audio and material from frontman Jeffrey Hudson's solo project, check out the above links! And for a video preview, here's a clip of Peril covering Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train" from a show in January! Meanwhile, in nearby Rudyard, Michigan, this weekend marks the local return of The Darwin Project! Yes, the Cheboygan modern rock quartet will be back in the area tonight and tomorrow night for two shows at Joe's Bar in Rudyard! I'm continually trying to include communities in the Sault Michigan area on the SMS, and Rudyard's only a half hour from Sault Michigan down the I-75, so make note that there's rock there this weekend! These shows will take place at 10:00 PM at this bar located on Main Street in Rudyard, with no announced cover charge, and a likely 21+ age limit. These should be fun shows, so if you want to make the trip down to Rudyard tonight or tomorrow to enjoy some very solid modern hard rock, then do it! For more details and material, visit their Facebook and MySpace pages, and don't worry about the Facebook event pages they made up for this weekend, because there's nothing noteworthy on them. And for a video preview, here's one of the most recent Darwin Project videos on YouTube, a live clip from a Cheboygan show in September where they played their original "The Dark"! Now to Sault Ontario for the rest of this weekend's heavier concerts, and we'll start at The Canadian Nightclub, where Turner Up will be playing for a pair of dates tonight and tomorrow night! This is their second weekend featuring new frontwoman Krista Marshall (seen here with bassist Jeff Gray from the Johnny Lunchbox days), and their first shows at The Canadian since she replaced Brent Royer earlier this month. These shows were originally scheduled for The Vibe Lounge, but were moved without public explanation earlier this week, so make sure you know where to go before you head to the wrong bar. As is usual, the show starts at around 10:00 PM tonight, there's no announced cover charge (but knowing The Canadian, they should have one, so bring $5 or so), and you must be 19 to enter. These should be fun, and it could be your first chance to see the new lineup in action if you missed them last weekend, so make not if you want to hear some live classic hard rock hits from these talented local veterans! Check the above links for more, confirm your attendance at the Facebook event page, and to click here to check out Krista in action in Johnny Lunchbox! The last two shows today are (oddly enough) Sunday night affairs, and we'll start at Foggy Notions, where Caveman Morrison frontman Tym Morrison continues his new weekly engagement at Foggy Notions with another acoustic solo set! This is the second of an at least three week run of Sunday solo shows there, and it should be a fun night of mellow laid back acoustic covers of your favourite metal and hard rock hits, and more! There is no announced cover charge, you must be 19 to enter Foggy's on Sunday night, and it all starts at 10:00 PM. While Caveman Morrison searches for a new bassist, it'd never hurt to check out very similar hits in a more intimate setting, so make note of Tym's show there on Sunday! For more details and original material from Tym & Caveman Morrison, check out the above links, and click here to visit the Facebook event page! And remember, if you miss him on Sunday, you can see him next Sunday as well! Finally, it's the big show of the weekend that has many local punk and metal fans very excited, and not just cause it's a rare all ages show at The Oddfellows Hall! The headliners have created a lot of buzz, and they are California street punk legends Total Chaos, who bring over 20 years of experience and classic anthems like "Punx Coalition", "What You Gonna Do", and "Complete Control" to the table! They have a nice aggressive punk sound that will be sure to attract lots of fans (myself included), but why is this getting SMS coverage? Well, it's because of the openers, who are mostly cut from the metal mold! Firstly, we have Bring The Fallen in just their second concert since May. Look for a death metal onslaught from these rising stars in the local metal scene, who are surely ready to melt your face off! Also scheduled are local horror punk/metal quartet Frightlight, in their first live concert appearance since their Halloween weekend release of "It's A...Live!" Their heavy punk sound will fit right in at a Total Chaos show, so expect some great stuff from their set! The other metal band scheduled are local grimecore trio Shit Liver, featuring former Bring The Fallen touring bassist Mike Kyle. How will their grinding death/punk sound work for their live debut? We shall see on Sunday night! The other supporting band are Toronto classical/punk trio RedD Monkey, who are one of my favourite non-metal bands with local members, so watch out for their cello-infused punk sound! Check out all of the scheduled bands at the above links! As previously mentioned, this concert will be at The Oddfellows Hall on Sunday night, in the first major show there featuring hard rock bands since May's Downtown Showdown Battle of the Bands (coincidentally, Bring The Fallen won that night with Mike Kyle on bass.) Doors open at 6:00 PM on Sunday night with a 7:00 PM start time. It costs $8 at the door to get in, which is a perfectly good price, especially at this value of bands! And yes, it's ALL AGES, but if you plan to drink, be responsible and covert about it, lest something bad happens. It's been forever since the last all ages Oddfellows show like this, so drink it in and enjoy it, cause who knows when we'll get another? Hopefully soon, but still, come on out on Sunday! I'll be there, with a review, photos, and videos to come on Monday, hopefully sooner than later! For more, visit the official Facebook event page, and for a preview, here's Bring The Fallen from the Downtown Showdown battle playing their original song "Stand Before", but don't forget about Total Chaos either! That's all for now, but go see some concerts this weekend!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (The Darwin Project), Upcoming Concert Updates, And More!!

Anyone out there want some local metal news and updates? I've got you covered! Today, we mostly clear out my old backlogged news stories, along with sharing some big news from a pair of bigger upcoming concerts, and more! But first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!!

For the first time since the summer, Cheboygan hard rockers The Darwin Project are coming to Sault Michigan for three area concerts later this month! Firstly they'll be at Joe's Bar in nearby Rudyard for a pair of weekend dates on November 19th and 20th, followed by a show at The Savoy Bar in Sault Michigan on Wednesday, November 24th! Rudyard is in our "local" range, so if you wanna make the drive out there to see The Darwin Project, then make note of that! I'm trying to get better in tune with shows at bars in our range but not in town, hopefully I'll have more soon! And the Sault show is slightly different in location and in time, being in the middle of the week, but there's no wrong day to rock! No cover charge is listed for any of the above, but there's a listed start time of 10:00 PM on the band's MySpace page. Expect a 21+ age limit at all three shows. Expect solid nights of accessible but heavy hard rock from these guys, who seem to have developed a good following in the area! Check out the above links for more details, and to check out some samples of their originals!

Now, to some big updates on a pair of upcoming shows featuring metal bands, and we'll first discuss this month's anticipated Total Chaos punk show at The Oddfellows Hall featuring local metal acts as openers! The first headline is that this show has been bumped up from November 25th to November 21st. No reason for the date adjustment was publicized, but according to Total Chaos' MySpace page, they're actually playing a show in Ottawa on November 25th, so it looks like a simple tour itinerary adjustment to me. Secondly, the poster for the show is now out, and you can see it on your left! Looks good, nice punk feel! Promoter Aisha Day is also looking for people interested in putting up posters for this show or handing them out, so if you would like to help get the word out, message Aisha at this location! The poster also confirms there that the show will have an $8 cover charge, with doors opening at 6:00 PM on the 21st. Sounds about right, hopefully there's a good turnout!

My last point is that local death metal band Bring The Fallen are back on the bill, as per the poster and the Facebook statuses of various band members. But wait, didn't they drop off of this show following the departure of lead guitarist Andrew Chiarello? Well, there hasn't been any official updates on their pages since he left, but bassist Nolan Rainville's Facebook page does feature a wall conversation from Monday with some band members where Andrew does refer to taking part in an upcoming BTF jam session. So what's the situation here? Is Andrew back already? Is he playing the Total Chaos show only and leaving again? Or is there something else we don't know? I'll keep you guys posted if I hear more! Check out the above links for all of the current updates on this concert!

While we're on the subject of concert updates, here's some news concerning Grady's long awaited return to Sault Ontario on November 16th at The Grand Theater! Firstly, an opening band has been announced for this show, and they are The Motorleague, a punk rock band from Moncton, New Brunswick! I wouldn't call them metal, but they have a nice energy level and some entertaining hard hitting tracks to boot, so definitely give them a spin! Also, SooToday have jumped on the promotional bandwagon for this show by posting their own event page for it! It seems like their event pages for upcoming shows are fewer and farther between lately, so it's nice to see this one get some exposure! This was actually my source for The Motorleague's involvement, and their MySpace page backed that up, in case someone doubts that. Seriously consider hitting this show, guys, cause the promoters have had some setbacks when it comes to getting the word out on this concert, and there's some great quality music in store! Grady will bring a ton of great stuff to the table thanks to their "country metal" stylings that definitely have a unique coolness to them! Remember, this show starts at 8:30 PM on the 16th at The Grand Theater, tickets are $15 at LopLops Lounge or at this location, and I assume it's 19+. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

And finally for today, remember last week when I talked about the Sault Star article on CD Plus' closure that never came? Well, an article on the closure is finally online... just not from them. As it turns out, Glen Thomas of The Barking Eye posted his own retrospective article where he discussed what CD Plus meant to him and to music lovers in the community. He included some remarks about what we'll have to resort to now for music, and some notes on another fondly remembered music store, Mr. Disc. Things definitely are changing locally for music stores, as now we've lost CD Plus, Mr. Disc, and Music World, along with New Moon Records in Sault Michigan, and I could be missing others too. I did notice that Glen didn't refer to HMV or The Rad Zone in his piece, which some could see as alternatives on varying levels. But I have to say, I'm surprised he didn't mention that CD Plus was great for recognizing local musicians and selling their albums, instead mostly focusing on it as an outlet for underground and obscure titles. Still, it's a nice read, and hopefully a new similar music store, CD Plus or not, comes to town down the road! Read Glen's article, and more, at this location!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news this weekend, along with my review of Sunday's Crash Karma/Desperate Union show on Monday! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Total Chaos), New Woods Of Ypres Updates, And More!!

Hey guys, hope the week is going alright for you! I have some more assorted news to share today, and before anyone asks, weekend concert previews are coming TONIGHT! But for now, I have the latest Woods of Ypres updates, a new concert video from a major local concert (not the one you're likely expecting though), and more, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!! (EDITED 11:28 AM)

It's official: The Total Chaos concert scheduled for November 25th is a go, with a confirmed venue and everything! This long awaited show will indeed be taking place at The Oddfellows Hall, in a (sadly) rare concert there! This was confirmed on the Facebook event page and in an e-mail sent by promoter Aisha Day to attendees on Facebook yesterday. A run time of 7:00 PM-11:00 PM is listed, with no announced ticket prices or cover charges yet. Aisha stressed in the e-mail that she doesn't want people at the concert to be openly drinking or starting a scene at the show as a result, lest the cops show up. So if you're there and are drinking/drunk, be sneaky about it! And before you guys say that this isn't a metal show, remember who's opening! Local horror punk/metal quartet Frightlight and debuting grimecore band Shit Liver are still scheduled to open, along with Toronto-based classical punk outfit RedD Monkey, featuring ex-Gates of Winter drummer Kevin Overton! Note that the previously announced Bring The Fallen are now no longer playing at this show, likely because of their current lead guitarist search (more in a second.) More details are forthcoming, so be on the lookout!

Also, I recieved an e-mail yesterday from former Bring The Fallen guitarist Andrew Chiarello, where he explained why he left the band. Basically, he left to pursue other musical interests, namely in a more "rock based" band, though he is also working on an instrumental project with former BTF bandmate Dan Souliere as well. Nice to clear that up, best of luck to Andrew in whatever's in store next! And of course, Bring The Fallen are still searching for a new lead guitarist, so click here for more details!

Next up, here's the latest from Woods of Ypres, who have NOT broken up, just in case you missed the word! Their new record label, Earache Records, has released a full official press statement to hype the signing, and you can read it at this location! It's largely made up of stuff we've already read from frontman David Gold where he explained why the band made up the whole "band break-up" story and their excitement to work with Earache, but there are a couple of new notes! There's some nice comments and sound descriptions from the label, and at the end, it was announced that Earache Records will release "Woods V: You Were The Night" and reissues of their entire back catalog next year! I wonder if this puts to rest David's original claims of only releasing "Woods V" on vinyl and iTunes? It's also great to see Earache reissuing their older albums, but I wonder if they'll do just Woods I-IV or include everything, including "Independent Nature" and the "Allure Of The Earth" vinyl? Time will tell, I suppose!

Check the above links for more on this huge news from Woods of Ypres, as well as no less than TWO articles on the signing from Blabbermouth, which is (for my money) the best metal news site on the internet! Click here and here to check them out, and note that these are the first Blabbermouth articles with Woods of Ypres as a title subject in almost two years, since their December 2008 article announcing their performance at the Adrian Bromley Tribute show in Toronto! Good stuff, I'll keep you all posted!

Thirdly tonight is a brand new video clip from a major Sault Michigan concert, and no, it's not from the Sevendust show. Stuff from that is bound to show up on YouTube sooner or later! This is a 68 second video of Alice Cooper's most recent concert at The Dreammaker's Theater at Kewadin Casino, from August 18th, 2007 (Thanks to Duane Roy for letting me know which show this was from!) It was uploaded by YouTube user Duguay1711 on Tuesday, who oddly has mostly Detroit-area rap concert videos on their channel, so this is a clear outlier of a video. I'm admittedly not well knowledged in Alice Cooper songs, so I don't know which song is playing during the clip, but it's the portion of one of his more famous stage theatrics, where he's led to the gallows and hung! Nice quality too, but it is short. Check it out below, especially as videos from Alice Cooper's local shows are hard to come by online.



And finally, here's three quick smaller news stories in order by band name:

• Sault Ontario hard rockers Browbeat have launched a brand new Facebook page, replacing their now closed Facebook group! It currently has photos, basic band information, and a forum topic where you can discuss their best song, with more likely to come! Check the above links to become a fan!
• If you hadn't heard, Lion Ride's return to the stage last week at The Bovine Sex Club in Toronto was a successful one, as they made the Toronto Indie Week Semifinals at The Hard Luck Bar on Saturday! I don't believe they made it past that round, but congratulations regardless!
• Local experimental grunge trio SBD have released a new original song onto their Soundclick page! Named "HUAW!!! I'm The Best", it's short and very hard to define, it seems to meld a couple of genres together while still rocking! Not a bad song, it keeps their experimental style well, and hopefully they have more to come! Check it out!
  

That's all for now, but stay tuned TONIGHT for previews of this weekend's concerts, including everything you should know about the Zombie Walk and it's attached afterparty! Thanks everyone!
Lion Ride Semifinals
New Browbeat Page (group closed)
SBD - Huaw!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Throat Kick), Another New Show, Half Past's New Bassist, And More!!

Hey guys, I'm still in Detroit doing some family stuff, and I have some time tonight to update you all on some news from the local metal scene that popped up over the last little while! This may be shorter than I'd hope for a post, but better some than never, right? So here's what you need to know, starting with a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT!!!

I apologize for the short notice of this show, I was only first alerted to it yesterday. Remember back in May when I mentioned that two metal bands from British Columbia, Throat Kick and GFAP!, were looking for a joint booking in Sault Ontario in September? Well, they got it, and they'll be in town on TUESDAY! The two bands will make their way to, oddly enough, The Vibe Lounge, which I can't recall ever hosting out of town metal bands like this. Great to see regardless! As I said, this show will be TUESDAY NIGHT, with a start time of 9:00 PM and a $5 cover. You must be 19 to enter, because after all, this is a bar. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! Now I know this show is both short notice and a bit out of the way from most of the local concert spots, but seriously consider going! Both bands bring a unique style to the table! Throat Kick (from Prince George) have a electronic-influenced "breakcore" style that we certainly don't see often locally, while GFAP! (from Vancouver) have a more straightforward groove metal sound, and have a great intensity going for them! Check the above links for more on the bands and the show, and stay tuned for a preview of it tomorrow or Monday!

Now, the title above says that I have another new show, and yes, it is new with bands announced, but why am I not treating this as a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT? Because there's no venue announced, but when one is, I'll give it the proper treatment! But this is publically aware with Facebook event page in tow, so here's what you should know beforehand! On November 25th, California punk legends Total Chaos will play a concert in Sault Ontario! They're an awesome punk band, but how does this qualify for SMS attention? Well, check out who's opening! The scheduled openers include local horror punk/metal quartet Frightlight, local death metal band Bring The Fallen, and in their live concert debut, local grimecore trio Shit Liver! Also announced are Toronto-based classical/punk band RedD Monkey (featuring ex-Gates of Winter drummer Kevin Overton), and what could be another opening band, labeled as "(TBA/NO NAME)". A 7:00 PM start time is announced, but I've heard little since about venue or ticket details. Stay tuned to The Sault Metal Scene and the above links for updates as they come in, cause this concert sounds VERY promising!

Thirdly, here's some long awaited news on a local band's bassist search! On Thursday, local hard rockers Half Past announced the addition of WinkStinger bassist Ryan Disano to the band, replacing former bassist Arthur Lacasse. Aside from WinkStinger, you may recognize Ryan from his work in bands like Time of Ruin and Caveman Morrison, who he played bass with briefly last year upon their local return. The news was announced on the band's official Facebook page on Thursday, with the band commenting that Ryan will bring a "style and intensity" that we're gonna love. This should be a great move, cause Ryan has some definite skills on the bass, and hopefully he fits in well with Half Past! After all, it's been five months since we last saw Half Past on a local stage, so the anticipation is building as we await their return! I'll keep you posted with more Half Past news as I hear it!

And finally for today, it's finally official: Recording sessions for Garden of Bedlam's upcoming full length LP have FINISHED! After delays from the Kiss concert and some personal ailments, Buzz has wrapped up all of his vocal tracks for what is tentatively titled "Everything Will Die" a few days ago, and he announced the recording sessions' conclusion on the band's Facebook group on Thursday! Great to hear, I can't wait to hear the finished product! That's all for today, but I will have more very soon, be it when I get home or not! Stay tuned!