Crash Karma/Desperate Union Concert Review, Plus More News!!

As promised, it's time for my review from last night's Crash Karma/Desperate Union show! That's the main story today, but I have some extra shorter news to include at the end, so stay tuned for that! But now, here's my review!

Firstly, I want to thank Jay Perron for the complimentary tickets for the show! Very nice of him! Despite doors opening at 9:30 PM last night at The Canadian Nightclub, nothing got started until an hour later, and while I waited for some friends that I promised tickets to, I believe I overheard some troubling things about the show's status from some staffers near the tour buses. I don't know specifics, but nothing bad happened, except maybe a bit of a delay. Your openers were Desperate Union, and they weren't bad at all! For kids this young, they show a lot of talent and are sure to grow into something special as time goes on! Their sound reminds me of a lot of radio hard rock bands, but they put their own melodic spin on things, and it works out well for them! Singer/guitarist Alen Worsoff has a nice voice that works well in heavy and soft ways, though I imagine he'll get better and deeper with age! Good stage presence too, and he seemed very grateful and happy to be there, along with the rest of the band! Drummer Jason Pierce, despite an odd stage placement on the far left, really impressed me with his movements and energy on the drums, while guitarist Adam Spears and bassist Kyle Teixeira both performed well on their respective instruments!

I especially liked their songs "Don't Forget Me (Angel)" and "Black & White Lies", but I do think they could stand to ramp up their heaviness and include some guitar solos. Even still, they performed a solid concise set, and they show tons of promise! Big things are likely to come to these guys, and their radio hard rock style will find lots of fans, including hopefully lots of people at last night's show!

Your headliners were Crash Karma, the Toronto pop rock supergroup featuring a number of 1990s Canadian rock veterans! Former I Mother Earth singer Edwin, ex-Our Lady Peace guitarist Mike Turner, and Tea Party drummer Jeff Burrows joined together with bassist Amir Epstein of Zygote to form this supergroup, and they delivered a good set, though I do have reservations. Their set included ten songs from their self-titled debut album, along with four classics from the members' past bands, and you know something? I honestly enjoyed their covers more than their originals. This is NOT a case of me liking what's familiar, but the Crash Karma material seems a bit too light and standard compared to what I was hoping. But when they busted out "Superman's Dead" and "Temptation", I was right at home, and they delivered on all accounts! But the new songs didn't do as much for me, though they were all very well played. I admit I was more into the Brian Byrne era of I Mother Earth, but Edwin's voice was in top form last night, as was the rest of the band! Amir Epstein deserves credit as well, his bass work was really good, and his playing style (high on his chest) was unique too!

Good stuff all around, but I wouldn't really call them "hard rock" on the basis of the Crash Karma material. But these guys are very talented, and this truly is a supergroup, so they are worth checking out! Good solid alternative pop rock, and you'd have missed a good show if you weren't there! My metal tastes did lean slightly towards Desperate Union though, but it was fun! Yes, I got photos, so click here to check out my Desperate Union shots, or visit the SMS' official Facebook page! Note that the Crash Karma picture above was NOT taken by me, I'll replace it with one I took tonight when I get home. And yes, I have a Desperate Union video, so here's the band playing their song "Black & White Lies"!



To cap off today's post, here's three smaller news stories that I've missed over the last while! As always, these are in alphabetical order by band name:

• Garden of Bedlam have launched a brand new Facebook page! This is separate from their Facebook group, and is pretty sparse for updates so far, but it does feature a cool lengthy biography on the band and a full resolution copy of the poster for their concert on FRIDAY at The Rockstar Bar! Become a fan today by clicking here!
• When going through band links on the SMS the other day, I discovered that the website for defunct local metal band Renderware has been closed. This doesn't appear to be the band's doing, as it was hosted on Geocities, which has been shut down. The same thing happened to The White Knights' old page. Never fear, as I've replaced the link with their MySpace page, so they won't be deleted from our listings! Make note though if you notice it's gone.
• I received an e-mail recently from Riverin singer/drummer Matt Hicks. Apparently, the call for live backing musicians for their upcoming debut concert has not produced a whole lot of interest, so he was wondering if I could help get the word out again. If any of you guys play bass, drums, or keyboard, or you know someone who does, contact Riverin's members at this location for details and song previews! They deserve some great musicians, and the sooner they get them, the better!
  

That's all for today, but I have more assorted news to come very soon, so be on the lookout! Thanks everyone!

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

It's time to preview this weekend's slate of local metal and hard rock concerts! Decent amount this weekend on the heavier end of things, including two weekend sets in Sault Michigan and a pair of single shows in Sault Ontario to get hyped for, including a major out of town show featuring a rising hard rock band! So let's begin this weekend's previews in Sault Michigan!

First off for the weekend, we'll head to The Satisfied Frog, where Marquette hard rockers Nudge return to the area for a weekend of great covers! I should note that now, they're only playing shows as Nudge tonight and tomorrow night, as the band have removed their past "Nudge-coustic" sets from their MySpace page's concert listings. As it turns out, their past acoustic sets appear to have been pared down to just frontman Danzo McCracken playing a solo set on those nights, but without a clear idea of his solo genre, I haven't plugged them on here. But they are definitely on for Friday and Saturday concerts this weekend, with the full band in tow! Both shows start at 10:00 PM at The Frog, with no announced cover charge, and you must be 21 to enter. These should be fun shows, as Nudge are a very talented band with loads of great metal and hard rock covers in store! For more information, visit the above links and the official Facebook event page! And for a video preview, here's a clip of Nudge covering Ozzy Osbourne's "Mama I'm Coming Home"!



Next up, Sault Michigan hard rock quintet River Witch will be playing at The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino this weekend! Though not confirmed on their Facebook page, which is sporadically updated at best, Kewadin Casino's entertainment page has them playing, so there's my source! It's actually even more up to date and current now, because they updated the listing at some point last month to reflect the fact that River Witch had taken over the bookings previously made for Blind Baby, who River Witch basically evolved from this summer. That being said, River Witch will be playing at The Rapids Lounge tonight and tomorrow night for two shows presumably around 9:00 PM with no cover charge and a 21+ age limit. I still don't know a ton about River Witch-sound wise, but featuring members of Blind Baby, Kilacel, and Scofflaw can't be a bad sign! So if you wanna hear some modern and classic rock covers across the river, here's an option! Check the above links for more, visit Blind Baby's page linked above to get a possible glimpse of River Witch's sound!

Thirdly, we'll head back to Sault Ontario, and starting things on that front is another acoustic solo show from Tym Morrison! Yes, Caveman Morrison's frontman returns to the stage for his first public solo concert in two months when he makes his way back to The Bottoms Up Lounge tomorrow night! If you want to hear some intimate acoustic covers of your favourite metal and rock classics, among other genres, then seriously consider going to see Tym tomorrow! This is his only scheduled acoustic date on the horizon, so who knows when he'll be back? The fun starts at 10:00 PM tomorrow, with no announced cover charge and a 19+ age limit. This should be a good show to enjoy a few drinks to, and who doesn't love hearing great covers? Who needs an amplifier to rock anyway? For more details, check out the above links and the Facebook event page! Though I haven't came across any live videos of Tym's solo work, head to his official website for solo and Caveman audio clips!

Finally, a rising hard rock band are coming through town on Sunday night as support for a band full of big names from Canadian rock! Toronto's own Desperate Union will be playing an opening set tomorrow night at The Canadian Nightclub as direct support for alternative rock supergroup Crash Karma! Crash Karma are a very talented band with ex-members of I Mother Earth, Our Lady Peace, and The Tea Party in their lineup, and you may have seen them on MuchMusic in the past for hits like "Awake" and "Fight"! Not metal, but worth checking out, especially with the pedigree of their lineup! As for Desperate Union, they're a very talented and promising trio that have accomplished a great deal given their young ages! They have videos on MuchMusic, they opened for Soulfly recently, and are showing much promise with their brand of alternative-tinged hard rock! Check out the above links for more on both bands! This show will take place on Sunday night with doors opening at 9:30 PM. You must be 19 to enter, and tickets are $10 in advance at the Knights Inn front desk above The Canadian. The door price is $15. For more details, check out the official Facebook event page!

I'll be at this show, and it should provide some solid rock for a Sunday night! I'm digging Desperate Union especially, but prepare for some good stuff all around if you go! For a preview, here's Desperate Union's music video for their song "Don't Forget Me (Angel)"!



That's all for now, but stay tuned later tonight for another news post, and more very soon, including a Crash Karma/Desperate Union review on Monday! Thanks everyone!

LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS (Desperate Union & Turner Up), Plus This Weekend's Concert Previews!!

Back to business as usual tonight after a lengthy review session for our 2 CD live recording of the Kiss concert from August (review below.) And today, we'll get you in the loop on this weekend's known local metal and hard rock concerts, but first, here are TWO LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS, one of which is short notice!

Toronto hard rock trio Desperate Union will make their way to Sault Ontario next month as the supporting band for a Canadian rock supergroup on their current touring cycle! The main attraction for this concert, which takes place on November 7th, will be Toronto alternative rockers Crash Karma, who feature ex-members of I Mother Earth, Our Lady Peace, and The Tea Party among their ranks! Not metal, but they're a talented high profile band who'll be sure to deliver at this show! Desperate Union, though not headlining, have some solid tunes going for them, and have seen a bit of play on MuchMusic in the last few years in their own right. Good radio hard rock sound, these guys have potential, and hopefully they put in a good performance! This show will be on November 7th at The Canadian Nightclub at 9:30 PM, with tickets on sale at The Knights Inn front desk above The Canadian. They cost $10, but the price jumps to $15 if you buy at the door. You must be 19 to attend this concert. For more details, check the above links and visit the official Facebook event page! I'll keep you posted as I hear more!

The other new concert is part of this weekend's local concert previews, given that it's very short notice, so here's what you should know on that front!

Sault Ontario classic hard rockers Turner Up return to the stage this weekend for two shows, one more than we had previously heard about. Going into the week, we knew that they'd be at The Rockstar Bar tomorrow night for a one night performance, but there was nothing planned for Saturday. Well, that has changed, as the band are now scheduled to play on Saturday night at The Roosevelt Hotel, in their first concert ever at The Rosie! Amazing that it took this long! I apologize for the short notice about the Saturday show, it was only just announced on Wednesday. Both shows will be at around 10:00 PM on their respective nights, with no announced cover charge for either, and 19+ age limits for both. So if you want to hear some great classic hard rock covers from a talented band of local music veterans, you know where to be: The Rockstar Bar tomorrow night, and The Rosie on Saturday night! Click here and here for the respective event pages for both concerts, check out all of the above links for more, and for a preview, click here to see video footage of their current lineup covering a Gavin DeGraw hit!

Meanwhile, local metal cover trio Caveman Morrison return to The Vibe Lounge tomorrow night for a concert full of metal and hard rock hits! This show was originally scheduled for last Friday, but was postponed a week by recommendation of The Vibe Lounge's staff, so the show will be on for sure tomorrow! As usual, expect a night full of great renditions of many of your favourite metal and rock classics from Tym, Dutch, and Johnny, who have great chemistry on-stage to boot! As usual, this show will be at 10:00 PM tomorrow night, with no announced cover charge and a 19+ age limit. Should be a good show, with lots of great music to go around, so if you're in the area, head to The Vibe Lounge! For more details, check the above links and the Facebook event page, and for a video preview, here's Caveman Morrison covering Living Colour's "Cult Of Personality" from their set this past weekend at Foggy Notions!



Finally for this weekend, Northern Michigan metal band Peril return to The Rapids Lounge at Kewadin Casino for a pair of hard rocking shows this weekend in Sault Michigan! Jeff Hudson and company are back there this weekend to deliver their own old school take on metal, including some covers and originals, and should put in some great stuff to rock the Sault with! As is typical for Peril, the shows will be at 9:00 PM tomorrow and Saturday night, with no cover charge and a 21+ age limit. So whether you wanna stop by and say "Hey" or rock out with some great metal, Kewadin has the metal this weekend for you Sault Michigan metalheads! For more, visit the above links, and for a video preview, here's a live clip of Peril covering Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train" from a show in January!



That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes very soon, including our next poll on Monday and the results from our current poll that day too! Thanks everyone, and go see some shows this weekend!