Before we preview this weekend's metal & hard rock concerts, we have a new news post that's half good news and half bad. The good news comes from new song postings (including from a brand new album), but we'll start with bad news, as a local concert spot got hit hard by recent inclement weather once again, so read on below for what you should know!
Pim Street bar/concert venue The Canadian Nightclub has been hit by major flooding once again, thanks to the local rainstorm on Monday night. This is deja vu for sure, as The Canadian was flooded under very similar circumstances in July 2011, so while there isn't as much shock value given that this happened before, it's still very disappointing knowing that they'll be closed and employees will be out of work for an indefinite time period (for reference, the 2011 flooding led to 7 weeks of renovations before it's return.) In fact, The Canadian just re-opened after cosmetic renovations on August 1st, so this is weird timing for a flood to cause more work to be done. The Canadian's Jay Perron shared photos of the new damage with SooToday via this article, and the flood waters look comparable to what happened 2 years ago, but like then, I'm not in the position to estimate damages or cost of anything. Despite being on the hill, The Canadian's not in a great spot in terms of flood risk, but I hope they can bounce back from this stronger than ever, as it's a nice venue with friendly staff, and if they can overcome this once, they can do it again!
As a result, all events at The Canadian through early October will either be cancelled or relocated. If the renovations take 7 weeks again, it'd re-open in time for Halloween, but that's a personal guess & nothing else, as I don't know the extent of the coming work. In terms of announced SMS-coverable events there, the only one that's been affected by the flooding is the Ray Brown benefit/tribute concert that was scheduled for October 12th. Instead, it's been relocated from The Canadian to The Verdi Hall at 455 Queen Street West, and it's also been rescheduled to Friday, October 11th, as no local banquet halls are booking events that Saturday due to the Thanksgiving break. Nothing else has changed, so click here for all current details & for info on playing or donating prizes! I'll also note that according to Haggith's Facebook page, the Hydra's Teeth-headlined concert at The Algonquin Pub next Friday was indeed originally scheduled for The Canadian, but was moved for unknown reasons before the flooding ever happened. Stay tuned for updates on the flooding and any other related news as it comes in, and best of luck all around!
Now to some happier news, starting with Haggith drummer Mike Haggith' latest solo album, which is now available on his YouTube channel and Reverbnation page for free streaming! Like his last few solo releases, there has been changes between their last public updates and first full unveiling, so what's different? His 47th album has had the name "Where It Ends" demoted to a subtitle, and it's now called "Neighbourhood Watch II: Where It Ends", a reference and acknowledgement to his 2012 album that many songs originally were planned for. A new album cover is planned as well, and though it has yet to be unveiled, this was the original prototype. The album still has 11 songs, but the track order has been altered, and four songs have been replaced, with "Miss 76", "Lacking Common Sense" (formerly "Stalking Booze & The Raptor"), "Solitude", and "Goodbye" replacing "The Curse (of 13)", "Fading", and his covers of "The Man In Green" and "The Trip". No reason for the song changes was announced, but this is par for the course for his solo work, and the dropped songs could be on his next CD "The Tower".
Somewhat softer & more orchestral than the first "Neighbourhood Watch", a full paid release is planned for "Neighbourhood Watch II: Where It Ends" (including physical pressings), but details and information on that front is not yet out. If the paid release comes out in the next month or so, a solo Mike Haggith album will likely be our next CD review subject (either this or "The Present Din"), so keep an eye out, click here for more information, and visit this link for the whole YouTube playlist of the album! Embedded below is the first song, "Grace", and stay tuned for info on the full paid release!
Finally for today, here's a bunch of new audio uploads from defunct local grunge trio No Arrow! Ex-frontman Dann Pichette (who currently lives in Terrace Bay) recorded these at some point (with him on vocals & all instruments), but only just posted them on his YouTube channel on Saturday. The songs include originals named "Trial & Error", "System", "Rehashed Acid Reign", "Question Mark", "Far", and "Bleed Out", along with a cover of Bruce Springsteen's "I'm On Fire", so click each link to check them out! I saw Dann make references online to these being part of an "album", but like "Souls For Sale", it's never seen a full paid release. These are solid overall, and they fit with No Arrow's past and more prominent original work, so grunge/alternative fans should get a kick out of these songs! (Note that "Rehashed Acid Reign" is an extended instrumental composition that's hard to describe.) I think No Arrow are still very underrated, and given the grunge resurgence of the past year, it's a shame they're not around to capitalize on it! One of the better tracks "Trial & Error" has been embedded below, so give it a listen!
That's probably all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for at least some of this weekend's metal & hard rock concert previews! Thanks everyone!
Alright, this post is coming earlier than I'd like (I had planned for this to go up early tomorrow), but some major news came in today that I felt I should get on the site sooner rather than later. That's the main story, but I will include this week's classic video at the end to fill things out, and check out all the details on our current poll (and last month's poll results) in the post below this one. Now though, let's get to the big news (And if anyone has any corrected or additional news on the below stories, by all means let me know!) (UPDATED, 9:12 PM)
The Canadian Nightclub on Pim Street was the victim of major flooding overnight during our major rainstorm, and as such, the entire nightclub is massively flooded. Estimates have put upwards of 100,000 gallons of water populating the inside of The Canadian Motor Hotel's downstairs bar, and though removal of the water has begun (you can see the trucks removing it outside in the parking lot), there is a long way to go from here. SooToday was covering the unfortunate incident at this article, including photos of the interior, where you can see how bad the flooding is. No pictures with the stage in view are shown, but you can see how high the water is in relation to the bar area. According to The Canadian's Jay Perron on this photo album, the parking lot of The Canadian was a lake, sewers were backed up, and the water basically came through the doors. I'm in no position to estimate damages or comment on the severity of the flooding, but this certainly is not a minor incident. This shocking news comes just 15 months after the fire at The Upper Deck Lounge upstairs, which itself didn't disrupt the bar, but the guys at The Canadian have had some real bad luck in general since the renovations in 2009.
I really feel for everyone at The Canadian right now, hopefully they can eventually restore the bar to working order, and hopefully they can come back from this stronger than ever! The Canadian has extra value to myself because it's both right near my place and was the site of my first 19+ concert (Sandman in June 2008), so I certainly wouldn't have wished any of this on them. I heard and saw the storm we got up on the hill, it was intense, but I'd never had thought it'd cause a flood inside any buildings. Obviously, how wrong I was.
I'll keep you guys posted if any updates concerning the bar's condition come to my attention, but if you're a concertgoer, you may be wondering what this means for scheduled concerts, theme nights, and events there. From what I'm hearing, any scheduled events and shows at The Canadian are now cancelled through at least the end of August. Some discussions about that are featured on our Facebook page. On the metal side of things, this obviously means that the Alcoholic White Trash all ages show on August 1st and Hollow's reunion show on August 6th are no longer happening at The Canadian, but that doesn't necessarily mean they will be cancelled outright. Stephane Vincent from The Roosevelt Hotel let me know that there was preliminary talks about the Alcoholic White Trash show being moved to The Rosie, but that's not final at present time. Hollow have yet to officially cancel or move their show, but they will try and find a new venue if possible, as indicated on their reunion shows' event page. A shift to The Rockstar Bar wouldn't surprise me, seeing as they're playing there on the 5th already, but that's just speculation. As for Full Circle's scheduled weekend there in September, I've left it on our schedule for now, as September is (at best) up in the air for possible bar events, but if I hear confirmation that it's cancelled or moved, I will let you guys know!
My other Canadian-related note is that a band that was hoping to play there next month is now without a venue. This show had yet to be officially announced, but with the venue for the show being essentially lost due to the flooding, we're hearing details about it and what is needed now. Toronto hardcore metal quartet Vilipend were apparently scheduled to rock The Canadian Nightclub on August 3rd through Dismembertainment, but the show is now venue-less due to the flood. Bassist Michael Crossley contacted me on Facebook for help in possibly helping to secure a new venue, so I sent him some contacts. I have no clue if that will lead anywhere though, so if you book concerts, work for any venues, or can help in any fashion to secure a new spot for a Vilipend show on August 3rd (even a house party or garage), contact Michael at this location! Vilipend have a good sound, a more unique and raw form of hardcore than we're used to, grittier and more sludgy. They'd definitely be worth seeing, but alas, they need a venue, so if you can help in any way, contact the above links! Let's help them out!
This was sort of a bummer of a post, but I thought I'd end it on a positive note, so here's this week's classic video a bit earlier than usual! I decided to feature Garden of Bedlam again for a classic video, seeing as they're playing at The Roosevelt Hotel on Thursday for the first time, and like last month, this week's classic video comes from their set at Hempfest 2008! This actually led off their set that August, and it's of one of their old live covers that was not previously on YouTube, as they covered Velvet Revolver's "Slither"! Garden of Bedlam do a good job, but Buzz's megaphone didn't add to anything really when it was used. They have better covers, but Garden of Bedlam can handle most types of hard rock well, and it shows here! This video, like the Helmet cover posted last month, was filmed by a Hempfest attendee at the show and was it was later uploaded to Facebook by bassist Evan Belleau. You can view the original video at http://facebook.com/video/video.php?v=35356975931&oid=10668648337 and NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT IS INTENDED! This video deserves to be seen, and a wider audience should see some more Garden of Bedlam videos! So without any further adieu, here's Garden of Bedlam covering "Slither" at 2008's Hempfest!
Now that's all for today, but I'll try and get a new post in tomorrow, hopefully with a happier range of news! Stay tuned, and thanks everyone!
