Showing posts with label grace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label grace. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 20, 2026

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Angelmaker), New Concert Videos, And More Recent Updates!!

After a couple of quiet days coming out of the long weekend, here's another busy news post on this Wednesday night, including recent concert videos and some more shorter updates, but first, here's a LOCAL CONCERT ALERT for later this summer that extreme metalheads may want to pay attention to!

An international touring roster of deathcore bands will descend upon Blaster Powerhouse (still listed as Soo Blaster on the AI-generated poster) on Thursday, August 20th, with Vancouver deathcore septet Angelmaker headlining in their local debut! Yes, they have seven members (including three guitarists and two singers), and things add up well to a brutal and chaotic brand of death metal that fans of Whitechapel and Lorna Shore should take to well, so don't miss out when they come here in three months! Also playing here that night are British deathcore band Ingested, who may have a new lead singer on this tour run. Regardless, this Metal Blade act brings ferocity and hardcore elements to their death metal attack, and they'll pair well here, as will Nevada deathcore project Disfiguring The Goddess, whose djent-influenced sound will also go over well with the crowd at the former Soo Blaster! At least two local support bands are being sought, so what should you know there?

Promoters Heavy North Entertainment (in their first booking of 2026) are calling this "the ultimate metal concert", and they are looking for "emerging bands in the metal/core genres" to kick off the night, so message heavynorthentertainment@live.com with your EPK and links to audio and video of your band if you're interested! At this point, Tyler has not announced a start time or admission fees, but the show will presumably be all ages. The immense hype in the promotion (especially contrasted with the AI poster) has raised eyebrows among local metalheads already, but if you're into deathcore at all, this will be a massive bill, so see above for more details!

Next up, here's some recent concert videos, starting with (as far as I am aware) the last remaining public video from last month's Three Days Grace concert at GFL Memorial Gardens! This comes from YouTube user Brian Myles, who you may recognize from filming at Theory Of A Deadman's pre-pandemic concert here in February 2020. Brian only got one video at this particular show, and it's of the Norwood hard rock quintet playing their classic single "Riot". While it is basically the whole song, this was sadly shot vertically, and the audio is somewhat muffled. That said, the crowd was very animated as seen from this floor seating vantage point, and Matt & Adam pair well on vocals here! I'm really surprised at the lack of videos from this concert to be posted in publically accessible places, but what we have does give a good sampling of Three Days Grace's set, at least. Watch Brian's video below, and we'll let you know if any other videos turn up!

Also, let's take a look at videos from the Ozzy Osbourne/Black Sabbath tribute band Crazy Babies' concert at The Full Throttle Saloon on May 9th! The $70 ticket price and lack of admission at the door did get a lot of attention in the lead-up, but it must have been a hit, as the former Primavera Hall are bringing Epic Rush there next month, and the return of Metallica tribute band Sandman is being teased on the venue's Facebook page as well. Details on that are forthcoming, but if you didn't come out for the Crazy Babies, their Facebook page has you covered! Videos (all vertical, unfortunately) include two very Zakk Wyldesque guitar solos (linked here & here), their set-opener "I Don't Know", singer Rod Clarke giving everyone 'Cheers' before playing "No More Tears", and as embedded below, 4 minutes of them tackling the Sabbath standard "War Pigs".  Despite the ticket prices, this concert seemed to draw well!

Whether we will see The Full Throttle Saloon book touring bands that aren't tribute acts is to be determined, but Crazy Babies delivered for Ozzy fans two weeks ago, and they definitely sound good across these videos! The filmer had reasonable camera angles to capture things at a generally nice vantage point at the stage's far right corner too, even if vertical. Check these out for yourselves above & below, and hopefully Rod and the Babies come back!

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:

 

  • In new postings on their Facebook page, rebranded local death metal staples Eden Plague (née The Bear Hunters) have confirmed that their lineup is unchanged from how it has looked since they permanently shrunk to a quartet in 2016. Regarding their return opening for Dopethrone at Jay's on Monday, they will "have a couple of new songs... as well as some of your old favourite 'Bear Hunter' songs" in their set that night, while calling this "a kick ass, reminiscent, but new show" to "welcome in our new chapter". One assumes that the new songs will be from their planned "final album" that was teased to be in the works in 2023, but maybe they've been working on music that we don't know about yet? Stay tuned!
  • Local classic/hard rock cover bands Soundcheck & Separate Wayz will join forces for an "epic crossover" gig on Saturday, August 15th when their five combined band members take the 3½ hour drive north to Chapleau! This road trip will see the sister bands serve as musical entertainment for that weekend's Gold Rush Nationals Drag Race, as per the AI-generated poster on Wawa radio station CJWA's website. Hopefully the show is a blast for Terry, Jim, Johnny, Travis, and Nicole, let alone race attendees, and keep it in mind if you'll be points north then to realistically check it out!
  • Sault Michigan hardcore punk trio Viscera have another out of town gig booked, this time 5 hours south in Melvindale (outside of Detroit), where they will open for Taylor thrash metal quintet Convulsis at Rooster Rager II on July 25th! This Friends For Animals Of Metro Detroit fundraiser will notably also feature Detroit deathcore quartet Living Dissection, featuring former local metal guitarist Mike Libertoski (of Slackjawed Rats and Galactic Alignment fame). Always cool to see what Mike's up to nowadays, so keep this Yooper double bill in mind if you'll be downstate in two months!


That's all for now, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews on the SMS next! Thanks everyone!

Tuesday, May 5, 2026

Three Days Grace/Finger Eleven Concert Video Showcase (Part 1!!)

Have you been wondering where our coverage of last week's Three Days Grace/Finger Eleven concert at GFL Memorial Gardens has been? So have I, but compared to Triumph & April Wine at the arena last month, videos have been surprisingly harder to come by, and barring belated videos being posted from that night, I'll be lucky to fill two posts. Despite the relative lack of videos, the show was a huge hit with a sold-out audience (I'm told that The Sheepdogs drew well that night at The Machine Shop too!), and Kenneth Armstrong from SooToday got 12 solid photos of the headlining Norwood, Ontario hard rock quintet's set for this article! Nothing of Finger Eleven or Royal Tusk though. We'll highlight uploads from three filmers today, starting with Three Days Grace's set-opener "Dominate", which was one of five songs from their new dual-singer album "Alienation" to be played last week.

This was filmed by YouTube user MsSawfiler (who also filmed one Triumph video last month), and if you need context as to why the video screen has a random kid on it at the start, Three Days Grace literally preceded their set with an old Station Mall commercial! You can see fan-shot video of just that moment on (where else) Station Mall's Facebook page. As for the song itself, this is a well shot video (helped by Ms. Sawfiler being right along the extended stage walkway), so Matt and Adam get nice and close! The audio is a little muffled here, but it's a quality first look at Three Days Grace's first song, so check it out for yourselves below!

The most prolific filmer (so far?) of Three Days Grace was YouTube user MasonTheGoat, who also filmed at last year's Our Lady Peace concert at the Gardens, and he shot seven videos of the headliners last week! Again, nothing of the openers. Mason filmed 3.D.G. playing "Break", "Pain", "Kill Me Fast""Apologies", "Don't Wanna Go Home Tonight", "Never Too Late" (which was his only vertically shot video), and as embedded below, "World So Cold". If you're curious, of the 17 pre-"Alienation" original songs in that night's setlist (according to Setlist.fm), 11 were from their first four albums with Adam Gontier on vocals, and 6 were from the three albums after Matt Walst replaced him, with the other singer providing backing vocals or follow-up verses as needed. They also played three covers, two in the acoustic portion (more on that in a bit) and a rendition of 3 Doors Down's ballad "Here Without You".

Mason was in the stands for this concert, and while not close to the stage, he zoomed in a bit, and he had a good side-stage vantage point that lets us see the crowd levels well. The stage lighting is really accentuated from where he was too! Audio is somewhat quiet (though not as muffled), but given where he was seated, you can't complaint too much, so give Mason's videos a watch above and below as well!

Today's last videos actually come from 104.3 The Fox's Facebook page, and much like at the Triumph show, a representative of the Sault Ontario rock radio station included short videos from the show in a batch post alongside a handful of photos. Five of their six videos were of Three Days Grace, including clips of them playing "Dominate", "Animal I Have Become", 10 seconds of the crowd chanting the band's name, and "Kill Me Fast", but embedded below is 31 seconds of them playing "Lost In You" during the acoustic break, which is set around a faux campfire on this tour (you may recall seeing a contest from The Fox to win a chance to be on stage for it, hence the onlookers!). During this stretch, they also played "Lifetime" and a medley, the latter of which included a cover of "Porn Star Dancing" by Matt's old band My Darkest Days (it would be interesting to hear how that came across in an unplugged setting!)

Alas, they don't cover Saint Asonia at all in return ("Better Place" is too good of a song to leave untouched, but that's just me). Like with The Fox's Triumph videos, these are all vertical, and were clearly shot from the stands, but they zoom in a lot to capture the action while it lasts, and the campfire motif is well done for a palate cleanser! Give these a watch above & below, and hopefully longer (and horizontal) videos of the campfire songs surface!

Finally, let's take a look at (surprisingly) the only public video that I have found from Finger Eleven's support set, which was also included in 104.3 The Fox's aforementioned batch post. This sees the Burlington alt-hard rock quintet playing "Together Right" from their 2023 greatest hits album, and it's a decent quality performance that accentuates the stage well despite the verticality of the aspect ratio! Scott does seem to be straining his voice a bit, but the energy and enthusiasm are clearly there, so give this video a watch below, and hopefully more turn up!

We do have a little bit more from the Three Days Grace (and Triumph) concerts to come, so stay tuned for all of that and more on the SMS as the month of May rolls along! Thanks everyone!

Monday, April 27, 2026

The Three Days Grace/Finger Eleven Concert Preview, An Inactive Band Note, And A New Soundcheck Video!!

Let's take a look at some news and notes on this Monday evening, including our extended preview of a major concert tomorrow, a band newly moved to our inactive links, and a surprise live concert video find, so with all of that said, here's what you should know!

We'll start with today with a huge concert preview for TOMORROW NIGHT, as Norwood, Ontario hard rock icons Three Days Grace and Burlington alternative/hard rock quintet Finger Eleven will return to the Soo at GFL Memorial Gardens! For Three Days Grace, this will be their third time at the arena, and first since headlining there in December 2009, and of course, this is their first local date with ex-My Darkest Days singer Matt Walst on vocals, notably with original frontman Adam Gontier returning to the band in 2024 to give them two lead singers. The two do share vocals throughout the night, so if you wanted to hear Adam do "I Am Machine, or Matt do "Animal I Have Become", let alone new stuff like "Apologies", this is your chance! As for Finger Eleven, local fans last saw them opening for I Mother Earth at The Machine Shop in 2018, and this will mark (at least) their fifth concert appearance here, and first at the former Essar Center.

In the almost eight years since we last saw Finger Eleven here, they have kept touring and released their new album "Last Night On Earth" last year, so expect classics like "First Time" and "Falling On" along with newer cuts like "Adrenaline" as the take the stage! Opening the proceedings tomorrow are Edmonton hard rock quartet Royal Tusk in their local debut, and they've been slowly gaining traction on domestic rock radio with songs like "Head Up" and "Hated" from their new album "Altruistic", so don't sleep on their accessible but hard hitting original sound tomorrow! This stop on Three Days Grace's Alienation Tour is brought to you by Live Nation, and while neither local rock radio station is a presenting sponsor, both have had ticket giveaway contests. A 7:00 PM start time is advertised for this all ages concert, and limited tickets are still available at this link or at the in-person box office, starting at $116.50 in section 119.

Other sections and general/floor seating will run $157.25, but there's not many left. VIP passes are also available, so see above if you're so inclined. The sixteen years long wait for Three Days Grace alone will be cause for excitement, but add in Finger Eleven's return and Royal Tusk, and you've got one hell of a Tuesday night out, so don't miss out on all of tomorrow's action in spite of the work/school night scheduling! Visit the above links for more details, and for a preview, here's Three Days Grace live!

Next up, I have reluctantly moved local alternative/hard rock band Handsome Sandwich to our inactive band links. While not at our one year inactivity threshold, I'm now inclined to believe that they quietly disbanded in late 2025, thanks in part to their "Collage" EP's abrupt release in September, their lack of any public updates since, and most members currently focusing on new projects. After a year's hiatus during the pandemic, guitarist Jesse Cook & drummer Johnny Belanger brought Handsome Sandwich back in the summer of 2021, but not as the genre-less cover trio that fans had known since 2017. Now with singer Taylor Emlaw in their ranks, they became favourites at local concerts for the next four years, including two Rotaryfest Stage 2 sets, tour runs in Southeastern Ontario, and their 2023 release party for "Deconstructed" at The Loft.

The band last played live at the Northern Vibe Festival in August. Since then, Johnny has been playing with ex-guitarists in both Eden Plague and The Golden Scoundrels while also joining the revived Stiffler's Mom offshoot Wheelhouse, Taylor is working on a new project with HeadFirst alum Raine Rancourt, and bassist Rafael Medina has moved back to his native Colombia, where he has joined the band Adios Celeste. Handsome Sandwich had a good eight year run locally in two very different halves, and they stood apart musically with a fun alt-rock sound and pointed lyrics. Best of luck to everyone (including James, Mitch, and Brandon) in the future!

We'll close today with a new/old video of local classic/hard rock cover quartet Soundcheck that made its way to YouTube in September of last year! This was uploaded to former drummer Glen Thomas' personal YouTube channel shortly before the band reunited without him, and it comes from Soundcheck's set at Toystock at the Grand Gardens in November 2022. In their fourth of five consecutive Toystock sets, Soundcheck were represented here by Glen alongside founding guitarist Terry Eaton, singer Cameron Oliver (who is not playing guitar here at all), and guest bassist Rob Gilmar, who frequently sat in for Paul Belair in the early 2020s (Jim Michaud would join the band permanently a few months after this gig). Soundcheck were filmed here by an uncredited attendee covering The Black Keys' "Lonely Boy" and Big & Rich's "Save A Horse (Ride a Cowboy)" to close their set.

Alas, this video was shot vertically, but we do get the unique visual of the filmer walking to the stage early on, and they do focus on Cameron as he roams the stage on the latter cover (also note the uncredited guest singer on "Save A Horse"). I admittedly don't have love for either of these cover choices, but the performances are lively and the crowd was receptive, so fans of the 2019-2025 Cameron era of Soundcheck will want to give these covers a watch below, and best of luck to Cameron in Nashville!

That's all for now, but definitely stay tuned for this month's YouTube Channel Profile next! Thanks everyone!

Tuesday, November 11, 2025

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Three Days Grace) & Exit 808 Updates!!

No, I didn't forget the big LOCAL CONCERT ALERT from yesterday morning, so here's what you should know about that, as well as some updates from a local band's recent Halloween gig!

Norwood, Ontario hard rock quintet Three Days Grace will make their long awaited return to Sault Ste. Marie on Tuesday, April 28th at GFL Memorial Gardens! Announced yesterday morning as part of the band's world tour in support of their new album "Alienation", this will be Three Days Grace's first appearance in the Soo since headlining at what was then the Essar Centre in December 2009, and third total after debuting at the downtown arena in January 2008. Of course, in that sixteen year gap since we last saw them, singer Adam Gontier left the band and was replaced by bassist Brad Walst's brother Matt, only for Adam to return full time last year with Matt sticking around, giving 3DG two frontmen. We never saw Three Days Grace with Matt Walst as the sole singer here, but they kept on racking up rock radio hits with him like "Painkiller", "The Mountain", and "So Called Life", so how will they sound with Adam singing too?

This won't be Matt's first time performing in the area though, as he fronted his old band My Darkest Days (of "Porn Star Dancing" fame) at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino in April 2012, while Adam fronted his own band Saint Asonia at The Dreammakers Theatre in February of last year, shortly before he rejoined Three Days Grace. No matter which singer/era of the band you prefer, it's awesome to see Three Days Grace coming back to the Gardens, especially with current hits like "Mayday" and "Apologies" in their back pocket, so don't miss out in five months' time! Joining them for most of the Canadian leg of the tour is Burlington alt-hard rock quintet Finger Eleven, in their first local concert appearance since opening for I Mother Earth at The Machine Shop back in April 2018, and their (at least) fifth total here, each one at a different venue. Since we last saw them, they just released their new album "Last Night On Earth".

Fans can expect a set full of classics like "Paralyzer", "One Thing", and "Good Times" in Finger Eleven's return to the Soo after eight years, so don't bypass them either! Edmonton hard rock quartet Royal Tusk will make their local debut as the opening act in April, and they have been building decent momentum with their radio-friendly brand of metal originals like "Aftermath" and "First Time" (no relation to the Finger Eleven song of the same name), and they should set things off on the right foot in the spring! No word on whether Rock 101 or 104.3 The Fox will be the presenting radio sponsor for this Live Nation concert, but both local rock stations have announced ticket giveaway contests. Public on-sale tickets go live at the in-person box office or online at this link on Friday at 10:00 AM, and tickets will start at $55 with VIP packages also being available. This will absolutely be an all ages concert, and a 7:00 PM start time is advertised.

Tuesday nighter or not, this will be a huge concert for local hard rock fans, and even if Three Days Grace were coming solo, the sixteen+ year wait alone (and all of the hits they've released since) will ensure a strong reception in twenty-four weeks' time! Visit the above links for much more on Three Days Grace and Finger Eleven's show at the Gardens next year, and get your tickets A.S.A.P., as they are guaranteed to move quick!

Let's close today with some new updates from Sault Michigan hard rock band Exit 808, starting with the clarification on their Facebook page that bassist Blaze Beairl was definitely at their Halloween weekend "Fright Night On The Bay" concert at The Back Bay Grill & Games at Bay Mills Resort & Casino in Brimley on November 1st. While not seen in videos from the event, they did share pictures featuring him in costume as a rapper, and as it turns out, he was trading off with new band member Brad Pringle throughout the night. Whether the two will juggle/alternate bass indefinitely or if Blaze will hop on other instruments in the future, I don't know, but as the band said, "(we) love our teenagers on stage!". Of note, singer Dillion Semasky appeared to have a mad scientist costume for part of the night but he did not have the coat on in the videos. Speaking of which, we have a new video to share with Blaze on bass, so what should you know there?

Uploaded to their Facebook page on Friday, this Brad and Amy-less cover of AC/DC's "T.N.T." also features guest singer Molly Escherich (as the other two videos did), and has her and Dillion trading verses. Filmed from a strong horizontal angle (if only for 39 seconds), this cover is well handled with the two singers adapting well without cloning Bon's vocal style! No word on how bar patrons were reacting to game 7 of the World Series, but if any Sault Ontarians were in attendance, I feel your pain! Check out Exit 808's AC/DC cover below, and stay tuned for more from them soon!

That's all for now, but stay tuned for more news and notes on the site in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

Sunday, October 29, 2023

YouTube Channel Profile Series: Sam Mick, NorthernFunko, And Josh Belleau's Channels

After a bit of a delay while we worked through Halloween weekend concert previews, here's this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! Continuing out spotlight on local metal, hard rock, and punk-focused YouTube channels that were randomly selected from our YouTube subscriptions, we're tripling up for October 2023 due to the first chosen channel only having one video, and the second only having two videos from the same band's concert set, so a third single-video channel was picked to fill it out. Each channel here ended up having videos shot at high profile local concerts from the late 2000s-mid 2010s, so here's what you should know!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sam Mick (http://youtube.com/@sammick6089)

Owner: YouTube user and Sault Ontario resident Samantha Mick

Channel Timeline: Launched on September 17th, 2012; Only video uploaded on July 2nd, 2016

Channel Summary: Sam (who sadly passed away in 2020, obituary linked here) was in attendance for Abbotsford, B.C. power pop/punk quartet Hedley's outdoor concert at The Yard on Canada Day in 2016, with her video capturing a memorable incident from the show where singer Jacob Hoggard called the mother of a girl (reportedly YouTube user stevie17058) caught texting during the show, using her own phone! He had done this at multiple shows, not just ours. Now, three different people uploaded video from this to YouTube, with C Auffrey getting the best quality and most complete video of the local occurrence, but Sam's captures the phone call side of things well also! For full disclosure, this video and concert came two years before the sexual assault allegations against Hedley and Hoggard were made public.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NorthernFunko's Channel (http://youtube.com/@northernfunko)

Owner: YouTube user NorthernFunko, possibly named Taylor, but I can't confirm anything else

Channel Timeline: Launched on January 25th, 2009; Videos uploaded on December 9th of that year

Channel Summary: This channel's only videos come from Norwood, Ontario hard rock quartet Three Days Grace's second and (to date) final concert at the Essar Centre (now GFL Memorial Gardens) on December 8th, 2009, where NorthernFunko filmed them playing "Never Too Late" and the slightly more popular "The Good Life". Though not as well attended as their 2006 debut here, it was a very entertaining concert (being a huge fan of Adam-era 3DG, I was at both), and the crowd response and energy are captured well on both of these videos! The choppy video quality, muffled audio, and somewhat jittery angle are forgivable to an extent given that these videos are almost 14 years old (hard to believe!), but more videos from both local Three Days Grace concerts are available elsewhere on YouTube.


------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Josh Belleau (http://youtube.com/@joshbelleau5068)

Owner: Former Garden of Bedlam guitarist Josh Belleau

Channel Timeline: Launched on May 26th, 2012; Only video uploaded that same day

Channel Summary: Josh's channel (distinct from his old Chainsaw666 channel) only features one video, and from a show that Garden of Bedlam didn't even play at. On May 23rd, 2012, Juno Award-nominated Ottawa grindcore band Fuck The Facts headlined at the former Canadian Nightclub, with Josh's video capturing that show's three local opening bands in performance order. These include Central Algoma death metal quartet For All That Is Lost playing most of "Ripped In Two", inactive local grindcore trio Shit Liver playing parts of five songs, and death metal quintet The Bear Hunters playing chunks of "Bloodthirst" & "Dominate". Given the age of the video, these come through pretty well today thanks to Josh getting some nicely varied angles, and while the staticy audio during Shit Liver's section, most songs being abbreviated, and the lack of Fuck The Facts are noted, this is a nice little slice of the local metal scene from over a decade ago!


------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! We're finally back to looking at a single video channel today, as our random selection has spotted us AshesToDustBand, the official channel of the short-lived early 2010s high school hard rock band Ashes To Dust! Look for that on or around November 26th, and for a Halloweeny news/concert preview post plus this month's CD review next! Thanks everyone!

Sunday, October 27, 2019

YouTube Channel Profile Series: 1djminer & wabaanimkii's Channels

It's now time for this month's YouTube Channel Profile Series entry, as we look at 1-3 YouTube channels featuring half or more of their videos with a local focus, be they on artists or concerts, in order to spotlight them for local readers and encourage new subscriptions. This month, our first randomly selected channel only had two distinct local hard rock-relevant video types, so we added a second channel with only one video to fill things out. We have some interesting content on both sides of the border today, including footage from a huge show here over a decade ago, so here's what you should know!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1djminer's Channel (http://www.youtube.com/1djminer)

Owner: YouTube user 1djminer, identity and hometown unclear

Channel Timeline: Launched on February 14th, 2007; Videos posted from January 25th, 2008 through March 5th, 2011

Channel Summary: This channel is solely devoted to live concert videos shot by 1djminer during the three year span it was actively used for video postings. While six of the 11 videos are from the first Three Days Grace concert at The Steelback Center (now GFL Memorial Gardens) on January 24th, 2008, the last five are from out of town concerts featuring Avril Lavigne, Matthew Good, and Bon Jovi.

Why You Should Watch: As one of the best public sources for this early Steelback Center concert featuring two massive names in modern hard rock, this is well worth checking out, while the latter out of town videos generally hold up for fans of those artists! Note however that 1djminer did not film opening act Econoline Crush, and there are a lot more videos from both this and Three Days Grace's 2009 show here on other YouTube channels, including this one that only focuses on their live shows at any location. Also, 1djminer has not visibly used this YouTube channel in over eight years.

Our Recommended Videos To Check Out:

Seether and 3 Days Grace - Broken-SSM: By far the channel's most popular video with over 1,000 views, this video is of co-headlining South Africa hard rock band Seether playing their hit ballad "Broken" at the Gardens in 2008, with then-3DG lead singer Adam Gontier playing Amy Lee for the occasion. The video quality's acceptable given the age, but the audio takes a sharp hit when the song gets heavier, unfortunately starting during Adam's solo verse. Nice to see footage of the local cover, which is well done, and videos of this particular version of "Broken" at other shows can be found elsewhere on YouTube! Other Seether videos shot by 1djminer are of them playing "Fine Again", "Remedy", and "Gasoline", though all have similarly distorted audio.


  
3 Days Grace - SSM (ROOSTER) Alice in chains cover: Regarding Three Days Grace's headlining set that night, 1djminer did film them playing (part of) "Pain", but the distorted, scratchy audio of the Seether videos recurs there. However, he did film Adam covering Alice In Chains' "Rooster" solo during their set, and the softer song and acoustic guitar fit the camera specs a lot better! A bit of a shaky angle, but Adam's rendition is really nice, and it was a fun surprise to see at this show 12 years back!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wabaanimkii's Channel (http://www.youtube.com/wabaanimkii)

Owner: YouTube user Wabaanimkii, identity unclear, though that is a recorded last name in Northern Michigan

Channel Timeline: Launched on March 1st, 2007; Videos posted on June 11th, 2013 & August 8th, 2016

Channel Summary: Aside from a silent parody short about a hunter, Wabaanimkii's only surviving video is of inactive Sault Michigan alt-metal band The Karstens covering The Deli Creeps' "Bend Up" during a set at Downtown Days in August 2016, playing at an outdoor stage at the corner of Ashmun Street and East Portage Avenue. Complete with a guitarist joining in mid-song, this is very nicely shot on a beautiful day, and while this isn't the heaviest song from The Karstens' repertoire, it's great to see unexpected covers like this in the E.U.P.! Note that prior Karstens covers of Buckethead and Flipper songs have since been taken down from this channel for unannounced reasons, though you can see more videos of them live elsewhere, including at the band's own YouTube channel.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! This series will return on or around November 26th when we profile another randomly selected YouTube channel, this time the channel from former Pixo Control frontman Mike Mikus, featuring lots of content from his old local band's run and his more recent solo work! Stay tuned for that, and for more news this week! Thanks everyone!

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

YouTube Channel Profile Series: HAVADDER, HockeyTraditionalist, And jjjjjeeeennnaa's Channels

It's now time for this month's YouTube Channel Profiles, as we continue our monthly spotlight on YouTube channels have at least 50% of their current content relating to local metal, hard rock, and/or punk bands, concerts, and events! All randomly selected as usual, we have three videos again this month after the first random selection (and the second) only had a single video each, but with clips from two concerts and a slideshow making use of a notable song, there's a lot to see, so read on below for this month's profiles!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HAVADDER (http://www.youtube.com/havadder)

Owner: A member of local classic/hard rock band Havadder's 2011-2012 quintet lineup, exact identity unclear

Channel Timeline: Launched on January 12th, 2010; Only video posted on February 6th, 2012

Channel Summary: These veteran local rockers began using this as their intended official YouTube channel during their brief quintet run in the early 2010s, when Havadder & the now-defunct Turner Up had four members in common. However, the only posted video, a cover of The Foo Fighters' "These Days", is copied from YouTube user Danabelle39's channel, which features an extra Tom Petty cover from the same show at The Nicolet Tavern (now The Rednecks Saloon) in February 2012. Featuring the band's entire current lineup (founding singer/guitarist Jason Roy, bassist Travis Sharpe, and drummer Scott McLurg) alongside then-guitarists Jason Nisbet & Robert Brown, this is a strong cover with Travis handling lead vocals, and the triple guitar attack comes together well, though the camera is slightly angled. This channel is now inactive, but more from this Havadder lineup can be found on YouTube and Havadder's own Facebook page alike.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HockeyTraditionalist's Channel (http://www.youtube.com/hockeytraditionalist)

Owner: YouTube user HockeyTraditionalist, real identity unclear, but I don't believe he's from Sault Ste. Marie

Channel Timeline: Launched on March 7th, 2010; Only video posted that same day

Channel Summary: The only video on HockeyTraditionalist's channel is of a slideshow of NHL game footage set to local/Toronto indie punk quartet Treble Charger's song "Brand New Low" from their 2001 album "Wide Awake Bored". Possibly inspired by the song's inclusion on the soundtrack of the video game NHL 2002 (which also featured "American Psycho"), the video is a well put together slideshow of hockey photos from circa the 2009-10 season, and the song itself is a solid mid-tempo number from Treble Charger's heyday! However, this channel hasn't been actively used in a few years, and if you just want Treble Charger, there are many other channels with more substantial band content.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
jjjjjeeeennnaa's channel (http://www.youtube.com/jjjjjeeeennnaa)

Owner: YouTube user jjjjjeeeennnaa, first name presumably Jenna, but full identity unclear

Channel Timeline: Launched on January 26th, 2008; Videos posted that same day

Channel Summary: Jenna's YouTube channel was launched to upload three videos that she filmed at the Three Days Grace-headlined concert at The Steelback Center (now The Essar Center) on January 24th, 2008. All running for under two minutes, Jenna filmed the Norwood, Ontario alt-hard rock favourites playing their songs "Get Out Alive" (preceded by a drum solo from Neil Sanderson), "I Hate Everything About You", and as embedded below, "Just Like You". Filmed from a far angle in the seating area, Jenna has a clear angle of Three Days Grace in action from their first of two stops here, and while the audio's a little distorted, they're solid in terms of footage from this show that's available online, especially if you prefer their original lineup! However, this channel has seen no visible usage since 2008.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! This series will return on or around May 26th, and after a completely random selection, we're again doing multiple channels due to the first having only one local music-related clip, but the next random channel had two distinct video types to fill things out with! With that said, we're looking at YouTube user cinnamoncubicle's channel (featuring a Treble Charger music video, ironically) and local hard rock quartet Skeyes of Seven's YouTube channel (featuring a live clip and two old studio tracks) next month, so look for that next month, and for more updates soon! Thanks everyone!

Monday, July 23, 2012

YouTube Channel Profile Series: GardenofBedlamBand, TheDimebagmikey, and taylortrecroce's Channels

A day later than I had hoped, but today, we have this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! For a second straight month, we're looking at three YouTube channels with a 50% or higher concentration of local metal/hard rock concert videos, as the first one we selected only had one video available. As usual in this series, we're looking at the videos, information, and reasons to check out said channel(s), and there's some nice quality stuff here, including some familiar local sights and more footage from a major local concert, so read on below for this latest installment, and if there's anything incorrect or missing, please let me know! (Edited on October 16th, 2013)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GardenofBedlamBand's Channel (http://youtube.com/user/gardenofbedlamband)

Owner: A member of Garden of Bedlam (my guess is bassist Evan Belleau), but the channel is credited to the band as a whole

Channel Timeline: Launched on December 2nd, 2008; Only video posted later that month

Channel Summary: At the time, this channel was intended to be the official YouTube channel for prominent local metal band Garden of Bedlam, who had publically launched in early 2008. Only one video was posted onto this channel before it fell inactive by the end of the year, and it has since been succeeded by two newer official channels, this one most recently. The only video posted on the GardenofBedlamBand channel was of Garden of Bedlam playing their song "Shallow" at the then-Lock City Grand Theater on December 17th, 2008 as part of the Sick Jams For Sick Kids fundraising concert, where they & four other bands performed to raise money for the Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto. The camera isn't well centered when stationary, and the heavy music sounds distorted at points, but this is a nice early look at Garden of Bedlam in their first year of activity, and it's notable on that basis! Just remember that their newer channels are better sources for up to date video footage.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TheDimebagmikey's channel (http://youtube.com/user/thedimebagmikey)

Owner: Former Skull After Betrayal/Devastation of the Heavens frontman & Bear Hunters guitarist Mike Vincent

Channel Timeline: Launched on April 1st, 2010; Videos posted between June 2011 & January 2013

Channel Summary: Though still in active use, Mike has only posted two metal videos onto his YouTube channel, both coming on June 2nd, 2011, during his most recent active live band Skull After Betrayal's heyday. The videos are of all 4 members of the band playing their originals "Enemy" & "Dagger to the Heart" (which is embedded below) at a jam session around that time period, and they showed their skills well here! Though the members are each partially obscured by their placement in the video, they have some well played metal in store for the most part, and the lack of vocals in these videos don't hurt the quality, as Mike's live vocal work wasn't as varied and refined as it could have been. With nice video quality and audio clarity to boot, these are some quality videos from Skull After Betrayal's run, and look out for introductions of the band members at the end of the "Dagger to the Heart" video! (Note that Mike's only video since 2011 is this clip of him investigating a horde of Pokemon figurines, which works for what it is)


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
taylortrecroce's Channel (http://youtube.com/user/taylortrecroce)

Owner: Soo Thunderbirds announcer Taylor Trecroce, who also works with game night staff for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds

Channel Timeline: Launched on January 25th, 2009; Videos posted on December 9th of that year

Channel Summary: Taylor's only videos both come from Norwood, Ontario hard rock band Three Days Grace's second headlining concert at The Essar Center from December 8th, 2009, and they're among the best YouTube videos from this concert that I've found! He got a solid angle of 3DG playing their songs "Never Too Late" and "The Good Life" (embedded below, as it's heavier), though hands can get in the way, and the camerawork is very shaky. The audio's pretty clear, though it does sound slightly muffled and tinny here and there, and "Never Too Late" is harder to hear thanks to the song's quietness combined with singing fans. It's great to see more good video footage from the last non-contest won hard rock headlining show at The Essar Center, and Three Days Grace fans and attendees of this concert would be wise to check Taylor's videos out!


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope you guys liked this month's YouTube Channel Profiles! Next month, we'll be looking at multiple channels for the fourth time in the last 5 months, as the first channel I randomly selected only had two distinct videos, so I added one more to fill things out. So next month, keep an eye out for As It Stands drummer John Mignacca's YouTube channel and YouTube user sarahforcexo's channel, so if you like Out Of The Mouth Of Babes or Bret Michaels, pay close attention to next month's installment, which should go up on or around August 22nd! That's all for now, but stay tuned for a new news post tomorrow! Thanks everyone!