The Sault Metal Scene: kittie

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Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Pop Evil Concert Updates, New Brutally Fatal Material, And Much More!!

(Updated at 5:25 PM) Before we begin today's post, I wanted to send our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Kittie bassist Trish Doan, who suddenly passed away earlier this week at the age of 31. Further details on this sad news can be found on Kittie and metal websites. Local fans will recognize Trish best from her appearances with Kittie at both of April 2012's tribute concerts in memory of late Woods of Ypres frontman David Gold, including the Ypres Metal Fest at The Canadian Nightclub, as well as the "Woods V: Grey Skies & Electric Light" release party in Toronto, both shortly after she rejoined the band. Kittie fans in general will recognize her from her two stints with the all-female London metal quartet since 2005, including appearances on two of their studio albums. Trish was a key member of Kittie for the better part of a decade, and fit in nicely during their local show five years back (as the packed crowd will attest), and I'm sure fans won't forget her any time soon. R.I.P. Trish!

Now, today's post covers some other recent news updates, including a new "album" posting and more updates, but to lead off, we have some big news on a major upcoming concert in the E.U.P.. Here's what you need to know!

Though we are less than two weeks away from showtime, there has been a surprising lineup change for the Pop Evil-headlined concert at The Dreammaker's Theater at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino on February 26th, as Ohio hard rock quintet Red Sun Rising have dropped out of the remainder of the Rock 'n Roll Now Tour. The reason for their exit is somewhat vague, yet varies depending on the source. Red Sun Rising say they were removed from the remaining dates and it was out of their control, local promoters Allstar Promotions say that they removed themselves but were unsure of the circumstances, and Pop Evil haven't acknowledged R.S.R. at all since, though you can delve into fan-posted rumours there if you want. All I know is that it's definitely disappointing to see Red Sun Rising drop out, especially with their rising profile and two #1 rock radio hits, but hopefully they come back to the Soo at some point in the future! Replacing them for the rest of the tour & on the 26th are female-fronted Detroit hard rock quintet Kaleido, while Los Angeles hard rock quartet Badflower have been promoted to the middle slot.

Kaleido have a fun, pop-influenced modern rock sound that should be a nice addition to this show, so make sure to be there early for their set! Also regarding this huge concert, Kewadin Casino posted this 90 second commercial promoting the show onto their Facebook concerts page last month, which clips together portions of music videos for each band alongside concert-related graphics, including an Allstar Promotions logo that I've never seen elsewhere. Obviously, this is outdated now, given the presence of Red Sun Rising, but it's well done, so give it a look below, and click here to get tickets for just $23.50, which are still available from the seventh row and back on the outside sections!

Also today, Sault Ontario death metal duo Brutally Fatal have finally posted what they're calling their new EP onto the Blood Shed Weekly YouTube channel yesterday! "Blood of the Devil" had been in the works since March but various delays forced it to be cut down to a 15 minute release with 9 songs. As you'd expect from a Blood Shed Productions metal act, these songs tend to be very short, and most of the titles have names I won't repeat here, but it's worth noting that vocals are seemingly used more sparingly than we've seen on past Brutally Fatal recordings, and when we do hear them, they're shouted, not growled. That might appeal to fans of Austin McCrae's old band The Revolution, so keep that in mind! Oddly, the description notes that they "can't remember" who played bass on the tracks, though whether they said that in jest or not is up for debate. Also, keep an ear out for train whistling on the song "Chugga Choo Choo".

No word on when/if this will see a paid and/or physical release, but fans of Brutally Fatal's minimalist metal should be happy, so listen to "Blood of the Devil" if you want below, but keep in mind the provocative song titles!

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 news unrelated to this month's Pop Evil show, Allstar Promotions noted on their Facebook page that they confirmed a new show on Friday, which is apparently "one of the biggest shows (they) have done", and Rock 101 will announce the show on Tuesday, with tickets going on sale at Kewadin next Friday. Intriguing, and we'll let you know when it's announced! Also, they are gauging support on Facebook toward potentially bringing British post-grunge quartet Bush (of "Glycerine" & "Machine Head" fame) to Sault Michigan, so if you'd like to see that show, voice up there!
Novelty/clothing retail store chain Spencer's Gifts is coming to The Station Mall, as per their website! Though not directly linked to what we cover at the SMS, I mention it here for two reasons: They sell a large amount of music and band merchandise (metal & punk among them), and there is some speculation on social media that they are taking over HMV's location after they close for good by the end of April. In any event, it's great to have Spencer's opening in Sault Ste. Marie, as it's a fun store full of odd and creative novelty items, so keep watch for it at The Station Mall in the coming months! Also, HMV's liquidation sales are now up to 40% off.
Sault Michigan classical metal project Theatre of Night has posted a new instrumental song to their Reverbnation page entitled "The Drowning", and this is a fuller original with a dark & ethereal ambiance, strong guitar work from Steve Giles, and an orchestral bite that long time fans should easily take to! Give it a listen at the above links, and stay tuned for more from Theatre of Night!

That's all for today, but stay tuned for weekend concert previews next! Thanks everyone!

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Monday, April 9, 2012

Ypres Metal Fest Review!!

Hey guys, it's finally time for my review of Saturday night's Ypres Metal Fest, so what went down at our local David Gold memorial concert? This extended review should tell you, but first, I wanna apologize for both the delay of the review (11 video files take time to upload) and for the lack of a Wolven Ancestry video, but I'll get to that later on. So the concert on Saturday was, at it's peak, comparable in attendance to the Kiss Battle of the Bands Finals in 2009, and it was great to see so many new and old faces out in David Gold's memory! There was plenty of band merchandise for sale from the performing acts, including Woods of Ypres shirts and CDs, and I can proudly say that I bought a tribute concert t-shirt, Woods of Ypres toque (with the band logo in "gold"), and "Woods V" on CD for the cause, and the free tote bag, pick, and bottle opener were nice touches! As rumoured beforehand, each band covered at least one Woods of Ypres or Proposition 86 song during their sets, and some featured special guests, but we'll get to the individual covers as the review goes along. Now, to the actual bands, so here's my thoughts and observations!

Most of the bands had abbreviated sets of around a half hour in length, so I'll be a bit more concise with my thoughts than usual, but there's still a lot to say! The opening band was local deathcore quartet The Valentine's Day Massacre, who launched the Ypres Metal Fest in style with a cover of "Halves & Quarters" from "Woods IV", and they did a solid job on it! Their set featured other originals like "Vampiric" and "My Sweet Delilah"", and they shown good brutality and aggression to kick things off, though it was sorta odd seeing Kyle Umgeher behind a normal drumkit. Andrew Angelic's guitar work was great as usual, and they set the tone well for the bands to come! They were followed by the last local band to ever open for Woods of Ypres, death metal quintet The Bea r Hunters, in what was actually the first time I've seen them live in 8 months! Their set began with a cover of part 2 of "Kiss My Ashes (Goodbye)" from "Woods V", though with bassist Justin Lam on lead vocals and singer Nik Deubel on third guitar. Well played, but Justin's singing needs work, and Mitch Sirie's guitar was tuned way too low. Their originals were about as good as I expected, ranging from the brutal "Collapse the Sun" to their newer original "Deception", and they got more fans on the floor for their set, which was good to see! Pretty good all around, but hopefully I'll see a longer set from them soon!

Third were local grimecore notables Shit Liver in their 2012 debut and first concert in 4 months, and they knocked off 11 songs during their set, including two brand new songs ("Pennotration" and "It's Not My Problem"), and if you can appreciate their crusty and grimy take on punk and death metal, you'd have had no problem moshing out to their set! In fact, they were the first band to get pit activity last night, which is a good sign! Their Woods of Ypres cover was of "The Shams of Optimism" from "Against The Seasons", and they made it their own to end their set with! They're still an acquired taste, but Shit Liver definitely left their mark last night, and that works for me! Fourth were the night's only non-metal act, local punk trio Redundant, but frontman Justin Langlois left a great impression on Saturday by telling some stories of his and David's time together in bands during their teen years, and Redundant covered songs like "Tomorrow" by Silverchair and "Say It Ain't So" by Weezer that Justin & David played together back in the day! Redundant sounded at their punk best last night, including on Green Day & Scary Uncles covers, along with their set closing cover of an old Proposition 86 cover featuring Giwakwa's Jason Bourcier on vocals, and it was great to see them on Saturday!

The final local band of the evening was Garden of Bedlam in their own 2012 debut, and they unleashed a very entertaining set of their high quality originals! Though shorter than normal for them, Garden of Bedlam played hits like "Against The Grain" and "Torment" from their 2011 album "Everything Will Die" for the huge crowd at The Canadian, and they were on form completely from what I'm used to, especially with Josh Belleau's excellent guitar work and Buzz's always impressive singing! Their Woods of Ypres cover was an early highlight of the evening, as they were joined by special guests for their cover of "I Was Buried In Mount Pleasant Cemetery", including Woody Sims/ex-Sense of Truth guitarist Steve Myers on the keyboard and Blues Harvest's Josh Norling on the saxophone. This was an interesting choice of a cover, but they all handled it extremely well and played it excellently, which was a great way to cap off their set!

Sixth on the lineup on Saturday was the first out of town band, North Bay black metallers Empyrean Plague, and if any band called to mind Woods of Ypres' black metal roots, it was these guys! I've never seen Empyrean Plague live before, but they displayed some nice brutal extreme metal and kept lots of fans up front to rock along with them! Mike Burge's black metal singing lived up to their heavy attack, and I was impressed with Dave Strba's lead work as well! If there was any flaw, it was that their set seemed to go by way too fast, and I'd like to see more of them, but their set ending cover of Woods of Ypres' "Shedding the Deadwood" from "Pursuit of the Sun & Allure of the Earth" was pretty good! Mike's singing didn't flow as well as I hoped, and I honestly would rather have seen them do something like "Awaiting The Inevitable", but it worked nicely, and the fans responded in kind! Nice work overall, and hopefully Empyrean Plague come back soon with a longer set!

Following them was the special acoustic set by Joel Violette & Rae Amitay from Woods of Ypres' final lineup, and even though bassist Brendan Hayter couldn't make it, local fans were surprised to see Gates of Winter guitarist Bryan Belleau (Woods' lead guitarist from 2008-2010) come home to join Joel & Rae for most of their set! The three of them switched instruments often for their songs, ranging from Woods of Ypres songs like "Silver", "Shedding The Deadwood", "Song of Redemption", and "A Meeting Place & Time", to a cover of Katatonia's "Omerta" (I believe), and though the quality varied, the emotions were very real, and the performances were top notch! Joel's singing range was honestly limited, but when Rae took over lead vocals, she was surprisingly really good, and when she sang on "A Meeting Place & Time", she shown a lot of potential as a clean singer, even throwing in black metal vocals when she sang "I hope it's cold every day where you are"! The highlight for me was when Gypsy Chief Goliath frontman Alex "Yeti Bones" Petrovich joined the Woods alumni for a cover of "Shards of Love (Hurt Forever)" that everyone on the floor started singing along with, and that was a surreal and very cool moment that I have my fingers crossed completely that someone filmed! This was the emotional highlight of the evening, and hopefully Joel and Rae continue to work together musically in the future!

Surprisingly, the next band on the lineup was Chicago doom/death veterans Novembers Doom, despite being the advertised headliners. No matter, as their set made me an official fan of theirs, because they tore it up! Possibly the most similar to late-era Woods of Ypres material of the bands on Saturday, these guys delivered some very heavy and moshable material, and up to that point in the night, they had the most raucous reaction up front! Paul Kuhr's vocals ranged from sorrowful doom melodies to devastating death growling, and on songs like "Harvest Scythe", they were even more impressive and heavy! Their words about David before their set were also really nice, as was their cover of Woods of Ypres' "Wet Leather" from "W4", which got a great reception from fans! I hope that Novembers Doom can come back to Sault Ontario under happier circumstances in the future, as I was really impressed by them, and I'll definitely wanna hear more of their death & doom sounds live!

After them was, again surprisingly early, London metal quartet Kittie for one hell of a set! The people around me seemed to agree, as it was a claustrophobic's nightmare of metalheads on the floor! It was as congested during Kittie's set as I am with this cold! Though some may still see them as the all-girls band who did "Brackish", they've grown and developed so much since then, and they blown the roof off the joint with brutal originals like "I've Failed You", "Never Again", and "Mouthful of Poison", along with an emotional version of Woods of Ypres' song "Everything I Touch Turns To Gold (Then To Coal)" from "Woods IV", and they sounded great for the whole set! Morgan Lander was spitting venom on vocals, and her and Tara McLeod's guitar work was solid, though I was hoping for more guitar solos. Mercedes Lander's drum work was fast and brutal, and Trish Doan's bass lines kept things heavy on the low end throughout! Morgan also shared some nice things about David and how much she missed him, which was awesome, and hopefully Kittie come back to town at some point, after the reaction and support they got on Saturday!

With Kittie's set done by midnight, a noticeable number of fans left after they wrapped up, but they should have stayed for the final three bands, starting with Windsor stoner metal outfit Gypsy Chief Goliath! They had an amended set due to time constraints, but they had lots of time to deliver some solid music, which reminded me of if Down were a jam band... and had a harmonica player. Solid stuff, and Alex Petrovich's vocals flowed well with their material! Nice different sound compared to the bands around them, and their cover of the "W4" song "Suicide Cargoload (Drag That Weight)" got a great reception! Following them after some very noticeably delays (and using Hallows Die's drumkit) was Sudbury black metal standouts Wolven Ancestry, in their first local concert since opening for Woods of Ypres in the fall of 2008. I know they performed a good set, but I think they need a do-over, as the sound quality of their set was off, with Lord Defiler's singing almost inaudible and the music almost blending together. Plus, their set was slashed to just three songs due to the aforementioned delays, including the removal of their full Woods of Ypres cover, though I heard elements of "A Meeting Place & Time" late in their last song.

I enjoy Wolven Ancestry, and I'd love to see them come back to town soon for a full set without any sound or time concerns. If they do, hopefully they can do their Woods cover in their next Soo stop, as I didn't know what would happen and failed to get a video from their set as a result. My apologies to Wolven Ancestry and their fans, I'll make it up somehow! The delays forced the final band, Toronto death metal quartet Hallows Die, to play just two songs, and both after 2:00 AM with the house lights on, but their set was fast and brutal, and I was glad to finally see them live, even if briefly! For their final song, Hallows Die were joined by Woods of Ypres guitarist Joel Violette and Ypres Metal Fest booker Rich Moreland for a cover of "The Northern Cold" from "Woods III", and they tore it up to end the night, and with some gracious words thanking everyone to cap off the night, the Ypres Metal Fest ended nicely! Though delays hampered later set times, and the sound occasionally had some concerns, this was an amazing night of metal, and I'm so glad I didn't use my sick card and not go! By the end of the night, I was exhausted and overdue for Nyquil, but it was all worth it to pay tribute to David Gold's memory and all he's done for independent music, local metal, and metal in general!

Part of me still thinks that, with David's messages on "Woods V", he may not have approved of the tributes to him, but he is certainly deserving of all of these great tributes to his memory and music, and hopefully somehow, somewhere, he enjoyed what went down on Saturday and on Thursday. A special thanks goes out to David's family, Rich, the crew and workers who kept things running this weekend, plus all of the bands, Jason, Steve, and Josh for their guest spots, and Joel, Rae, and Bryan for coming to the Soo for this amazing event! I hope that it returns next year, but even if it doesn't, it was something very special, and I'm very glad to have went and supported the Gold family, metal, and David's memory! R.I.P. David!

To close this post, here's all 11 videos that I shot on Saturday (apologies again to Wolven Ancestry, and to the bands whose songs I missed the beginning of.) That's all for now, but stay tuned for a new news post tomorrow! Thanks everyone!

Friday, April 6, 2012

The Ypres Metal Fest Extended Preview!!

Today's post is focused entirely on one major concert preview for TOMORROW NIGHT, as one of the biggest local metal events of 2012 goes down tomorrow at The Canadian Nightclub for the planned first edition of the Ypres Metal Fest! Stemming from existing plans for a yearly metal festival between Dismembertainment's Rich Moreland and late Woods of Ypres frontman David Gold, this will not only be the realization of that goal, but it will also double as the local tribute concert in David's memory following his tragic passing in December. It's the second of two official David Gold tribute shows (following yesterday's "Woods V" CD release party in Toronto), and both shows share many bands, themes, and goals. The Ypres Metal Fest is Dismembertainment's first concert in about four months, but they've outdone themselves in securing a 12 band lineup featuring 6 bands based out of town, and from what I understand, most (if not all) of the bands tomorrow night will be covering David Gold compositions, be they from Woods of Ypres or his pre-Woods local band Proposition 86, which should be intriguing to say the least! So, who's on tap for this massive tribute concert event?

Going in rough order from the poster, the headliners are Chicago doom metal notables November's Doom, who headlined the Toronto tribute show and have shared the stage with their good friends at Woods of Ypres numerous times in the past on their American tour runs. Their mix of death metal, doom, and Gothic influences have helped them achieve a noted following, and they'll fit perfectly as headliners tomorrow night! Co-headlining the Ypres Metal Fest are gold selling London all-female metal quartet Kittie, fronted by David's close friend Morgan Lander, and since their 1999 debut album "Spit" became a major success, they've just gotten heavier and faster, so you know they'll be worth the wait tomorrow in their local debut! I'm curious to hear their Woods of Ypres cover especially, knowing Morgan & David's friendship, and hopefully they'll hit the perfect balance between mourning and face melting tomorrow! North Bay black metal standouts Empyrean Plague will also hit The Canadian tomorrow night for their first local concert appearance since the 34th Rosie metal night last September! Despite being the last confirmed lineup addition, their brutal black metal sounds will be welcome, as they surely were at the Woods of Ypres concerts they opened, so don't miss their fast paced "Against The Seasons"-esque set!

Also on the bill are Windsor stoner metal outfit Gypsy Chief Goliath, and though they're not an outward genre fit with the black, doom, and death metal surrounding them, they have an interesting slower and catchy metal sound that Down fans will appreciate, so don't sleep on these guys tomorrow night! Toronto melodic death metal quartet Hallows Die will also hit The Canadian tomorrow in their third local stop in the past year, following sets opening for Farewell To Freeway & Napalm Death under the Dismembertainment banner in 2011! I've heard rave reviews from their local sets last year, and hopefully they shred some brutal originals tomorrow night, as they have at the Woods of Ypres concerts they've opened in the past! The out of town bands are rounded out by Sudbury black metal standouts Wolven Ancestry, who are the only non-local band not at last night's Toronto memorial show, but they'll absolutely rock the Ypres Metal Fest tomorrow! Fronted by Mark "Lord Defiler" Howitt (whose company Archaic North Entertainment are helping produce the Woods of Ypres tribute CD), Wolven Ancestry are local favourites stemming from many local appearances in the mid-late 2000s, and tomorrow's set marks their first Sault Ste. Marie appearance in 3½ years, ironically at a show headlined by Woods of Ypres!

Notably, a special acoustic tribute set is also planned at this concert featuring Joel Violette and Rae Amitay from Woods of Ypres' final lineup, though details on it specifically are scant. Will we see special guests or surprise covers? I don't know, but it's fun to speculate over!

The local contingent of this concert is headed up by the 2012 debut of Garden of Bedlam, in their first concert since their "Everything Will Die" CD release party on Boxing Day (and frontman Buzz's back injury that postponed their Rockstar Bar gig last month.) They should deliver a great set tomorrow night, and it'll be good to see them again no matter what, so don't miss their metal fury! Local punk standouts Redundant are also scheduled, and though they might seem like an anomaly, frontman Justin Langlois was a very good friend of David Gold's since childhood, and that alone makes them perfect to be on this concert, so expect some great music from them tomorrow night! Musicians who opened for Woods of Ypres at their last local concert last March will also feature at the Ypres Metal Fest, including ex-State of Misery singer Steve Rhodes (with his current deathcore band The Va lentine's Day Massacre) and the very last local band to open for Woods of Ypres (melodic death metal quintet The Bear Hunters, in their Canadian Nightclub debut) so expect fast and furious sets of their quality original material tomorrow evening, and hopefully they'll leave huge marks!

The local bands are rounded out by grimecore trio Shit Liver in their first concert set of 2012 after a 4 month break (and their first Canadian Nightclub appearance), so it'll be a long time coming to see these guys brutalize the stage! Check out all of the above links to hear the entire lineup for the Ypres Metal Fest! With all of that said, how can you go to this major concert event? Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at The Canadian Motor Hotel's front desk, Northland Music, Bossy's Pub N' Grub, or through Rich Moreland, David's sister Marie, and possibly some of the local band members playing tomorrow (contact them on Facebook if you can!) Tickets will be available at the door pending availability, the show starts nice and early at 5:00 PM, and unlike last night's memorial show in Toronto, the Ypres Metal Fest is ALL AGES!! Yes, if you're 18 or younger, you can go, and it's still licensed for those of you legal to drink, so hopefully this ensures a huge turnout! Like last night, all proceeds from tomorrow's event will go towards covering David Gold's final expenses and the David Gold Music Scholarship at Sault College, and from what I can gather, band merchandise (including "W5") will be on sale tomorrow as well. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!

This is going to be one of the biggest metal events we've ever had locally, and it's all for a great cause! Sure, David sang about not wanting to be posthumously immortalized, but he's far from undeserving. All of these bands are very talented and entertaining, and whether it's the rememberances of David, the Woods of Ypres covers, or just the glory of 9 hours of metal, this is definitely a can't miss event! Hell, I'm currently battling my third cold in four months, and I'm not missing this for the world! Will we see any surprises, special announcements, or anything like that tomorrow? We shall see, but all I know is that this could be the best concert for the best cause of this year, and I will 150% see you guys there tomorrow evening! Stay tuned for a new news post tomorrow featuring more on this event and some other stories from the local scene, and for a preview, here's November's Doom's video for their song "Harvest Scythe", but definitely check out all of tomorrow's bands to get hyped up for the Ypres Metal Fest! Thanks everyone, and see you guys there at 5:00 PM tomorrow!

Saturday, February 4, 2012

LOCAL CONCERT ALERT (Ypres Metal Fest) Plus Lots Of "Woods V" Updates!!

It's time for a very exciting post at the SMS which is split into two related halves, one dealing with a major upcoming album release, and the other dealing with a major LOCAL CONCERT ALERT, so here's all that you should know!

The David Gold memorial concert in Sault Ontario is indeed official, and I can now tell you guys some official details on the event! Titled the Ypres Metal Fest, it's being held by Dismembertainment in their first announced metal concert of 2012, and quite a stellar lineup of metal bands will gather at The Canadian Nigh tclub in honour of late Woods of Ypres frontman David Gold on April 7th, so here's who to look for at this huge concert event! London, Ontario all-female metal quartet Kittie (fronted by David's girlfriend Morgan Lander) will headline this huge concert in what should be a fast and furious set of extreme metal! Though best known for their gold selling 1999 debut CD "Spit", Kittie have released much more (and heavier) material since then, and they should deliver a brutal set for fans in attendance on April 7th in their local debut! Joining them at the Ypres Metal Fest are veteran Chicago doom metal band Novembers Doom, who played with their friends in Woods of Ypres at a few of their American tour dates in recent years. Their death metal and gothic inspired sound is a very good fit at this concert, and they should impress all who attend with their heavy and brutal metal assault!

Also, Sudbury black met

al standouts Wolven Ancestry will make their long awaited return to Sault Ontario on April 7th, after a three and a half year absence, having last played here in November 2008 at The Grand Theater (with Woods of Ypres on the lineup too, ironically!) Wolven Ancestry have always been one of Northern Ontario's highest profile extreme metal bands, and it'll be great to see them back in the area after so long! Toronto melodic death metal quartet Hallows Die will make their third appearance in the area in the past year as well, last being seen opening for Napalm Death at Feedback in October. After sharing the stage with Woods of Ypres a few times themselves last year, they should also deliver a solid and brutal set of their original material on April 7th as well, so don't miss them! The out-of-town lineup will be rounded out by Windsor stoner metal band Gypsy Chief Goliath in their Sault Ontario debut, and they have a unique sort of sound you don't get much of in the area, and they'll be sure to leave a good mark on fans at the Ypres Metal Fest! There will be local openers as well, and I know who's tentatively lined up, but they're not 100% finalized yet, so stay tuned for official word on that front!

Timeslots, admission prices, and other more specific details on this major concert have not been revealed yet, but given it's location, I assume this will likely be a 19+ event. Stay tuned for more official details as they come in, and thanks to Dismembertainment's Rich Moreland for telling me about these first details and giving the go-ahead to announce them! This is shaping up to be a huge concert for both the local metal scene and in David's memory, and if you love metal, do yourself a favour and reserve April 7th on your calendars! I know Rich and David had been planning for a while to launch an annual metal festival in the Soo, and it's a shame that this is happening without David around to help bring it to fruition. I'm sure it'll feel like he's never left when this all goes down though! Stay tuned for updates on this show as word comes in, as Rich is outdoing himself with this great lineup of bands, and hopefully it's a huge hit to ensure future Ypres Metal Fests in the area!

Also of note as a related concert, a David Gold tribute show will take place two days before the Sault show on April 5th in Toronto at a venue to be announced, and it will serve as the "Woods V: Grey Skies & Electric Light" CD release show. Specific details on it haven't been announced beyond a post on the official David Gold tribute Facebook page, but it'd be cool to see former Woods of Ypres members play at that in some fashion. I'll keep as you posted as word comes in for it!

Also in Woods of Ypres-related news today, the band's label Earache Records recently addressed many of the lingering questions that fans have had about the release of "Woods V: Grey Skies & Electric Light" and some other future band notes. In direct reply to a question from fan Chris Schneck on their "Ask Earache" blog, you can read the full post at this location, but here's the new and major stuff addressed in that post. At the time of David Gold's death on December 21st, "W5" was being mixed by British producer John Fryer, and their new lineup was scheduled to play their first ever overseas gigs next weekend, including sets opening for Evile in Manchester, England and Xerath in Nottingham, England, and though David's passing prevented either from happening, you can get details on what would have been at this link. The "Ask Earache" post briefly noted David's downbeat and world-weary outlook in December phone interviews prior to his death, and later discussed what to expect from the "W5" release. The North American release for the CD will take place two months after the official release on February 13th due to longer pressing plant lead times over here, so although it won't appear in physical stores until April, the American release date does coincide better with the Ontario tribute shows!

The extra track "Keeper of the Ledger" was also addressed, and it was noted that it wasn't in the free leaked copy of "Woods V" so it would be an album exclusive, which is why the second "Kiss My Ashes Goodbye" track (which doesn't look like it will be on the actual "Woods V" release) replaced it in the free copy we got in December. The track listing was also altered from what we downloaded to better reflect David's preferences for the album, and "Ask Earache" also noted that no band photos will be present in the packaging, as David hadn't chosen which ones he specifically wanted in the booklet. Though not addressed in the post, I've read on Woods of Ypres' forum that the "W5" t-shirts that are being sold on Earache Records' online store along with the CDs originally had a "David Gold, 1980-2011, R.I.P." message on the back (as seen here), but it was later removed at the request of David's family. Seems odd to me, but hey, if it's what they want, it's better to honour their request! Finally, the "Ask Earache" post noted that they still hope to re-release Woods of Ypres' first three albums under the Earache umbrella in 2012, though it's not known if "Woods 4.5", any other older releases or singles, or any unreleased material will see the light of day through Earache Records. Check the above links for the new "Woods 5" updates!

It's very nice of Earache Records to offer an honest and detailed answer to many of the "Woods V" questions we've had recently, and hopefully we'll hear a lot more about this album and any future posthumous news on Woods of Ypres this year! There's a lot of exciting stuff to come, and it's sad to know that David isn't here to be a part of it, but he still lives through his music! That's all for today, but stay tuned for more news and notes from David, Woods of Ypres, and anything else in the local metal scene in the next week and beyond! Thanks everyone!