It's time for my review of last night's Locals Attack concert! With 6 local bands (including 4 relatively new bands to most in attendance), there was a lot of new young talent and experienced artists gathered on this snowy Monday at The Canadian (in it's second straight multi-band concert event in two days), so how was each band? Read on below to find out!
The first band last night was local/North Shore metal band Crimson Crusade in their Canadian Nightclub debut, and being that this was the first time I've seen them live, there were some unknowns. Yes, their new second guitarist is Pillory frontman Robert Sartini (as I had surmised), but their earlier sound indications hinted at mostly covers, so is that what we saw? Nope, as they blasted through a set of original songs that definitely seem inspired by the band Death, particularly from frontman Devon Lucier's vocals, whose high toned growling was definitely Chuck Schuldiner-esque! Good timing too, and compared to their original version of "Left For Dead", the improvements vocally are clear. The band shown solid talents on their songs (including "Vanquish the Tyrant" and "Lost Memories"), and though a couple of their songs are simpler in structure, there's promise here, and the Death-connections set them apart from many other local death metal bands! If they can loosen up their stage presences and work on some more technical material, they can go far!
Second was the first of two debuting bands, that being new local quintet Lazer Queen, so what can we say about them? Well, their set was all covers, and though they don't quite cross the hard rock line, they did play a wide variety of stuff, ranging from Franz Ferdinand, Jet, and White Stripes to Deep Purple, Queens of the Stone Age, and Hole material! The members were talented enough, and Kate Drew's singing suited the songs well for the most part, so hopefully we'll see her on stage again sooner or later! Some of the covers did sound a bit messy in parts, and I found that Benn Garside's keyboard work, though very good, didn't fit on songs that didn't originally have a keyboard component. He also didn't seem real happy on stage yesterday, I wonder what was up? Jonathan Tiberi & Josh Hatherley seemed to be in good spirits though on guitar and bass, and they had some fun chemistry at times! I'm curious to see Lazer Queen move forward locally, and even if they aren't the heaviest band, they hopefully can work out some of the kinks!
Tomorrow's other debuting band (also featuring Lazer Queen's Jon Tiberi & Bret Shuttleworth) was new local thrash quartet Pillory, so what'd we get out of their first ever show? Wall to wall thrash, including some long and technical stretches, some blistering riffs, and lots of headbanging! For a first set, they seemed to get a great crowd response on originals like "Cringe at the Cross" and "Shattered War", and their bookending covers of Slayer and Megadeth were also really good! Their biggest issue during their set was with guitar audibility, as I could barely hear Andres Duchesne for much of their set, and some of the solos blended and sounded a bit muddy, which is something that's hopefully amended for their next show. As well, we finally heard Robert Sartini on vocals for Pillory's originals last night, and he wasn't bad for the thrash genre, but the volume could have been louder overall. Very good first set, and it's nice to see a thrash band without death growling locally, but I hope their next set corrects some of the audio issues!
The second half of the night (after a bit of a delay) began with the original crash band themselves, Sykotyk Rampage, in their first Canadian appearance since the Kiss Battle of the Bands three years ago! Their set last night, which seemed somewhat longer than most of their recent shows, was different from it's inclusion of more songs we don't hear much live, while condensing most of their set-ending drinking songs into a medley to start their set. I wonder why they did that, especially as those songs are generally among their most popular? As a result, recently infrequent songs like "Sweet Young Thing" and "Never Ever Life" made it into their set, and by the end, more fans were into their more aggressive material, including Dirk Becker dropping the guitar to go into a fury during "Lowest of the Low"! The members were on form from their more recent concerts, and it was good seeing Dirk sing more, so for what it was, their alternative blues/hard rock stylings went over nicely! It would be nice to see the traditional drinking songs back next time out though.
Second last on the bill was new local punk trio The Northern Tragedy, and while I missed their debut last month, how did they do last night? Their set largely reminded me of drummer Terrence Gomes' earlier work in Good Morning Gorilla, with an energetic and catchy punk sensibility that seemed to go over well, even if fans didn't crowd the floor for much of their set. I'm impressed with the amount of originals they already have in their arsenal (such as "Dragondrums" and "Excuse My Choices"), and while I wasn't overly familiar with their skills going in, guitarist Mike Ivany and bassist Corry Rideout have talent on these songs! They could work on their stage presences though, they were fairly stiff for much of the set. Terrence and Mike both are capable punk singers too (though I think Mike's voice is slightly more aggressive), and while The Northern Tragedy are a far cry from Changing Waves musically (where've they been lately?), this new band should continue to leave an impact locally if they keep at it!
Headlining last night's show was Central Algoma death metal standouts For All That Is Lost, who were back after a three month break from the stage! Not only were they back, but their white masks also returned after not having been used since the spring, which is cool to see and helps set them apart! Luckily, they didn't have much stage rust after the break, and they even had a couple newer originals to go along with established favourites like "Viscosity of Blood" and "The Return of Dionysus", and even a surprise cover or two! You know a set is brutal for moshing and fan activity when you get roughed up by even a small crowd (someone basically clotheslined by shoulder blades at one point), and with F.A.T.I.L.'s skills, I can see why fans would react so well! Tyler Sperry's growling was as good as ever, and all of the guys showed good chemistry, with the double-faced Ben Deslauriers showing particularly good talents! It's great to see F.A.T.I.L. back, and hopefully they'll pop up on stage again before 2012 ends!
Overall, this was a fun concert that could potentially give us a glimpse into the local metal scene's active original bands in 2013 and beyond! I remember that late 2010 was also really big for new band formations and debuts, so could this be the start of a new cycle? It'd have been nice to have seen a larger crowd though, but I know the weather wasn't particularly calm. I did get a bunch of photos, so click here to check them out (or visit our Facebook page), and here's my videos of metal performances last night! Those include Crimson Crusade's original "Left For Dead", Lazer Queen's cover of Deep Purple's "Black Night", Pillory's song "Fatal Woods", Sykotyk Rampage's "Never Ever Life", and F.A.T.I.L.'s newer song "Segregate" (at least, I think that's it's name!)
That's all for today, but stay tuned for a new news post tomorrow! Thanks everyone!
Hey guys, I'm sorry that I couldn't make Bushplane Musical Madness last night, but my cat fell ill yesterday and I was watching him and keeping him comfortable and all that last night. Barring any downturns, I will try and be there for at least some of Toystock, so I hope to see you there! That said, we have another news-ish post today, and we have another extended concert preview for a show going down tomorrow night! It's longer because there's a lot of new, returning, and debuting bands and lineups among the 6 bands, so we need to touch on everything adequately! We also have three assorted shorter news stories at the end, so read on below for what you need to know!
Tomorrow night, six local metal and punk bands will descend upon The Canadian Nightclub for The Locals Attack, the second such concert under this branding from local concert promoter/singer J.D. Pearce, following March's "Dead In The Van" event! Unlike that concert however, tomorrow's is full of newer bands, with two making their live debuts, and only two who've played live with any recent regularity, so this could be a big moment to see some of the local metal/punk scene's future! The headliners tomorrow will be Central Algoma death metal notables For All That Is Lost in their first concert in three months, and it's great to see them back after a while off the stage! The only returning band from Dead In The Van, this brutal and hard hitting quartet have been hyping their return well, and I'm hearing big things about their set, so don't miss it tomorrow night! In descending order for the opening bands, we also have new local punk trio The Northern Tragedy (featuring Changing Waves bassist Terrence Gomes on drums) in their second local concert and Canadian Nightclub debut, and they should have a solid set of punk rock originals tomorrow as well!
Also tomorrow are local alternative hard rock/blues quartet Sykotyk Rampage in their second show in a 3 day span (following yesterday's Bushplane Musical Madness gig), and look for the Beckers and company to deliver a unique and thoroughly sykotyk set of improvised hard rock madness! Also, guitarist Dirk Becker will be providing sound tomorrow through the "Sykotyk Sound Company", similiarly to J.D.'s other recent shows. Prior to them, we also have the debuting Pillory, the new local thrash metal band featuring frontman Robert Sartini (ex-Roadkill), guitarist Andres Duchesne (ex-Bear Hunters), bassist Jonathan Tiberi (Late & Loud), and drummer Bret Shuttleworth, and it's about time we had a straight thrash metal band around here again! Their videos are very promising, and hopefully they can channel that into a successful concert debut tomorrow as well! Second on the bill are local/North Shore metal quartet Crimson Crusade, in what may be their first public concert in Sault Ontario since last year (though they played at a F.A.T.I.L. event in Laird this summer.)
Though not a consistently visible sight in recent months, Crimson Crusade have promise, so look out for some explosive covers (and maybe originals?) from them tomorrow! Also, this should be their first gig with their new guitarist "Rob #2" following the departure of Brock Pinder earlier this year, but the new guitarist's full identity has not been revealed yet (possibly Robert Sartini from Pillory?) The opening band will be new local hard rock band Lazer Queen (formerly Nite Ruin), who don't have an online page yet, but I can tell you a bit about them! Their lineup features singer/guitarist Kate Drew (ex-Apocrytha), the aforementioned Jonathan Tiberi on guitar, and his Late & Loud bandmate Benn Garside on keyboard (similarly to his old Glass Statues work), alongside new additions Josh Hatherley (also of Late & Loud) on bass, I presume, and Jon's Pillory bandmate Bret Shuttleworth on drums. My source for the updated lineup is Jon's personal Facebook page, and Josh & Bret replace the previously announced Harley Syrette & Anthony D'Agostini in Lazer Queen's lineup for unannounced reasons (though Harley indicated to me that he never fully joined this band.)
Lazer Queen sound promising in their own right, and it will be nice to see a female singer and a keyboardist in a heavier band again locally, which should set them apart if they last for the long term! Note as well that Hamilton hardcore/groove metal band Skynet were briefly advertised as headliners for this show, but they can't make it in time, but if you want to help this brutal djent-influenced band play here soon, contact them at this location! Admission for this ALL AGES concert will be $6 ($1 a band), and a 6:00 PM start time is advertised. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page! This should be a very interesting concert for both the established and newer bands alike, and I encourage everyone to come down to rally the new bands and mosh out to them all, and being all ages, don't let that stop you from rocking out! For a preview, here's F.A.T.I.L. playing "Hades, Lord of the White House" at The Canadian in May!
Finally for now, here's three assorted shorter news stories from the last little while! As usual, these are in alphabetical order by band or event name:
Local death metal bands The Bear Hunters & Shit Liver will return to the concert stage next month! ....just not in the Soo. Both will make their first concert appearances outside of the Algoma District on December 21st in Sudbury for the "Doomsday Massacre", where they will join Quebec's Cryptik Howling & 7 other Northern Ontario bands, including Thekillingfield & many others. Click here for details, and hopefully we'll see them on the local stage before then as well!
The Sault Music Scene's old forum was taken down last month. It was a casualty of the recent migration of all of host Forumer's IPB-based forums to their upgraded Yuku format. Administrators have the option of relaunching it, but it's been replaced twice over since the mid-2000s (now as the 705 Video Magazine forums), so I wouldn't bet on the full archives coming back. This is disappointing for people who liked browsing the old posts, but follow the 705VM above for it's current form!
If you're wondering why we didn't post any videos from the Theory of a Deadman/Adelitas Way show on here, it's because none of the heavier opening bands got a public YouTube video that I've found. That said, Theory of a Deadman were subject to videos that you can watch at the links here and here, so if you like their rock sounds or missed the show, give them a look!
That's all for now, but I hope to see you guys at Toystock! Thanks everyone!
It's time for another news post at the SMS, and it's neatly divided in two subjects: new videos and concert updates, but first, I wanted to note that the Saigon Hookers show at The Rockstar Bar next week likely will not be featuring Garden of Bedlam as openers due to scheduling conflicts, but as of this writing, the official Facebook event page hasn't been updated to reflect any lineup changes. Thanks to drummer Derek Turner for letting me know, and I'll keep you guys posted! Now, to the bulk of this post, including new videos from two local bands and updates for an upcoming all ages event, so here's what you need to know!
First, let's start with the latest updates for the Locals Attack concert at The Canadian Nightclub on November 26th, as the final band lineup and remaining details have been announced! There will be 6 bands total, and of the two final added bands, one is making their live debut, that being a new local band named Lazer Queen! Yes, they were briefly called Nite Ruin before this current name was finalized. From what I was told, their lineup features singer/guitarists Kate Drew (The Freshwater Sirens, ex-Apocrytha) & Jonathan Tiberi (Pillory, The Daybreak Johnnies) alongside Jon's old Late & Loud bandmate Benn Garside on keyboard (as he played in The Glass Statues) and ex-Skull After Betrayl drummer Anthony D'Agostini. Jon also told me that the band's bassist was No Arrow/Half Past alum Harley Syrette, but after chatting with Harley the other day, his confirmation as a band member might have been premature, so if I hear anything confirming their bass situation for the 26th, I'll let you guys know! Jon also told me that their genre is "heavy rock" and will be covers-centric for their debut, but originals are possible for the future.
Promising lineup for Lazer Queen so far, and it'll be nice seeing a female fronted heavier band again locally, and one with keyboards! I might be wrong, but I think the last Sault Ontario metal/hard rock band to play live with a permanent keyboardist (not a guest) was Woods of Ypres with BrĪ¹an Holmes in late 2008, so that alone has been a while coming! Stay tuned for updates on them as they roll in, including hopefully an online page or something similar! The other new band for this show is local/Central Algoma death metal quartet For All That Is Lost, who will be making their first public concert appearance since the F.A.T.I.L. Requiem in Laird in August! The only returning band from Dead In The Van in March, it's great to see F.A.T.I.L. back on the local stage, as it's been far too long to see their brutal death metal originals live! They & Lazer Queen will join Sykotyk Rampage, Crimson Crusade, Pillory, and The Northern Tragedy for this show full of newer local bands & young talent, and keeping with the theme of 6 bands, the cover charge will be $6 for this ALL AGES show, and everything starts at 6:00 PM on November 26th. Click here for more details, and stay tuned for more updates on the next Locals Attack concert as it all comes in!
We'll close this post with new videos, starting with a new song from local grunge band Haggith! The last of their recent influx of new videos on their YouTube channel, this is a studio recording of their original song "75" from their planned second album "Deuce" (which is projected for a 2013 release.) A composition by drummer Mike Haggith that he sings lead on, this is also the first publically released Haggith studio track to feature bassist Caleb Cachagee, and it is sort of an upbeat rock number! I won't go too in depth until our formal review of the album, but check out "75" below, and stay tuned for more Haggith updates at they come in!
And finally for today, here's the newest video from ApocalyptiCDistroyeR frontman Jesse Middaugh! After a five month drought for new videos or updates from the band or his solo videos, Jesse uploaded this new take on the Tom Petty song "Learning To Fly" onto his YouTube channel on Halloween, which is a redo of an earlier video he posted in April. His vocals are somewhat scratchy, but the guitar work matches what I know of this song, which is admittedly minimal. I prefer Jesse's heavier and original material, but he does good here, so check out his new solo video below!
That's all for today, but stay tuned for our review of "Yooper Bars" and more news next week! Thanks everyone!
Happy November everyone! With the Halloween season sadly behind us, we're beginning a new (and hopefully busier) month with this post featuring previews of the only two hard rock concerts I know of this weekend, and leading off, TWO LOCAL CONCERT ALERTS! These new Sault Ontario gigs are pretty notable in their own respective rights, and they'll add well to what I hope is a busier local concert month, so read on below for what you need to know!
Did you miss the Garden of Bedlam-headlined Rad Zone birthday bash on Tuesday night? Well, pray the roads are better on November 10th, as the local metal standouts will be back at The Rockstar Bar that night as openers for The Saigon Hookers' return to Sault Ontario! The Kitchener hard rock quartet (and good friends with the former members of Lion Ride) will be back at The Rockstar Bar one week from Saturday for their third ever local concert (and first in over 16 months), and it'll be great to see them back in town! Their mix of classic rock, metal, and punk has attracted a solid local following and a few entertaining albums, and they should be welcomed back up north next weekend! However, rather than the inactive Brad Example & The Role Models, the openers will be the aforementioned Garden of Bedlam, and their metal fury will be welcomed on the 10th, in what might be the first time they've played with another band at The Rockstar Bar! A 9:00 PM start time is advertised for this show, you must be 19 to attend, and I imagine a cover charge of around $5 is in order. For more details, visit the official Facebook event page!
This should be quite an intense concert, and it's great to see both of these bands back upstairs at The Algonquin for differing (yet similar) reasons! I absolutely 110% plan to be there, so keep an eye out for any possible updates as they roll in, and just in a final Garden of Bedlam note, their album "Everything Will Die" is finally available on iTunes! You can pick it up there at this link for $16.90 or $1.69 a song, so if you want an official mp3 copy of it, head there to download it!
Also in new concerts, The Locals Attack once again on November 26th! Taking on the sub-branding of the Dead In The Van all ages concert on March 4th, this will be a very similar concert in many ways, as it's also a J.D. Pearce-promoted ALL AGES concert at The Canadian Nightclub with a wide array of local metal & punk bands, so who's currently confirmed? Four bands so far (none yet from Dead In The Van), including new local thrash band Pillory, local/North Shore death metal trio Crimson Crusade, new local punk band The Northern Tragedy (featuring Changing Waves bassist Terrence Gomes on drums), and "blue Chinese metal crash punk" quartet Sykotyk Rampage, which adds to a diverse lineup of bands so far! In terms of milestones, this is Pillory's first announced live concert, Crimson Crusade's first public concert since the departure of guitarist Brock Pinder, theirs & The Northern Tragedy's Canadian Nightclub debuts, and Sykotyk Rampage's first Canadian Nightclub appearance since the Kiss Battle of the Bands almost three years ago, and there's a lot of newer & established talent in these bands, so don't miss them all (and more) on the 26th!
More bands are being sought to fill out spots on this lineup, so if you're at all interested, message J.D. on Facebook at this location or via the Facebook event page to see if your band can get on! I know J.D.'s hoping for a few high school age bands (especially given it's all ages status), so if your band is, don't miss out on this opportunity! For reference sake, Dead In The Van: The Locals Attack in March featured Frightlight, As It Stands, Redundant, For All That Is Lost, Inhuman Methods, and "Evil" Greg Callaghan, alongside the former Late & Loud and the now-London based Valentine's Day Massacre, so there's a hint for what we could expect on November 26th. Start times, band order, and cover charges have yet to be announced, but stay tuned to the above links to stay in the loop! It's great to see another all ages multi-band concert like this on the horizon, and kudos to J.D. for getting another one in the works, which will add to an already promising November for local metal concerts! Stay tuned to the SMS for further updates as they come in, and get your bands on this!
And finally for today, here's a preview for a pair of heavier concerts on this quiet concert weekend, as Powerslug are back at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Michigan Kewadin Casino TOMORROW NIGHT & SATURDAY NIGHT! Thanks to Kewadin Casino's entertainment page, their stops there are always welcome for advance coverage (given their lack of an online page to plug them), but regardless of the notice, the two Chris' & Bob should deliver a fun night of heavier covers for their fans at the Soo Kewadin branch this weekend! Admission should be free for tomorrow & Saturday's shows, with 21+ age limits and 10:00 PM-ish start times likely. For more details, check the above links! These should be some solid concerts to help kick off November, so don't miss them if you're craving some hard rock in the Eastern U.P. this weekend! For a preview, I was going to share their only public video here (from a show in Ludington earlier this year), but it was deleted from Facebook for unknown reasons in recent months, but hopefully media of theirs turns up again soon, and trust me, Powerslug have the talent and heaviness to rock Kewadin this weekend, so don't miss out!
That's probably all for today, but stay tuned tomorrow for this month's "Where Are The New Albums?" post, a video-heavy new post in the coming days, and more! Thanks everyone!
The first band last night was local/North Shore metal band Crimson Crusade in their Canadian Nightclub debut, and being that this was the first time I've seen them live, there were some unknowns. Yes, their new second guitarist is Pillory frontman Robert Sartini (as I had surmised), but their earlier sound indications hinted at mostly covers, so is that what we saw? Nope, as they blasted through a set of original songs that definitely seem inspired by the band Death, particularly from frontman Devon Lucier's vocals, whose high toned growling was definitely Chuck Schuldiner-esque! Good timing too, and compared to their original version of "Left For Dead", the improvements vocally are clear. The band shown solid talents on their songs (including "Vanquish the Tyrant" and "Lost Memories"), and though a couple of their songs are simpler in structure, there's promise here, and the Death-connections set them apart from many other local death metal bands! If they can loosen up their stage presences and work on some more technical material, they can go far!
Headlining last night's show was Central Algoma death metal standouts For All That Is Lost, who were back after a three month break from the stage! Not only were they back, but their white masks also returned after not having been used since the spring, which is cool to see and helps set them apart! Luckily, they didn't have much stage rust after the break, and they even had a couple newer originals to go along with established favourites like "Viscosity of Blood" and "The Return of Dionysus", and even a surprise cover or two! You know a set is brutal for moshing and fan activity when you get roughed up by even a small crowd (someone basically clotheslined by shoulder blades at one point), and with F.A.T.I.L.'s skills, I can see why fans would react so well! Tyler Sperry's growling was as good as ever, and all of the guys showed good chemistry, with the double-faced Ben Deslauriers showing particularly good talents! It's great to see F.A.T.I.L. back, and hopefully they'll pop up on stage again before 2012 ends!
